I’m afraid (ha!) I don’t have any scary stories for you today. But here are just a couple things I thought I’d post about as I sit here and start eating tonight’s candy stash.

1. Curt Schilling has apparently released a list of a baker’s dozen (Red Sox + 12) of teams he’d be willing to play for in 2008, and the A’s aren’t one of them. I feel kind of offended. What do you have against the A’s? Are the A’s just not cool enough for you? You listed all the playoff teams except New York and Colorado. What’s wrong with the Rockies? They just won the NL pennant, for goodness sake. Do the Red Sox automatically hate the Rockies now because they bulldozed over them in the World Series? Whatever, dude. Eff you, man.

2.  This topic was up for discussion this morning on one of the message boards I frequent: why you do and why you don’t want A-Rod on your team. This was my answer for our Oakland Athletics:

Yes: It seems the A’s big need every year has always been the need for a right-handed power bat, and this year is no exception. There’s really no better right-handed power bat than A-Rod, so he’d fit nicely into the lineup between Nick Swisher and Jack Cust. A-Rod could be inserted at shortstop to replace the big disappointment that is Bobby Crosby, or play third if Eric Chavez is traded (which may be needed to relieve some payroll room for A-Rod’s big, $30M per year contract). Also, in a few years, it’d be great to have the home run chase on the green and gold side of the bay.

No: Money, money, and did I mention money? The A’s biggest contract ever is Eric Chavez’s current $66M/6 year contract. A-Rod’s would be almost triple that, and would also probably have to be more than that in years. And also the A’s haven’t been a team in recent years to have one guy command all the attention. It’s not a me-first clubhouse.

Overall? No thanks!

3. On this date 19 years ago, I dressed up as Walt Weiss for Halloween. My grandma made the jersey top, complete with the name “WEISS” and number 7 on the back. I wore jeans and an A’s hat. I’d post the picture, but I don’t know where it is. Maybe I’ll find it in time for the 20-year anniversary.

Good morning - or bad morning, depending on how you feel about the Boston Red Sox being the World Champions. It’s not what I was rooting for, but I can’t be mad that the best team won, and that’s what happened.

How about that Ronnie Mac? From cut by the Oakland A’s to game-winning World Series home run. I’m happy for him, even if he did shave his head and didn’t have the hair to fluff out after the home run. I’m sure he’ll be looking for a new home this offseason, but it’s no doubt he’s feeling good coming out on top of the baseball world after a season in which he got cut by an under .500 team.

Oh, and thank goodness for Mike Lowell - I came this close to having to write “I Love the Red Sox” on my forehead with a Sharpie. OK, not that close, but Kielty still did more than I thought he would.

Now that the World Series is over and it’s officially the offseason, what do we have to look forward to in the near future? Well, the announcements of the awards should be coming out over the next couple weeks, and we’re likely to see our six-time Gold Glove third basemen be unseated. It will be sad, but understandable given Chavez’s recent injury woes. Mark Ellis could nab a Gold Glove at second base, but I’d bet against it as Placido Polanco made headlines with his errorless streak. As much as I want to see Ellis get recognized, maybe this under-the-radar thing is good for the A’s. They can sign him to a long-term deal and keep him as the green and gold secret weapon.

And in other news, it sounds like the A’s may start the 2008 season in Japan against the defending world champs. I really hope this won’t be considered a “home” game for the A’s because that would be an extreme ripoff. Not only would they be in another country, but they’ll be playing in front of a crowd that will no doubt be rooting for the Red Sox. I still think it’s cool after our boys missed the opportunity in 2003. I remember getting all excited about watching the season opener at 3 a.m. After a long winter, I don’t care what time I have to get up.

And this Japan thing also sounds like it could mean pitchers and catchers reporting a few days earlier. “Pitchers and catchers…” - no three words sound so sweet in the winter!

Go A’s!!

This is the second in a 20-part series chronicling my 20 years as an A’s fan, year by year. You can read about 1988 here.

“The A’s are trying to sweep, but the Giants haven’t made life easy for them tonight. To the right side, that’s steered by Phillips… flips to Eckersley… yes!! He’s there in time and the A’s are the World Champions!”

If I had known that 1989 would’ve been the only A’s championship I would experience in at least the next 19 years, I might have paid attention to it a little more. Of course, being older than 11 might have helped too, because my priorities were a lot different then.

