2012 Oakland Athletics season

2012 Oakland Athletics
American League West Champions
League	American League
Division	West
Ballpark	O.co Coliseum
City	Oakland, California
Record	94–68 (.580)
Divisional place	1st
Owners	Lewis Wolff, John Fisher
General managers	Billy Beane
Managers	Bob Melvin
Television	Comcast SportsNet California (Glen Kuiper, Ray Fosse, Scott Hatteberg)
Radio	KGMZ (Ken Korach, Vince Cotroneo, Ray Fosse)
Seasons

The Oakland Athletics' 2012 season was the organization's 45th in Oakland, California and the 112th in club history. The team finished with a final record of 94–68, claiming first place in the American League West and reaching the postseason for the first time since 2006. After winning their last game of the season, they took sole possession of the West for the first time all year, overtaking the Texas Rangers. The A's had trailed Texas by 13 games on June 30, and had a five-game deficit with nine days left in the season. The 2012 team, which led the league with 15 walk-off wins, managed this with the second-lowest payroll in baseball, at $59.5 million. They lost in five games to the Detroit Tigers in the Divisional Series.

Season summary

Following a 74-88 finish in 2011, general manager Billy Beane largely dismantled the team's starting rotation. All-Star starters Trevor Cahill and Gio González were traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks and Washington Nationals, respectively. The trades yielded a number of highly touted prospects; among these were catcher Derek Norris, starting pitchers Tommy Milone, Brad Peacock and Jarrod Parker, and reliever Ryan Cook. An additional trade sent All-Star closer Andrew Bailey (along with Ryan Sweeney) to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for outfielder Josh Reddick and a pair of prospects. With power-hitting outfielder Josh Willingham becoming a free agent, Beane's next move was to sign highly regarded Cuban outfielder Yoenis Céspedes on February 13, 2012. The 4-year, $36 million deal seemed out of character, especially given the Athletics' low payroll and generally frugal nature. The move followed a number of earlier (and lower-cost) free-agent signings, including the additions of veterans Jonny Gomes, Seth Smith, and Bartolo Colón.

Despite these additions, expectations were still not high for the Athletics in 2012, as a number of experts picked the Athletics to lose as many as 100 games in the highly competitive AL West. The A's managed to play winning baseball through mid-May and held a 22–21 record on May 21, before a nine-game losing streak brought them down to a season-low eight games under the .500 mark. In Bob Melvin's first full season as manager, the team began to gel in the month of June. Between June 2 (the day the nine-game losing streak ended) and June 30, the A's posted a 15–12 record; then erased their deficit with a 19-5 surge in July, highlighted by the first-ever four-game sweep of the New York Yankees in Oakland. This stellar play put the once-dead Athletics into the heat of the AL West race: while they had trailed the division-leading Rangers by 13 games on June 30, they were only 3.5 back on July 28. A 5–8 start to August, however, widened the Rangers' lead to six games. Additionally, veteran pitcher Bartolo Colón was suspended after testing positive for synthetic testosterone on August 22. Facing these problems, the A's won 13 of their final 15 August games, due in part to the season debut of injured ace Brett Anderson and capped off with a 20–2 victory over the Boston Red Sox on August 31.

The A's continued to play well through the first days of September, though they began to decline as the month progressed. On September 5, Opening Day starter Brandon McCarthy was seriously injured when a line drive impacted his head. The injury, which resulted in an epidural hemorrhage, a brain contusion, and a skull fracture, was considered life-threatening for a number of days. Although McCarthy made a recovery over the following two months, the injury ended his season. An additional injury to Brett Anderson further impacted the A's starting rotation. From September 13 to 24 the A's would lose six out of eight games, with the final loss being a 5–4 defeat at the hands of the Rangers that put the A's five games behind the division leaders (with only nine left to play), though the A's were not mathematically eliminated. After winning two of their next three games against the Rangers, they then swept the Seattle Mariners (highlighted by their last regular-season walk-off), while the Rangers lost two games out of three to the division-rival Los Angeles Angels. With the Rangers leading the A's by only two games, the teams faced off in Oakland for the final three games of the season. The A's took the first two games by scores of 4-3 and 3–1, respectively; the first win clinched a postseason berth for the Athletics, while the second momentarily tied the A's with the Rangers for first place and set up a winner-take-all game for the division crown. In the final game, a 5-1 Rangers lead after the 2nd inning was not enough as the Athletics scored six runs in the 4th (including two off a fly ball that was misplayed by Josh Hamilton) and scored five more runs in the eventual 12–5 victory.

Having secured the division championship, the Athletics faced the Detroit Tigers in the 2012 American League Division Series. The A's were shut down by Detroit ace Justin Verlander in Game 1, and followed that loss with a 5–4 defeat in Game 2. The Athletics, now down 2–0 in a best-of-five series, returned to Oakland for Game 3. Brett Anderson saved the Athletics' season by shutting out the Tigers in a 2-0 Athletics victory. Then, trailing 3-1 heading into the bottom of the 9th inning, Oakland scored three runs (the final on a Coco Crisp walk-off single) to capture a come-from-behind 4–3 victory in Game 4. The A's comeback was not to be, however, as a dominant outing by Verlander ended the A's season in Game 5.

The Athletics' 94–68 record in 2012 was their best in nearly a decade. Manager Bob Melvin and General Manager Billy Beane were honored with the Greatness in Baseball Yearly (GIBBY) Award as the Manager of the Year and Executive of the Year, respectively.

