#2. 162

Pure euphoria. When it comes, you never forget that moment. On an early October afternoon, A’s fans everywhere experienced that phenomenon.

We now return to October 3, 2012 for the final game of the 2012 regular season. A game that would decide the American League West. The A’s were taking on the Rangers, with their records tied at 93-68.

To really tell the full story of 162, I must start from the beginning of the season and then work back to the end.

After a disappointing 2011 season which saw an A’s team collapse under then manager Bob Geren, A’s GM Billy Beane fired his former best man, who clearly did not have what it takes to be a manager. Beane made Bob Melvin the interim manager for the rest of the year, and Melvin did enough to get the job outright. 

Then the offseason came, and Billy Beane decided to tear down the team and start over, once again. First came the Trevor Cahill trade, Beane sent Cahill to the Diamondbacks for three guys who at the time we had never heard of: Ryan Cook, Jarrod Parker, and Collin Cowgill.

Then came the Gio Gonzalez trade, Gio was traded for more guys that we had never heard of: Derek Norris, AJ Cole, Tommy Milone, and Brad Peacock were sent to Oakland. And lastly, the A’s sent their closer, Andrew Bailey and Ryan Sweeney to the Red Sox for Josh Reddick, Raul Alcantara, and Miles Head.

With all these moves, to go along with every single free agent leaving the A’s (except for Coco Crisp), experts from around the league were predicting that the A’s were going to lose 100 games in 2012.

Right on the edge of Spring Training, news came in that shocked the baseball world, the A’s had signed Cuban defector, Yoenis Cespedes which was a surprise to just about everyone. Still, no one in their right mind was giving the A’s a chance to do much of anything in 2012.

And as the season began, the team at times looked dull and hard to watch. Though somehow, these guys were hanging in there. And right after the All-Star Break, the A’s had the best month of July in franchise history, and now the playoffs didn’t at all seem crazy. Experts continued to expect the A’s to collapse down the stretch, and that collapse never came. Even with the suspension of Bartolo Colon and the horrifying injury to Brandon McCarthy, the team just wouldn’t die.

With 10 games to play, the A’s had just left New York after losing two out of three to the Yankees. They were in the second wildcard spot, two and a half games ahead of the Angels, while being one game back of the Orioles who owned the first wildcard spot. In the division race, the A’s trailed the Rangers by 4 games. With the A’s headed to Arlington to face the Rangers in a pivotal four game series, it seemed that the A’s had to at least get 3 out of 4 to have any chance of winning the American League West. The first game of that series turned out to include one of Bob Melvin’s biggest head scratchers of the year, in a tie game in the 9th inning, Melvin brought Tyson Ross in to pitch the 9th inning. Ross did not pitch many meaningful innings in 2012, so this move was beyond puzzling. And the way the inning went on, Melvin was not rewarded for bizarre faith in Tyson Ross, as this is what happened to the batters he faced: single, single, sac bunt, intentional walk, single (game over). Adrian Beltre had appeared to give the Rangers the win that nearly put the A’s division hopes out of sight. As the standings read that the A’s were 5 games out of the division lead, with 9 games left to play.

The next night provided the A’s a pivotal win, George Kottaras broke a 2-2 tie in the 10th inning with a home run off Mike Lowe to give the A’s a 3-2 victory and bring them closer to a playoff spot. The next night saw the A’s win again, this time no dramatics were needed as the A’s teed off Martin Perez to win the game 9-3 and almost put that first game of the series out of their minds. The final game of that series provided no such relief, as the Rangers blitzed Travis Blackley and beat the A’s 9-7 to push the division lead back to 4.

After that game, many thought the division race was over. And with 6 games left, and the division deficit at 4 games back, it was hard to see a scenario where the A’s could possibly pull this off. Travis Blackley posted this apology tweet after that horrible start in Texas.

Then the A’s seemed to have caught fire, the A’s swept the Mariners in a 3 game weekend series at the Coliseum to create a simple scenario for the final series of the 2012 Regular Season: 3 games against the Texas Rangers, win one and you’ve clinched a playoff spot, win all three and you’re the division champs.

