Alex Hall

Pub trivia Quizmaster. Former baseball writer for @voxmedia @SBNation @athleticsnation. UC Davis alum. Tallest guy in the room.

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

@pimpHO87 Haha, well on the bright side, Trivia Night is back! Luna Loca in Danville, on Wednesdays at 7pm.

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

I have just been laid off by Vox Media, after 11 seasons covering the Oakland A's for Athletics Nation.

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

Thank you everybody for your kind words and support, it all truly means a lot to me. This happened so suddenly and I'm still processing my feelings, as well as what my next steps might be, but the one thing I can say for sure is I'll make the best of it.

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

Liam Hendriks:
- DFA'd in 2018
- All-Star in 2019

Paul Blackburn:
- DFA'd in 2021
- All-Star in 2022

Pitchers DFA'd by A's so far this year who cleared waivers and remain in the organization:
- Sam Selman
- Adam Kolarek
- Miguel Romero

[White Sox on CHSN @CHSN_WhiteSox]

“I had to take a driving test when I [came] over [to America]. I won’t have to take a test if I want to get a gun. That’s stupid. Whoever thought that was a great idea is an idiot.” – Liam Hendriks

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

Imagine wanting to attract the youth market to your sport, and thinking the way to do that is an 8:30am Sunday baseball game on a channel they maybe don't already get. Because two things kids love are waking up early on weekends and paying extra for stuff they already paid for.

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

@raiderjmb Plus, if Laureano isn't on third base, then the infielders might be playing deeper and catch Murphy's bloop. Sometimes things work out! But statistically that crooked number is extremely rare for them, and it took two lucky breaks just to get it.

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

The #Athletics lineup isn't scoring, because they aren't getting on base OR hitting for power. Could some small-ball help mix things up? They tried a handful of bunts and steals last week and got a few runs out of it.
https://t.co/238xTEJU5I

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

@raiderjmb Then after Murphy's single, they had runner on 1st and still nobody out. Andrus could have bunted him to second, instead he hit a GIDP. Next two batters hit singles, d'oh. Could have had another run. Having Andrus bunt is a much easier call than Laureano.

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

@raiderjmb I sure would have bunted Laureano there. It worked out nicely anyway because they HBP'd a .150 hitter, but that's not a sustainable game plan.

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

For the first time all season, the #Athletics are using the same lineup for a second game in a row. For their first 38 games, they always switched up at least one spot the next day. Not certain, but pretty sure they also used 38 distinct batting orders during that time.

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

@WordsmithRich @athleticsnation Perhaps not ideally, but they do have speed at least. More importantly, I'm not sure they're built for any other offensive style either, so avoiding the use of bats as much as possible might be the lesser evil.

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

This was the MLB leaderboard entering today for highest exit velocities of the 2022 season. This afternoon Sean Murphy hit one 114.0 mph (16 degree angle, 405 feet, RBI double). That's a career-high EV for Cakes.

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

@GrantBrisbee On top of the silly unwritten rule, what's even weirder to me is that bunting seems like the POLITE thing to do. Would you rather I swing away and maybe hit a homer or a double? Or hand you a warmup grounder with a low-percentage chance of a single? Bunting leads to fewer runs.

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

@GrantBrisbee On top of the silly unwritten rule, what's even weirder to me is that bunting seems like the POLITE thing to do. Would you rather I swing away and maybe hit a homer or a double? Or hand you a warmup grounder with a low-percentage chance of a single? Bunting leads to fewer runs.

[Casey Pratt @CaseyAPratt]

The year is 2022. Feral cats have invaded the Oakland Coliseum complex. #drumtogether

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

@matthewkawahara And thanks to you for all your great work since taking over the beat! Athletics Nation appreciates you.

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

Obviously $44m is still embarrassingly low, just clarifying what the actual number is. They're still slightly above the league's highest-paid individual player (Scherzer at $43.3m).

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

Before trading Manaea, the A's 26-man payroll was ~$54m. That includes a couple option buyouts, and the money they got from the Rangers. Without Manaea, it drops to around $44m (or if you want to include Rosenthal's deferred money then it's more like $49m).

[Alex Hall @AlexHallAN]

Here are more details on the payroll (from before the trade): https://t.co/KZ5EpEoEvu