Regular season

American League West

AL West

Team	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
Oakland Athletics	94	68	.580	—	50‍–‍31	44‍–‍37
Texas Rangers	93	69	.574	1	50‍–‍31	43‍–‍38
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim	89	73	.549	5	46‍–‍35	43‍–‍38
Seattle Mariners	75	87	.463	19	40‍–‍41	35‍–‍46

American League Wild Card

Division Winners

Team	W	L	Pct.
New York Yankees	95	67	.586
Oakland Athletics	94	68	.580
Detroit Tigers	88	74	.543

Wild Card teams
(Top 2 teams qualify for postseason)

Team	W	L	Pct.	GB
Texas Rangers	93	69	.574	—
Baltimore Orioles	93	69	.574	—
Tampa Bay Rays	90	72	.556	3
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim	89	73	.549	4
Chicago White Sox	85	77	.525	8
Seattle Mariners	75	87	.463	18
Toronto Blue Jays	73	89	.451	20
Kansas City Royals	72	90	.444	21
Boston Red Sox	69	93	.426	24
Cleveland Indians	68	94	.420	25
Minnesota Twins	66	96	.407	27

Record against opponents

Team	BAL	BOS	CWS	CLE	DET	KC	LAA	MIN	NYY	OAK	SEA	TB	TEX	TOR	NL
Baltimore	–	13–5	6–2	4–4	3–3	5–4	2–7	5–2	9–9	4–5	8–1	10–8	2–5	11–7	11–7
Boston	5–13	–	6–2	5–3	5–5	4–3	0–6	4–3	5–13	1–8	5–4	9–9	2–6	7–11	11–7
Chicago	2–6	2–6	–	11–7	6–12	6–12	3–5	14–4	5–2	3–3	8–1	4–3	6–3	6–4	9–9
Cleveland	4–4	3–5	7–11	–	10–8	8–10	5–4	6–12	1–5	2–8	4–4	4–4	4–5	2–4	8–10
Detroit	3–3	5–5	12–6	8–10	–	13–5	5–5	10–8	4–6	4–3	1–5	5–2	3–7	4–2	11–7
Kansas City	4–5	3–4	12–6	10–8	5–13	–	4–5	7–11	3–4	5–4	1–7	4–2	4–5	2–6	8–10
Los Angeles	7–2	6–0	5–3	4–5	5–5	5–4	–	6–3	4–5	9–10	11–8	1–9	10–9	4–4	12–6
Minnesota	2–5	3–4	4–14	12–6	8–10	11–7	3–6	–	3–4	4–5	2–8	1–5	2–8	2–5	9–9
New York	9–9	13–5	2–5	5–1	6–4	4–3	5–4	4–3	–	5–5	6–3	8–10	4–3	11–7	13–5
Oakland	5–4	8–1	3–3	8–2	3–4	4–5	10–9	5–4	5–5	–	12–7	5–4	11–8	5–4	10–8
Seattle	1–8	4–5	1–8	4–4	5–1	7–1	8–11	8–2	3–6	7–12	–	4–6	9–10	6–3	8–10
Tampa Bay	8–10	9–9	3–4	4–4	2–5	2–4	9–1	5–1	10–8	4–5	6–4	–	5–4	14–4	9–9
Texas	5–2	6–2	3–6	5–4	7–3	5–4	9–10	8–2	3–4	8–11	10–9	4–5	–	6–3	14–4
Toronto	7–11	11–7	4–6	4–2	2–4	6–2	4–4	5–2	7–11	4–5	3–6	4–14	3–6	–	9–9

• Source: MLB Standings Grid – 2012

Offseason

• At the end of the regular season, the club quickly dismissed bench coach Joel Skinner, pitching coach Ron Romanick, and hitting coach Gerald Perry.
• Oakland received outfield prospect Eliezer Mesa from Colorado as the "player to be named later" from the Mark Ellis trade on June 30.
• On October 4, 2011, Mets' third base coach Chip Hale signed a two-year deal to become bench coach under Bob Melvin.
• After spending one year in Boston, pitching coach Curt Young returned on October 21 on a one-year deal.
• On October 25, 2011, right-handed pitcher Evan Scribner and outfielder Cedric Hunter were claimed off waivers from San Diego and later outrighted to AAA. That same day, RHP Michael Wuertz was released.
• On November 4, 2011, RHP Trystan Magnuson was designated for assignment and traded back to Toronto for cash considerations.
• On November 18, outfielder Jermaine Mitchell was protected from the Rule 5 draft by being added to the 40-man roster.
• Former big leaguer Chili Davis was named the A's new hitting coach on November 25, 2011.
• On December 9, 2011, the team traded pitchers Trevor Cahill and Craig Breslow to Arizona for pitchers Jarrod Parker and Ryan Cook and outfielder Collin Cowgill.
• Next to go were pitchers Gio González and minor leaguer Robert Gilliam, traded to Washington on December 23, 2011, for pitchers A. J. Cole, Tommy Milone, and Brad Peacock, and catcher Derek Norris.
• To make room for the prospects yielded in the Gonzalez trade, on December 23 assignment designations were given to outfielder Jai Miller (traded to Baltimore) and catcher Landon Powell (cleared waiver and assigned to AAA).
• On December 28, 2011, former closer Andrew Bailey and outfielder Ryan Sweeney were dealt to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for outfielder Josh Reddick and minor-leaguers Miles Head and Raúl Alcántara.
• Outfielder Coco Crisp re-signed with the team on January 3, 2012, on a two-year, $14 million deal.
• In January, the Athletics signed pitcher Bartolo Colón (January 14) and outfielder Jonny Gomes (January 20). Infielder Adrian Cárdenas was removed from the 40-man roster in favor of Gomes on January 26; Cardenas was claimed off waivers by the Chicago Cubs the next month.
• On January 16, 2012, A's traded pitchers Josh Outman and Guillermo Moscoso to Colorado for outfielder Seth Smith.
• On February 20, the team signed Manny Ramirez to a minor league contract.
• On March 3, 2012, the team announced the official signing of defecting Cuban outfielder Yoenis Céspedes to a 4-year, $36 million contract.