The first game of that series, the A’s got the job done and ended the Angels season in the process. A celebration on the field ensued.

One win down, I attended the second to last game of the season. It would be rematch of that last game in Texas, it would be Travis Blackley on the mound for the A’s vs Matt Harrison of the Rangers. Many of us, including myself expected this game to be the one that ended the division race. And I was so happy that I was wrong, Travis Blackley dominated the Rangers with 6 strong innings, and only giving up one run. Then he turned it over to Doolittle, Cook, and Balfour to seal the win and make game 162 a winner take all for the division title. Travis Blackley became a folk hero for A’s fans on that night, and I consider that game one of the best regular season night games ever played at the Coliseum.

The game would start at 12:35, the decision was made that I had to skip class for this game. Just like the night before, the heat continued to roll into the Coliseum making it a scorcher for all in attendance, ironically, the heat seemed to will the A’s on in an odd way, the A’s seemed to feed off that heat and the crowd did as well.

Another sellout crowd piled into the Coliseum during work hours on a Wednesday afternoon. It would be AJ Griffin vs Ryan Dempster in front of a raucous crowd in Oakland.

The top of the first would end with no Rangers runs, but the alarm bells were starting to sound about AJ Griffin. It took him 26 pitches to finish the inning, and he seemed to be living dangerously with a lot of his pitches. It was clear from the first time an A’s hitter got into a 2 ball count how restless the crowd was going to be this afternoon, hanging on every pitch, the crowd was like a bomb about to be detonated. After Coco Crisp made the first out of the game, the A’s got three consecutive hits, Stephen Drew would single, Cespedes would single, and then Brandon Moss would double down the line to give the A’s an early 1-0 lead. The inning would end however with the A’s stranding Moss and Cespedes at second and third, so there were groans in the crowd about missing a huge early opportunity.

Griffin and Dempster would both face little trouble in the second, but the action wouldn’t rest for very long. The inning started with a leadoff bloop single from Ian Kinsler, and that situation would get even more concerning when Josh Hamilton would single with one out to bring Kinsler to third with the ever dangerous, Adrian Beltre coming to the plate. Beltre would deliver with a single right past Josh Donaldson at third and that would tie the game at 1. Then came Nelson Cruz who continued to struggle, and the A’s had a chance get out of the inning with no more damage, Cruz hit a cue shot to short right field but Cliff Pennington couldn’t make the catch and all he could do was throw out Beltre at second for the second out of the inning with Hamilton advancing to third. With how far Hamilton was off the bag, it would’ve been an easy inning ending double play, instead the inning continued for the Rangers. And it would be Michael Young who’d make the A’s pay by lining a two strike pitch down the line that would bounce off the chalk and allow the Rangers to take a 2-1 lead with runners now at second and third. The damage would not let up, David Murphy would then bloop one between Reddick and Crisp that made it 4-1, when would it end? The Rangers must’ve finally felt calm after losing 6 of the last 8 and that wouldn’t be the end of it. At that point, Evan Scribner, the A’s long reliever started to warmup in the bullpen. The next at bat provided an “ARE YOU KIDDING ME?” moment on what appeared to be harmless pop fly turned into a nightmare, A’s catcher, George Kottaras couldn’t make the play and as a result, everyone was safe. What on earth was going on? Then on the first pitch to Geovany Soto, it was now 5-1 Rangers after Soto singled in Daniel Murphy. And after that, AJ Griffin’s day was over.

Luckily for the A’s, Scribner would only need one pitch to end the inning as Kinsler grounded out but the damage was already done. 

For some reason, it didn’t feel at all as if the A’s were down 5-1. Everyone sitting around me just looked around and said, “Alright, we’re just gonna come right back.” Those thoughts started to go away when the A’s had a one-two-three inning in the bottom of the third.