However, I do remember paying attention close enough to remember the big mid-season deal that summer that brought Rickey Henderson back home to Oakland. Luis Polonia (whose name I had scrawled in my baseball glove as a tribute to his spectacular left field catches), Greg Cadaret, and Eric Plunk went to the Yankees in exchange for the greatest leadoff hitter of all time. The A’s were going for the jugular after losing in disappointing fashion the year before, and they rode Rickey and company to an MLB-leading 99-63 record.

After ripping through the Blue Jays in a series of which I have no recollection, it was time for the World Series. I remember watching the final game of the NLCS and rooting for the Giants (one of the few times in history I’ve been known to do that) because a possible Bay Bridge World Series would be cool. And sure enough, that’s what we got.

The series started with Dave Stewart and Mike Moore leading the A’s to a 2-0 lead going into San Francisco. And then we all know what happened before the start of Game 3.

I was where I always was before the start of a televised A’s game - sitting on the edge of my bed getting ready to watch the game on the little black-and-white TV in my bedroom at our home in Castro Valley. It was roughly 5:00, and I was looking forward to getting an inning or two in before having to go eat dinner. I remember the TV flickering, the shaking, and standing in the doorway. I remember thinking it was cool, but then not-so-cool once we turned on the radio and started hearing about the devestation around the Bay Area.

As for the A’s in the World Series, it was a 10-day layoff. They got to throw Stewart and Moore again for Games 3 and 4 to finish off the Giants in dominating fashion. I remember jumping up and down with my brother in celebration, but the lasting memories just aren’t there for this series that was overshadowed by bigger events.

18 seasons and waiting…

Coming next Friday, November 2 - 1990: the last time I saw the A’s in the Fall Classic.

So I was just scouring Amazon.com after adding these Home Run Derby DVDs to my wish list, and I ran across something that I wasn’t expecting when I entered the search term “Oakland Athletics”:

I guess good ol’ SuSlu has been keeping busy. Here’s the book description:

Susan Slusser, who has covered the Oakland As for the past 12 years for the San Francisco Chronicle, looks at one of the most fascinating franchises in baseball history. She chronicles the successes of Hall of Famers such as Reggie Jackson, Catfish Hunter, and Dennis Eckersley, as well as some of the teams forgotten but no less fascinating stars, including folk hero Rube Waddell, the great players of the 1920s, like Jimmie Foxx, Mickey Cochrane, and Lefty Grove; and controversial superstar Jose Canseco. The franchises many championship seasons are also explored, especially the wild teams of the 1970s, as are three of the teams most important and influential figures Hall of Fame manager Connie Mack, who is credited with making baseball an acceptable professional sport; former owner Charlie Finley, who was crazy, colorful, and way ahead of his time; and current general manager Billy Beane, whose Moneyball approach has allowed a low-budget team to achieve tremendous results.

Wow - that sounds like a lot to cover in just 192 pages. Still, I’m looking forward to this read, though I kind of wish it’d come out sooner to help with the winter A’s withdrawal. I guess I could always read Moneyball again…

(I actually do read non-A’s and non-baseball books - gasp! I’m currently reading this.)

Today is more than just Wednesday though - it’s World Series Wednesday! I’m looking forward to watching this series get started. I’m blogging the World Series on Sports Cartel’s main page; you can see my series preview here and my Game 1 preview here.

But even with the Fall Classic beginning today, there are actually a couple A’s items to talk about:

1. Lew Wolff created some buzz with his statement yesterday that there is no way the A’s will stay in Oakland. There’s still a lot of uncertainty around the plans for Fremont and Cisco Field, so a statement like this just makes me roll my eyes. Don’t start throwing out the “it’s out of the question” smack until you have something finalized.

Being a non-resident A’s fan, I don’t feel strongly about where the A’s end up going (unless they come to my backyard - Green Bay, anyone??). I care that they get out of the concrete piece of crap they play in now and start becoming more Macy’s and less K-Mart, like a team that plays in the sixth largest television market in the country should be. I also care that, once they move, they are still called the A’s, still green and gold, and keep the elephant and the white cleats.

2. The A’s brought Hayward-native Don Wakamatsu on as bench coach. They’re still interviewing for one position - Rene Lachman’s vacancy - though there’s no indication what that will be as the coaches could be shuffled around before spring training. Bucky Dent and Tony DeFrancesco are both interviewing this week. The A’s seem to like to promote their AAA managers regularly so I expect it to be DeFrancesco, but I can’t help but like the idea of Bucky Dent, if only for the reason that the guy knows something about clutch hits. Anything to solve the A’s RISP woes…

3. J.J. Cooper of Baseball America answered my question during his chat today on ESPN.com. I asked him about Alexei Ramirez, who I brought up in the center field post the other day.