Notable 2011 Departures

Player	Position	OAK Tenure	New Team	Stats
Andrew Bailey	P	2009	BOS	4.1 IP, 2.08 ERA
Craig Breslow	P	2009	ARI/BOS	53 IP, 2.55 ERA
Trevor Cahill	P	2009	ARI	9–10, 156.1 IP, 3.86 ERA
David DeJesus	OF	2011	CHC	.267 AVG, 6 HR, 38 RBI
Gio González	P	2008	WAS	16–7, 159.1 IP, 3.28 ERA
Rich Harden	P	2003–2008, 2011	FA	Will miss 2012 season (Injury)
Hideki Matsui	DH	2011	TB/FA	.147, 2 HR, 7 RBI
Josh Outman	P	2008	COL	0–3, 31 IP, 9.00 ERA
Ryan Sweeney	OF	2008	BOS	.260 AVG, 16 RBI
Josh Willingham	OF	2011	MIN	.258 AVG, 31 HR, 91 RBI

Stats as of Aug 25

Roster

2012 Oakland Athletics
Roster
Pitchers 39 Jeremy Accardo 49 Brett Anderson 50 Grant Balfour 54 Travis Blackley 13 Jerry Blevins 38 Andrew Carignan 60 Jesse Chavez 21 Bartolo Colón 48 Ryan Cook 60 Fautino de los Santos 67,62 Sean Doolittle 65 Pedro Figueroa 40 Brian Fuentes 45 Graham Godfrey 64 A. J. Griffin 32 Brandon McCarthy 53 Jim Miller 57 Tommy Milone 40 Pat Neshek 77 Jordan Norberto 11 Jarrod Parker 66 Tyson Ross 58 Evan Scribner 67 Dan Straily 54 Rich Thompson		Catchers 14 George Kottaras 36 Derek Norris 26 Anthony Recker  8 Kurt Suzuki Infielders 14 Brandon Allen 10 Daric Barton 22 Chris Carter 20 Josh Donaldson  5 Stephen Drew 18 Brandon Hicks 35 Luke Hughes 18,7 Brandon Inge 25 Kila Ka'aihue 37 Brandon Moss  2 Cliff Pennington 17 Adam Rosales 28 Eric Sogard 19 Jemile Weeks		Outfielders 52 Yoenis Céspedes 12 Collin Cowgill  4 Coco Crisp 31 Jonny Gomes 16 Josh Reddick 15 Seth Smith 23 Michael Taylor		Manager  6 Bob Melvin Coaches 30 Chili Davis (hitting)  3 Mike Gallego (third base) 5,8 Chip Hale (bench)    Chris Pittaro (special assistant) 44 Rick Rodriguez (bullpen) 46 Tye Waller (first base) 41 Curt Young (pitching)

Player stats

Batting

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases; BB = Walks; AVG = Batting average; SLG = Slugging average

Player	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	AVG	SLG
Josh Reddick	156	611	85	148	29	5	32	85	11	55	.242	.463
Yoenis Céspedes	129	487	70	142	25	5	23	82	16	43	.292	.505
Coco Crisp	120	455	68	118	25	7	11	46	39	45	.259	.418
Jemile Weeks	118	444	54	98	15	8	2	20	16	50	.221	.304
Cliff Pennington	125	418	50	90	18	2	6	28	15	35	.215	.311
Seth Smith	125	383	55	92	23	2	14	52	2	50	.240	.420
Brandon Inge	74	283	31	64	13	0	11	52	0	24	.226	.389
Jonny Gomes	99	279	46	73	10	0	18	47	3	44	.262	.491
Josh Donaldson	75	274	34	66	16	0	9	33	4	14	.241	.398
Brandon Moss	84	265	48	77	18	0	21	52	1	26	.291	.596
Kurt Suzuki	75	262	19	57	15	0	1	18	1	9	.218	.286
Chris Carter	67	218	38	52	12	0	16	39	0	39	.239	.514
Derek Norris	60	209	19	42	8	1	7	34	5	21	.201	.349
Stephen Drew	39	152	21	38	5	0	5	16	1	18	.250	.382
Kila Ka'aihue	39	128	13	30	9	0	4	14	1	10	.234	.398
Daric Barton	46	113	8	23	7	0	1	6	1	22	.204	.292
Collin Cowgill	38	104	10	28	2	0	1	9	3	11	.269	.317
Eric Sogard	37	102	8	17	3	1	2	7	2	5	.167	.275
Adam Rosales	42	99	12	22	5	0	2	8	0	11	.222	.333
George Kottaras	27	85	10	18	2	1	6	19	0	8	.212	.471
Brandon Hicks	22	64	8	11	5	0	3	7	1	6	.172	.391
Anthony Recker	13	31	3	4	1	0	0	0	0	4	.129	.161
Michael Taylor	6	21	2	3	1	0	0	0	0	0	.143	.190
Luke Hughes	4	13	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.077	.077
Brandon Allen	3	7	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	.000
Pitcher Totals	162	20	1	1	0	0	0	2	0	0	.050	.050
Team Totals	162	5527	713	1315	267	32	195	676	122	550	.238	.404