Out came Scribner for the fourth, and more trouble was about to come the A’s way. The inning would start with Elvis Andrus grounding out and Josh Hamilton striking out, but then Adrian Beltre hit a sharp single, which would then be followed by a Nelson Cruz double which would make the alarm bells sound off once again. Next up was Michael Young, who already provided one devastating hit today, but he wouldn’t do it again, and on the second pitch of the at bat, Young hit a screamer to the right side of the infield, but Brandon Moss reached up and ended the threat and gave the Coliseum a huge sigh of relief.

It was clear that if the A’s were going to come back in this game, it was gonna have to start soon. And what would happen next in this half inning is still something that many have had difficulty believing. Brandon Moss would start the inning by walking on four pitches, and now the belief in the team would strike up again with just that. I know it sounds crazy, but with all the factors swirling around, you felt like that was all they needed. Sure enough, I was right. Reddick would then crush a pitch to the gap in left-center and it would crash off the wall, Moss would race around third and now it was 5-2 and all of a sudden, that deficit didn’t seem so daunting. The crowd rose to their feet, and the chants of “Let’s Go Oakland” started to echo throughout the Coliseum. Then Donaldson came up, he didn’t waste any time, he chased the first pitch and lined it into centerfield for a base hit, Gallego would hold Reddick at third and now with first and third and nobody out, the crowd got even louder.

Rangers manager, Ron Washington then told the bullpen to start warming up Derek Holland, who’s usually one of the Rangers’ best starting pitchers but today, he was available in the bullpen. Seth Smith was the next man up, and with two strikes, Seth Smith would continue the rally by lining one to center that would get down and allow Reddick to walk home and make it 5-3. The crowd was now at a frenzied level, it was unbelievable, and it just wouldn’t stop there. With Too $hort’s “Blow The Whistle” blaring across the Coliseum PA, Ron Washington would walk out of the dugout and make the move for Derek Holland, ending Ryan Dempster’s day.

Everyone around me started to say one thing, “They’re desperate, if this move doesn’t pay off, they’re screwed. Not just today, but in the wildcard game as well.” With a lefty now in the game, Bob Melvin brought in Derek Norris to pinch hit and face Derek Holland. Norris would swing at the first pitch and hit in the hole on the right side of the infield, but Ian Kinsler would make a great play and throw Norris out for the first out of the inning with both runners moving up a base. Holland must’ve felt very confident after the next at bat, as he’d get Cliff Pennington to pop out for the second out of the inning. The confidence wouldn’t last long, one pitch to Coco Crisp and it would leave the body completely. Coco Crisp lined one down the right field line and once it hit inside the chalk, the stadium erupted, both runners scored easily and Coco ended up at second. The comeback was on, 5-5. The A’s had come all the way back, and now the feeling in the stadium was that there was now way the A’s could lose. Stephen Drew would then work Holland for a walk to set up the single craziest play I’ve ever witnessed. Two outs, two on, with Yoenis Cespedes coming to the plate. On a 3-1 pitch, Cespedes hit what looked like a can of corn to shallow centerfield, everyone thought it would end the inning but then Josh Hamilton appeared to have gotten under it and then… THIS HAPPENED

If you weren’t in the building, you were shortchanged by how loud the crowd was the moment Hamilton dropped the baseball. As a result, Coco scored and Stephen Drew would score as well thanks to running on contact and now the A’s were ahead 7-5 in a ridiculous turn of events.

Brandon Moss would groundout in the next at bat, but the A’s had all the momentum going their way, and a frenzied crowd at their backs to support them.

Evan Scribner then threw a one-two-three inning to give the A’s a huge shutdown inning to keep the momentum flowing. And with a two run lead, it would keep flowing in the next half inning. It would start with a one out single from Josh Donaldson, and after Seth Smith grounded out, Donaldson would move to second with two outs with Derek Norris coming to the plate. Norris would cue one up the middle but Elvis Andrus couldn’t get to it and he deflected the ball into centerfield, and that deflection allowed Donaldson to score easily and make it 8-5 A’s which must’ve seemed like a mountain to climb for the Rangers with all the momentum in the A’s sails.

