Bay Area Buzz 10/5: A’s Lose Game 1, Death of a Sports Town, Niners’ Run Defense Will Be Tested
By FanSided
October 4, 2013; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Athletics center fielder Coco Crisp (4, center) talks to manager Bob Melvin (6) and assistant trainer Walt Horn (left) after the eighth inning in game one of the American League divisional series playoff baseball game against the Detroit Tigers at O.co Coliseum. The Tigers defeated Athletics 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
"Except for Yoenis Cespedes’ rocket-launch two-run home run in the seventh, the A’s best couldn’t match Detroit’s best in the Tigers’ 3-2 victory.And even the A’s largest crowd in more than nine years—48,401 fans dying to go crazy–couldn’t save them.Or yell very much, actually.Not with Tigers starter Max Scherzer mowing the A’s down into the seventh, not with Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez knocking around Bartolo Colon early.Not on this anxious ALDS night. Nope, the A’s need it loud when they’re in the Coliseum, and they just couldn’t pump up the volume.– Tim Kawikami, San Jose Mercury News"
"There’s a good chance Oakland will lose all three of its professional sports franchises in the next few years. The Warriors, with their new Hollywood owners, are already picking out the Brazilian ipe wood flooring for their $1 billion-plus houseboat across the water in San Francisco. The Athletics are waiting for MLB owners to rule on the Giants vs. A’s territorial-rights issue in San Jose, or for a federal judge to rule on a lawsuit challenging baseball’s antitrust exemption. All it will take is a puff of white smoke from Bud’s office or a gavel slam in San Jose’s favor and every A’s locker will include a shovel and directions to Cisco Field. (How perfect for the age: a nonexistent stadium with locked-in naming rights.) And Raiders owner Mark Davis, son of Al, has made just enough noise about his displeasure with the O.co Coliseum to convince everyone he’d pack up and follow the come-hither whisperings emanating from the shiny gridiron Eden yet to be built (or, shockingly, named) in Los Angeles.– Tim Keown, ESPN the Magazine"
Niners’ Run Defense Will Be Tested vs. Texans
"This week, the 49ers will have a better idea where their annually stout run defense stands when they host the Texans on Sunday. Houston boasts Arian Foster, 27, who leads the NFL in 100-yard games (23) since 2010 and is one of three backs to rush for over 1,000 yards in each of the past three seasons. Last year, he went over 5,000 career yards from scrimmage in his 40th game, becoming the third-fastest running back in NFL history to cross that threshold.In other words, no one will confuse Foster with Daryl Richardson (he’s the Rams featured running back).Richardson had 16 yards on 12 carries last week as the 49ers emerged from a mini- slump. In back-to-back losses to Seattle and Indianapolis, they surrendered 351 rushing yards, the most they’d allowed in back-to-back contests since they surrendered 400 in the final two games of 2004. The Colts (4th), Seahawks (5th) and Texans (7th) rank among the NFL’s top 10 in rushing yards per game.– Eric Branch, San Francisco Chronicle"