Source:[1]

Pitching

Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; H = Hits allowed; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; SO = Strikeouts

Player	W	L	ERA	G	GS	SV	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO
Tommy Milone	13	10	3.74	31	31	0	190.0	207	90	79	36	137
Jarrod Parker	13	8	3.47	29	29	0	181.1	166	71	70	63	140
Bartolo Colón	10	9	3.43	24	24	0	152.1	161	62	58	23	91
Brandon McCarthy	8	6	3.24	18	18	0	111.0	115	44	40	24	73
Travis Blackley	6	4	3.86	24	15	0	102.2	91	47	44	30	69
A.J. Griffin	7	1	3.06	15	15	0	82.1	74	29	28	19	64
Grant Balfour	3	2	2.53	75	0	24	74.2	41	21	21	28	72
Ryan Cook	6	2	2.09	71	0	14	73.1	42	18	17	27	80
Tyson Ross	2	11	6.50	18	13	0	73.1	96	56	53	37	46
Jerry Blevins	5	1	2.48	63	0	1	65.1	45	20	18	25	54
Jordan Norberto	4	1	2.77	39	0	1	52.0	37	17	16	22	46
Jim Miller	2	1	2.59	33	0	0	48.2	39	15	14	27	44
Sean Doolittle	2	1	3.04	44	0	1	47.1	40	18	16	11	60
Dan Straily	2	1	3.89	7	7	0	39.1	36	19	17	16	32
Evan Scribner	2	0	2.55	30	0	1	35.1	30	11	10	7	25
Brett Anderson	4	2	2.57	6	6	0	35.0	29	11	10	7	25
Brian Fuentes	2	2	6.84	26	0	5	25.0	30	19	19	10	18
Pedro Figueroa	0	0	3.32	19	0	0	21.2	16	9	8	15	14
Graham Godfrey	0	4	6.43	5	4	0	21.0	26	18	15	10	10
Pat Neshek	2	1	1.37	24	0	0	19.2	10	3	3	6	16
Andrew Carignan	1	1	4.66	11	0	0	9.2	8	5	5	10	8
Jesse Chavez	0	0	18.90	4	0	0	3.1	9	7	7	1	3
Fautino De Los Santos	0	0	3.00	6	0	0	3.0	7	2	1	3	3
Jeremy Accardo	0	0	9.00	1	0	0	2.0	4	2	2	0	1
Rich Thompson	0	0	0.00	1	0	0	0.2	1	0	0	0	0
Team Totals	94	68	3.48	162	162	47	1470.0	1360	614	569	462	1136

Source:[2]