From this moment on, there are certain flashes from the rest of the game that need to be detailed before it is all said it done. They are moments that fire me up to this day, and I’m sure they do the same for you too.

We flash forward to the top of the 6th with two outs, Josh Hamilton is at the plate, and Bob Melvin as brought in Jerry Blevins to face him. And on a 3-2 pitch, Blevins snuck a high fastball by Hamilton to strike him out and end the inning, another moment where the crowd went wild.

Then there was the top of the 7th, after Blevins gave up a single to Beltre, Melvin brought in Ryan Cook who once said that he couldn’t think straight coming into that game. And that was clear when Nelson Cruz doubled off the wall. As Cook described it, “The crowd carried me through that inning.” With runners at second and third, Cook got Michael Young to chop one to third and Donaldson looked Beltre back and fired to third for the first out. Then, Cook would fool David Murphy and Mike Napoli with sliders to end the inning and once he walked off the mound, Cook yelled into the air and the camera caught this tremendous outburst of emotion. The A’s were now 6 outs away from winning the AL West.

Poor Josh Hamilton. This next flash occurs in the bottom of the 8th, and once again comes at Josh Hamilton’s expense. With two outs in the inning, Sean Doolittle was in the game. Doolittle’s pitches were simple, three straight fastballs and Hamilton swung through all of them and struck out, and then Sean Doolittle added a yelling outburst of his own which echoed what everyone in the stadium was doing.

To be honest, the game never felt safe until of the bottom of the 8th, then it just felt like the biggest party on the planet. And this moment started after the first at bat of the bottom of the 8th, with Grant Balfour preparing to rage in the bullpen, Alexi Ogando hung a breaking ball out over the plate and Derek Norris reached down and got it and the ball just kept carrying and carrying until it landed on the well of the out out of town scoreboard for a solo home run to make the game 9-5 and continue the insane sound of the crowd. The crowd that day was different, it was something that so intimidating that you were just happy to be apart of it.

And the party was just beginning, the wheels would clearly start to come off Alexi Ogando to go along with the Rangers as he walked Crisp and Cespedes to load the bases for Brandon Moss. Ron Washington would bring Robbie Ross in to face Moss, and that would do no good for the Rangers. Moss wasted no time, he swung at the first pitched and lined it over the head of Kinsler into the gap in right-center, it would easily score two but then Nelson Cruz booted the ball and that allowed Cespedes to race around third and make it 12-5 A’s. TWELVE! The door had just been blown off.

Alright, time to get to the moment of the clinch. First, we must show footage of the greatest RAGE ever. Seen HERE. I’ll let that speak for itself, it was beyond insane, that’s all you need to know. Three outs away. Grant Balfour barking after every pitch got the first out by making Adrian Beltre fly out. Then came Nelson Cruz, and Balfour threw two fastballs by him, and then made him look silly by throwing him a slider, strike three. One out away, and here comes Michael Young. And four pitches later, Michael Young skied one to center, the crowd actually went silent for a split second, then once the ball fell into Coco Crisp’s glove, the crowd went back into complete pandemonium. AL WEST CHAMPS. For the first time since 2006. What a team.

As Coco caught that ball, I got up on my chair and fell into my friends as beer was sprayed all over everyone around me. It was a wonderful feeling, I was so happy to be there, and once I could think for a second, I started thinking about where we were in 2011 when we fired Bob Geren, and how far we had come.

I’ve talked to people who had been going to games since the late 80s, and they said that the crowd that day was the best they had ever seen. And I believe it, I can’t imagine a better crowd than that one.

Some of you may disagree with where this game is on this list, but I want to hear your thoughts in the comments.

Thank you, for allowing me to reminisce on this wonderful game. See the full game HERE.

Stay tuned, the conclusion of our 25 Greatest Oakland A's Wins countdown comes next week with #1!

-- Wes

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