Kelly (Appleton, WI): J.J., what’s the word on Alexei Ramirez? What kind of attention do you think he’ll get on the FA market, and does he project as a starter?

J.J. Cooper: (2:15 PM ET ) There has been a ton of money wasted on Cuban prospects over the years so it’s hard to forecast stardom for anyone making the jump from Serie Nacional to the big leagues. But in Ramirez’ case he projects to be an everyday big leaguer, whether in the outfield, maybe third base or even shortstop. He’s got a good line-drive bat with a little bit of power. Teams will be interested.

So there you have it - likely not A’s-related, but it’s always fun when my question gets picked.

Enjoy Game 1 tonight. Former A Bobby Kielty should get in against the lefty Jeff Francis, so there’s a reason to watch - as if you needed one.

The A’s used 12 different players in center field in 2007. And though most of that was due to Mark Kotsay’s back, Mark wasn’t necessarily much help when he came back, as he posted career lows in batting average, on base percentage, and slugging percentage in 56 games.

Depending on what you think about Bobby Crosby at short, center field may be the position most in need of an upgrade for the A’s. But as much as we like to dream about a signing of Andruw Jones, Torii Hunter, Aaron Rowand, or even Mike Cameron, it ain’t happening.

If there is a free agent signing in center field, it’s going to come from the bargain bin, much like Frank Thomas in 2006 and Shannon Stewart in 2007. Let’s look at a few posibilities:

Kenny Lofton: The well-traveled Lofton is 40 and as of yesterday, still doesn’t have the coveted ring. If he’s looking for a championship before hanging up his spikes, I’m not sure Oakland would be his first choice. He’s 40, and if he’s going to play, he’s best off trying to stay on with Cleveland, if they’ll have him.

Darin Ertad: Erstad’s name was brought up a bit last offseason as an A’s possibility. He’s not over the hill yet (33) but he plays like it. His last healthy season was 2005, and even then it wasn’t much better than current Kotsay.

Corey Patterson: His age is at least attractive (28) and he plays good defense. But his tendency to strike out a lot has been highly documented, and he’s pretty much the opposite of an A’s-style hitter. Not that A’s-style hitting is a good thing, but I’m just sayin’. He’s also a Boras client so he’s more likely to get stupid money somewhere than a become a Billy Beane blue light special.

Alexei Ramirez: Who? Cuban defector turned MLB free agent, that’s who. Ramirez isn’t likely to get as much attention as some past international free agents, but I wouldn’t expect the A’s to be frontrunners for his services either. He’s also a big question mark as you never know how talent is going to translate to the big leagues. But if those question marks turn into lukewarm interest, maybe there’s a chance for the A’s after all.

So there you have it - it’s not a pretty sight. I’m sure the A’s would rather play Kostay than have an $8 million bench player, but if he puts up another .214/.279/.296 line, they may not have a choice.

One thing I used to reassure myself throughout the crapfest that was the Oakland A’s 2007 season was the fact that a losing record at least will mean a higher-than-usual draft pick in the June 2008 ammy draft.

As it looks, with how the standings ended, the A’s will be picking 12th overall.

That’s certainly not a high-profile pick position, but it’s a far cry from 21, which is where they picked the last time they had a first-round pick. That was 2005, and they took a guy who has so far been a bust, Cliff Pennington.

The last time the A’s had a pick higher than 12th overall? The year was 1999, and they took a lefty pitcher with the 9th pick overall. His name was Barry Zito.

The A’s have had the 12th pick once before, in 1986. That year they took Scott Hemond, scrub catcher and lifetime .217 hitter. Hopefully this 12 works out better than the last 12.

Billy Beane has confirmed what we were discussing the other day - that the team is looking into the possibility of moving Justin Duchscherer back to the rotation.

In a rotation where we can really only count on two guys (Dan Haren and Joe Blanton), it makes sense to try it. Chad Gaudin fell apart in the second half and there’s no guarantee first-half-of-2007 Gaudin will show up again. And I don’t expect Lenny DiNardo to make much of a splash, as he’s likey a Saarloos-esque one-and-done in the A’s rotation. And we’ve learned that Rich Harden is non-existent, and on the off-chance he does exist, it’s a bonus. And then you’ve got Dallas Braden/Dan Meyer/Jason Windsor/etc., and I’d just rather not go there.