Game log

Legend
	Athletics win
	Athletics loss
	Postponement
Bold	Athletics team member

2012 Game Log
March/April (11–13) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 1 March 28 Mariners (@ Tokyo, Japan) 1–3 (11) Wilhemsen (1–0) Carignan (0–1) League (1) 44,227 0–1 2 March 29 Mariners (@ Tokyo, Japan) 4–1 Colón (1–0) Kelley (0–1) Balfour (1) 43,391 1–1 3 April 6 Mariners 3–7 Vargas (1–0) McCarthy (0–1) 35,067 1–2 4 April 7 Mariners 7–8 Hernández (1–0) Colón (1–1) League (2) 16,612 1–3 5 April 9 Royals 1–0 Milone (1–0) Mendoza (0–1) Balfour (2) 10,054 2–3 6 April 10 Royals 0–3 (8) Duffy (1–0) Godfrey (0–1) Crow (1) 10,670 2–4 7 April 11 Royals 5–4 (12) Carignan (1–1) Broxton (0–1) 12,390 3–4 8 April 13 @ Mariners 4–0 Colón (2–1) Hernández (1–1) 46,026 4–4 9 April 14 @ Mariners 0–4 Noesí (1–1) Milone (1–1) 21,071 4–5 10 April 15 @ Mariners 3–5 Beavan (1–1) Godfrey (0–2) League (4) 19,650 4–6 11 April 16 @ Angels 0–6 Weaver (2–0) McCarthy (0–2) 27,338 4–7 12 April 17 @ Angels 5–3 Fuentes (1–0) Jepsen (0–1) Balfour (3) 41,016 5–7 13 April 18 @ Angels 6–0 Colón (3–1) Santana (0–3) 27,217 6–7 14 April 19 @ Angels 4–2 Milone (2–1) Wilson (2–1) Balfour (4) 27,864 7–7 15 April 20 Indians 3–4 Jiménez (2–0) Godfrey (0–3) Perez (5) 14,340 7–8 16 April 21 Indians 1–5 Gómez (1–0) McCarthy (0–3) Perez (6) 25,258 7–9 17 April 22 Indians 5–1 Ross (1–0) Masterson (0–2) 24,049 8–9 18 April 23 White Sox 0–4 Peavy (3–0) Colón (3–2) 10,574 8–10 19 April 24 White Sox 2–0 Milone (3–1) Floyd (1–3) Balfour (5) 11,184 9–10 20 April 25 White Sox 5–4 (14) Miller (1–0) Santiago (0–1) 13,032 10–10 21 April 27 @ Orioles 5–2 McCarthy (1–3) Arrieta (1–2) Balfour (6) 18,297 11–10 22 April 28 @ Orioles 1–10 Chen (2–0) Ross (1–1) 26,926 11–11 23 April 29 @ Orioles 2–5 Strop (3–1) Balfour (0–1) 31,793 11–12 24 April 30 @ Red Sox 6–11 Buchholz (3–1) Milone (3–2) 37,359 11–13
May (11–16) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 25 May 1 @ Red Sox 5–3 Parker (1–0) Doubront (1–1) Norberto (1) 37,225 12–13 26 May 2 @ Red Sox 4–2 McCarthy (2–3) Bard (2–3) Fuentes (1) 37,434 13–13 27 May 4 @ Rays 2–7 Price (5–1) Ross (1–2) Peralta (2) 18,799 13–14 28 May 5 @ Rays 4–3 (12) Fuentes (2–0) Peralta (0–1) Balfour (7) 23,890 14–14 29 May 6 @ Rays 9–5 Milone (4–2) Moore (1–2) 23,873 15–14 30 May 8 Blue Jays 7–3 Balfour (1–1) Cordero (1–2) 10,784 16–14 31 May 9 Blue Jays 2–5 Morrow (4–1) Ross (2–2) Janssen (1) 14,815 16–15 32 May 10 Tigers 6–10 Scherzer (2–3) Colón (3–3) 11,513 16–16 33 May 11 Tigers 11–4 Milone (5–2) Porcello (3–3) 26,721 17–16 34 May 12 Tigers 3–1 McCarthy (3–3) Fister (0–1) Fuentes (2) 20,077 18–16 35 May 13 Tigers 1–3 Verlander (4–1) Parker (1–1) Valverde (7) 17,147 18–17 36 May 14 @ Angels 5–0 Ross (2–3) Haren (1–4) 32,851 19–17 37 May 15 @ Angels 0–4 Santana (2–6) Colón (3–4) 31,762 19–18 38 May 16 @ Rangers 1–4 Darvish (6–1) Milone (5–3) Nathan (8) 46,370 19–19 39 May 17 @ Rangers 5–4 (10) Cook (1–0) Adams (0–2) Fuentes (3) 47,182 20–19 40 May 18 @ Giants 6–8 Zito (3–1) Parker (1–2) Casilla (10) 41,477 20–20 41 May 19 @ Giants 0–4 Vogelsong (2–2) Ross (2–4) 41,411 20–21 42 May 20 @ Giants 6–2 Colón (4–4) Lincecum (2–4) 41,378 21–21 43 May 21 Angels 2–1 Milone (6–3) Williams (4–2) Fuentes (4) 11,292 22–21 44 May 22 Angels 0–5 Wilson (5–4) Godfrey (0–4) 12,894 22–22 45 May 23 Angels 1–3 (11) Walden (1–1) Norberto (0–1) Frieri (1) 23,617 22–23 46 May 25 Yankees 3–6 Nova (5–2) Ross (2–5) Soriano (4) 33,559 22–24 47 May 26 Yankees 2–9 Sabathia (6–2) Colón (4–5) 27,112 22–25 48 May 27 Yankees 0–2 Kuroda (4–6) Milone (6–4) Soriano (5) 25,078 22–26 49 May 28 @ Twins 4–5 Burnett (2–0) Cook (1–1) Capps (10) 34,709 22–27 50 May 29 @ Twins 2–3 Perkins (2–1) Fuentes (2–1) 31,781 22–28 51 May 30 @ Twins 0–4 Liriano (1–5) Ross (2–6) 35,103 22–29
June (15–13) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 52 June 1 @ Royals 0–2 Paulino (3–1) Colón (4–6) Broxton (12) 29,527 22–30 53 June 2 @ Royals 9–3 McCarthy (4–3) Hochevar (3–6) 26,276 23–30 54 June 3 @ Royals 0–2 Mazzaro (2–0) Milone (6–5) Broxton (13) 21,111 23–31 55 June 4 Rangers 12–1 Parker (2–2) Feldman (0–4) 10,120 24–31 56 June 5 Rangers 3–6 Holland (5–4) Blackley (0–1) Nathan (12) 11,861 24–32 57 June 6 Rangers 2–0 Colón (5–6) Lewis (4–5) Fuentes (5) 15,044 25–32 58 June 7 Rangers 7–1 McCarthy (5–3) Darvish (7–4) 14,779 26–32 59 June 8 @ Diamondbacks 8–9 Putz (1–3) Fuentes (2–2) 25,787 26–33 60 June 9 @ Diamondbacks 3–8 Cahill (4–5) Parker (2–3) 28,061 26–34 61 June 10 @ Diamondbacks 3–4 Saunders (4–4) Blackley (0–2) Putz (13) 28,112 26–35 62 June 12 @ Rockies 8–5 Colón (6–6) Guthrie (3–5) Cook (1) 33,635 27–35 63 June 13 @ Rockies 10–8 Blevins (1–0) Betancourt (1–2) Cook (2) 32,155 28–35 64 June 14 @ Rockies 8–2 Parker (3–3) White (2–5) 32,527 29–35 65 June 15 Padres 10–2 Blackley (1–2) Bass (2–7) Scribner (1) 24,528 30–35 66 June 16 Padres 6–4 Doolittle (1–0) Thatcher (0–2) Cook (3) 17,135 31–35 67 June 17 Padres 1–2 Richard (4–7) Colón (6–7) Street (8) 21,631 31–36 68 June 19 Dodgers 3–0 McCarthy (6–3) Harang (5–4) Cook (4) 20,244 32–36 69 June 20 Dodgers 4–1 Milone (7–5) Eovaldi (0–3) 25,383 33–36 70 June 21 Dodgers 4–1 Cook (2–1) Lindblom (2–1) 23,337 34–36 71 June 22 Giants 4–5 Hensley (3–3) Cook (2–2) Casilla (20) 35,067 34–37 72 June 23 Giants 8–9 Bumgarner (9–4) Ross (2–7) Hensley (2) 36,067 34–38 73 June 24 Giants 4–2 Miller (2–0) Casilla (1–3) 36,067 35–38 74 June 25 @ Mariners 1–0 Milone (8–5) Ramírez (0–2) Cook (5) 17,101 36–38 75 June 26 @ Mariners 2–3 Furbush (4–1) Miller (2–1) Wilhelmsen (6) 12,411 36–39 76 June 27 @ Mariners 2–1 Parker (4–3) Iwakuma (1–1) Cook (6) 18,158 37–39 77 June 28 @ Rangers 6–7 Feldman (2–6) Ross (2–8) Nathan (18) 33,927 37–40 78 June 29 @ Rangers 3–4 Harrison (11–3) Balfour (1–2) Scheppers (1) 46,013 37–41 79 June 30 @ Rangers 2–7 Pérez (1–0) Milone (8–6) 46,711 37–42
July (19–5) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 80 July 1 @ Rangers 3–1 Blackley (2–2) Darvish (10–5) Cook (7) 45,741 38–42 81 July 2 Red Sox 6–1 Parker (5–3) Matsuzaka (0–3) 17,434 39–42 82 July 3 Red Sox 3–2 Blevins (2–0) Aceves (0–6) 35,067 40–42 83 July 4 Red Sox 3–2 Balfour (2–2) Cook (2–2) Cook (8) 28,240 41–42 84 July 6 Mariners 4–1 (11) Norberto (1–1) Pérez (0–1) 10,819 42–42 85 July 7 Mariners 1–7 Vargas (8–7) Parker (5–4) 16,136 42–43 86 July 8 Mariners 2–1 (13) Norberto (2–1) Pérez (0–2) 20,075 43–43 87 July 13 @ Twins 6–3 Griffin (1–0) Liriano (3–8) Cook (9) 33,230 44–43 88 July 14 @ Twins 9–3 Milone (9–6) De Vries (2–2) 39,084 45–43 89 July 15 @ Twins 9–4 Parker (6–4) Duensing (1–6) 36,583 46–43 90 July 17 Rangers 1–6 Oswalt (3–1) Colón (6–8) 15,115 46–44 91 July 18 Rangers 4–3 Cook (3–2) Kirkman (0–1) 20,249 47–44 92 July 19 Yankees 4–3 Griffin (2–0) García (4–3) Cook (10) 23,382 48–44 93 July 20 Yankees 3–2 Cook (4–2) Eppley (0–1) 24,148 49–44 94 July 21 Yankees 2–1 Parker (7–4) Hughes (9–8) Doolittle (1) 28,142 50–44 95 July 22 Yankees 5–4 (12) Blevins (3–0) Eppley (0–2) 30,470 51–44 96 July 24 @ Blue Jays 7–2 Blackley (3–2) Cecil (2–3) 25,686 52–44 97 July 25 @ Blue Jays 16–0 Griffin (3–0) Romero (8–7) 23,948 53–44 98 July 26 @ Blue Jays 4–10 Lyon (1–2) Milone (9–7) 39,003 53–45 99 July 27 @ Orioles 14–9 Blevins (4–0) Johnson (1–1) 29,278 54–45 100 July 28 @ Orioles 6–1 Colón (7–8) Hunter (4–6) 21,143 55–45 101 July 29 @ Orioles 1–6 Chen (9–6) Blackley (3–3) 19,698 55–46 102 July 30 Rays 4–3 (15) Norberto (3–1) Farnsworth (0–3) 12,564 56–46 103 July 31 Rays 0–8 Shields (9–7) Milone (9–8) 15,836 56–47