Trading Joe Blanton is still a very good possibility as well, though at this point I don’t see Billy making a move without getting a pitching prospect that is major league ready or close to it as part of the package. We’re probably looking at 2009 or 2010 before our Simmonses and Cahills find their way to Oakland.

And on a completely off-topic tangent, here’s some LOL material, compliments of our future LOOGY, Jerry Blevins:

“I was at a charity golf outing when I got a call from our farm director (Oneri Fleita). I was excited that somebody wanted me enough to give up a perennial star like Jason Kendall.”

Note: This is the first in a 20-part series chronicling my 20 years as an A’s fan, year by year.

I don’t have one defining moment of seeing a big, shining green and gold ray of light. I can’t tell you where I was, what I was doing, and what day it was that I became and A’s fan. All I know is that it happened gradually, and it happened early in the 1988 season.

1988 was an easy year to hop on the bandwagon. The A’s were winning, and they were winning big. Jose Canseco, long before Juiced, was a young, hot, power-hitting stud. Mark McGwire was his Bash Brother. Our catcher, Terry Steinbach, was the All Star game MVP. Walt Weiss was the acrobatic shortstop and Rookie of the Year. Dave Stewart was a 21-game winner, and Dave Henderson was the big free-agent pickup. And then there was Dennis Eckersley - absolutely unbeatable.

As for me - what was it? Well, it was Jose Canseco. I had a friend named Jenny and when I went to her house one day, she had a Jose Canseco poster on her wall. We giggled at his cuteness, and that was it. I started watching games to ogle at the cute right fielder, and somewhere in the girlishness of this whole practice, I became a fan of the actual team and the game of baseball.

That summer of 1988, my dad took my brother and me to a few games, and I remember being at this game in which Mark McGwire charged the mound after being hit in the helmet with a pitch by the Yankees’ Neil Allen. The A’s cruised to a 104-58 record to take the AL West handily. The second place Twins, at 91-71, finished 13 games back.

The A’s were clearly the dominant team in the American League, if not all of baseball, in 1988. And as a 10-year-old kid, this was exactly what I signed up for. What kid doesn’t love winning? Looking back on it, I can see how I may have been born a Yankees fan in an A’s fan’s body. Luckily, I’ve gotten over that as I’ve gotten older.

I even made a scrapbook of the 1988 A’s, and I still have it… somewhere. I cut out pictures from the newspaper. Who cares about the articles? Look how hot Jose is!! Look at the A’s jumping all over each other after winning the AL West and then the ALCS!! I’ve got plenty of pages left in this thing for all the victorious World Series pictures!!

So I was confident going into the 1988 playoffs. The Red Sox? Puh-leaze. That was no contest, as the A’s swept them en route to the World Series. Then we were going to be facing the Dodgers. Orel Hershiser? Gimpy Kirk Gibson? Who are these bozos? What-evah!

Of course, I learned, long before a guy named Michael Lewis wrote a book about a guy who, in 1988, was about to sign a minor-league contract with the A’s - the playoffs? Well, they’re a crapshoot.

First, that gimpy Kirk Gibson beat our unbeatable closer in one of the most famous World Series moments of all time. Then, Orel Hershiser opened a can of whoop-ass in Game 2. Mark McGwire saved the A’s in Game 3 with a walkoff home run, but the A’s couldn’t put any more wins together and were out in five.

I remember crying after they lost the World Series, a lesson learned and an emotional investment realized that would have me looking forward to next year and continue coming back for more year after year.

Coming next Friday, Oct. 26 - 1989: the only championship in my 20 years as an A’s fan!

In case you haven’t noticed (and judging by the attendance, you haven’t </Harry Doyle>), we’ve got a new name. Athletics Supporter is no more - welcome to Athletics for Life.

Why the change, you ask? Well, it just defines my A’s fanship more accurately. Yes, I support the Athletics, but it’s more than that.

2007 was my twentieth season as an A’s fan - that is 2/3 of my life. That’s longer than I’ve known my husband, longer than I’ve lived, worked, or gone to school anywhere. Heck - it’s even longer than I went to kindergarten through 12th grade and all of college combined!

So that revelation this season just really confirmed it for me: I’m more than just a supporter of the A’s - I’m in it for life. Not that I didn’t feel that way in year 19, or 12, or even 5, but 20 - well, it just feels much more significant to me now.

So there you have it - I’m an A’s lifer, and that’s why this is now Athletics for Life.

(That and, well… I didn’t want anyone thinking this was a jock strap blog.)