August (18–10) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 104 August 1 Rays 1–4 Cobb (5–8) Parker (7–5) Rodney (31) 18,161 56–48 105 August 2 Blue Jays 4–1 Colón (8–8) Álvarez (7–8) Cook (11) 10,823 57–48 106 August 3 Blue Jays 5–4 (15) Blackley (4–3) Loup (0–2) 30,169 58–48 107 August 4 Blue Jays 1–3 (11) Chavez (1–1) Blevins (4–1) Oliver (2) 17,121 58–49 108 August 5 Blue Jays 5–6 Laffey (3–2) Milone (9–9) Janssen (14) 18,308 58–50 109 August 6 Angels 0–4 Weaver (15–1) Parker (7–6) 13,341 58–51 110 August 7 Angels 10–4 Colón (9–8) Wilson (9–8) 15,458 59–51 111 August 8 Angels 9–8 Neshek (1–0) Hawkins (2–3) Cook (12) 21,150 60–51 112 August 10 @ White Sox 3–4 Myers (1–5) Neshek (1–1) 25,041 60–52 113 August 11 @ White Sox 9–7 Cook (5–2) Thornton (4–8) Balfour (8) 26,686 61–52 114 August 12 @ White Sox 3–7 Sale (14–3) Colón (9–9) 25,106 61–53 115 August 14 @ Royals 0–5 Guthrie (5–12) Parker (7–7) 16,107 61–54 116 August 15 @ Royals 2–3 Smith (4–4) McCarthy (6–4) Holland (4) 15,591 61–55 117 August 16 @ Royals 3–0 Straily (1–0) Hochevar (7–11) Balfour (9) 14,345 62–55 118 August 17 Indians 6–4 Norberto (4–1) Smith (7–3) Balfour (10) 13,967 63–55 119 August 18 Indians 8–5 Colón (10–9) Kluber (0–2) Balfour (11) 30,132 64–55 120 August 19 Indians 7–0 Parker (8–7) Masterson (9–11) 20,130 65–55 121 August 20 Twins 2–7 Duensing (3–8) McCarthy (6–5) 10,274 65–56 122 August 21 Twins 4–1 Anderson (1–0) De Vries (2–5) Balfour (12) 13,116 66–56 123 August 22 Twins 5–1 Milone (10–9) Hendriks (0–6) 16,657 67–56 124 August 23 @ Rays 0–5 Cobb (8–8) Ross (2–9) 11,613 67–57 125 August 24 @ Rays 5–4 Cook (6–2) Peralta (1–6) Balfour (13) 18,913 68–57 126 August 25 @ Rays 4–2 McCarthy (7–5) Hellickson (8–9) Balfour (14) 18,187 69–57 127 August 27 @ Indians 3–0 Anderson (2–0) Hernández (0–3) Balfour (15) 13,018 70–57 128 August 28 @ Indians 7–0 Milone (11–9) McAllister (5–5) 13,413 71–57 129 August 29 @ Indians 8–4 Blackley (5–3) Kluber (0–3) Cook (13) 14,412 72–57 130 August 30 @ Indians 12–7 Parker (9–7) Masterson (10–12) 14,500 73–57 131 August 31 Red Sox 20–2 McCarthy (8–5) Cook (3–8) 20,121 74–57
September/October (20–11) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 132 September 1 Red Sox 7–1 Griffin (4–0) Doubront (10–7) 20,315 75–57 133 September 2 Red Sox 6–2 Anderson (3–0) Matsuzaka (1–4) 25,314 76–57 134 September 3 Angels 3–8 Wilson (11–9) Milone (11–10) 20,180 76–58 135 September 4 Angels 1–6 Greinke (13–5) Parker (9–8) 11,688 76–59 136 September 5 Angels 1–7 Haren (10–10) McCarthy (8–6) 15,404 76–60 137 September 7 @ Mariners 6–1 Griffin (5–0) Hernández (13–7) 17,128 77–60 138 September 8 @ Mariners 6–1 Anderson (4–0) Iwakuma (6–4) 23,177 78–60 139 September 9 @ Mariners 4–2 Milone (12–10) Vargas (14–10) Balfour (16) 14,403 79–60 140 September 10 @ Angels 3–1 Parker (10–8) Haren (10–11) Balfour (17) 36,064 80–60 141 September 11 @ Angels 6–5 Straily (2–0) Williams (6–8) Blevins (1) 37,794 81–60 142 September 12 @ Angels 4–1 Griffin (6–0) Santana (8–12) Cook (14) 38,097 82–60 143 September 13 @ Angels 0–6 Weaver (17–4) Anderson (4–1) 38,029 82–61 144 September 14 Orioles 3–2 Milone (13–10) Saunders (8–12) Balfour (18) 35,067 83–61 145 September 15 Orioles 5–2 Parker (11–8) Britton (5–3) Balfour (19) 20,342 84–61 146 September 16 Orioles 5–9 Matusz (6–10) Straily (2–1) Johnson (43) 20,539 84–62 147 September 18 @ Tigers 2–12 Downs (2–1) Griffin (6–1) 31,243 84–63 148 September 19 @ Tigers 2–6 Verlander (15–8) Anderson (4–2) 29,734 84–64 149 September 20 @ Tigers 12–4 Neshek (2–1) Sánchez (8–13) 34,635 85–64 150 September 21 @ Yankees 1–2 (10) Robertson (2–7) Doolittle (1–1) 40,759 85–65 151 September 22 @ Yankees 9–10 (14) Wade (1–1) Ross (2–10) 44,026 85–66 152 September 23 @ Yankees 5–4 Blevins (5–1) Kuroda (14–11) Balfour (20) 43,867 86–66 153 September 24 @ Rangers 4–5 Nathan (3–4) Ross (2–11) 43,044 86–67 154 September 25 @ Rangers 3–2 (10) Scribner (1–0) Lowe (0–2) Balfour (21) 43,874 87–67 155 September 26 @ Rangers 9–3 Parker (12–8) Pérez (1–3) 46,689 88–67 156 September 27 @ Rangers 7–9 Harrison (18–10) Blackley (5–4) Nathan (36) 43,796 88–68 157 September 28 Mariners 8–2 Griffin (7–1) Beavan (10–11) 16,376 89–68 158 September 29 Mariners 7–4 (10) Balfour (3–2) Pérez (1–3) 21,517 90–68 159 September 30 Mariners 5–2 Doolittle (2–1) Kelley (2–4) Balfour (22) 21,057 91–68 160 October 1 Rangers 4–3 Parker (13–8) Pérez (1–4) Balfour (23) 21,162 92–68 161 October 2 Rangers 3–1 Blackley (6–4) Harrison (18–11) Balfour (24) 30,660 93–68 162 October 3 Rangers 12–5 Scribner (2–0) Holland (12–7) 36,067 94–68

Postseason

Division Series

Main article: 2012 American League Division Series

The Athletics played the Detroit Tigers in the Division Series.

Game 1, October 6

6:07 p.m. (EDT) at Comerica Park in Detroit, Michigan

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Oakland	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	4	1
Detroit	1	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	X	3	7	0
Starting pitchers: OAK: Jarrod Parker (0–0) DET: Justin Verlander (0–0) --> WP: Justin Verlander (1–0)   LP: Jarrod Parker (0–1)   Sv: José Valverde (1) Home runs: OAK: Coco Crisp (1) DET: Alex Avila (1)

Game 2, October 7

12:07 p.m. (EDT) at Comerica Park in Detroit, Michigan

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Oakland	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	2	0	4	9	1
Detroit	0	0	1	0	0	0	2	1	1	5	11	0
Starting pitchers: OAK: Tommy Milone (0–0) DET: Doug Fister (0–0) --> WP: Al Alburquerque (1–0)   LP: Grant Balfour (0–1) Home runs: OAK: Josh Reddick (1) DET: None

Game 3, October 9

9:07 p.m. (EDT) at O.co Coliseum in Oakland, California

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Detroit	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	0
Oakland	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	2	5	0
Starting pitchers: DET: Aníbal Sánchez (0–0) OAK: Brett Anderson (0–0) --> WP: Brett Anderson (1–0)   LP: Aníbal Sánchez (0–1)   Sv: Grant Balfour (1) Home runs: DET: None OAK: Seth Smith (1)

Game 4, October 10

9:37 p.m. (EDT) at O.co Coliseum in Oakland, California

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Detroit	0	0	0	1	1	0	0	1	0	3	10	1
Oakland	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	3	4	8	0
Starting pitchers: DET: Max Scherzer (0–0) OAK: A. J. Griffin (0–0) --> WP: Ryan Cook (1–0)   LP: José Valverde (0–1) Home runs: DET: Prince Fielder (1) OAK: None

Game 5, October 11

9:37 p.m. (EDT) at O.co Coliseum in Oakland, California

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Detroit	0	0	2	0	0	0	4	0	0	6	9	0
Oakland	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	1
Starting pitchers: DET: Justin Verlander (1–0) OAK: Jarrod Parker (0–1) --> WP: Justin Verlander (2–0)   LP: Jarrod Parker (0–2)

Farm System

Farm system affiliates

See also: Minor League Baseball

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	Sacramento River Cats	Pacific Coast League	Darren Bush
AA	Midland RockHounds	Texas League	Steve Scarsone
A	Stockton Ports	California League	Webster Garrison
A	Burlington Bees	Midwest League	Aaron Nieckula
A-Short Season	Vermont Lake Monsters	New York–Penn League	Rick Magnante
Rookie	AZL Athletics	Arizona League	Marcus Jensen

In September, the organization announced a two-year player development contract with the Class A Beloit Snappers, replacing Burlington after two seasons.

Arizona Fall League

Gary Daley, Grant Green, Shawn Haviland, Miles Head, Brett Hunter, Max Stassi, James Simmons will represent the organization on the Phoenix Desert Dogs

MLB Top Prospects

as of August 26, 2012

Player	Position	Rank	Acquisition	2012 Levels
1	Michael Choice	OF	Drafted 1st Rd (2010)	AA
2	Brad Peacock	SP	Gonzalez Trade	AAA
3	Sonny Gray	SP	Drafted 1st Rd (2011)	AA
4	A. J. Cole	SP	Gonzalez Trade	A+, A
5	Grant Green	OF/IF	Drafted 1st Rd (2009)	AAA
6	Yordy Cabrera	SS	Drafted 2nd Rd (2010)	A+
7	Ian Krol	P	Drafted 7th Rd (2009)	A+
8	Dan Straily	P	Drafted 24th Rd (2009)	AA, AAA
9	Raúl Alcántara	SP	Bailey/Sweeney Trade	A
10	Vical de la Cruz	OF	Int'l FA (2010)	R
11	A. J. Griffin	SP	Drafted 13th Rd (2010)	AA, AAA
12	Blake Hassebrock	SP	Drafted 8th Rd (2010)	A+
13	Aaron Shipman	OF	Drafted 3rd Rd (2010)	A
14	David Freitas	C	Suzuki Trade
15	Jermaine Mitchell	OF	Drafted 5th Rd (2006)	AAA
16	Renato Núñez	3B		R
17	Stephen Parker	3B	Drafted 5th Rd (2009)	AAA
18	Max Stassi	C	Drafted 4th Rd (2009)	A+
19	Miles Head	IF	Bailey/Sweeney Trade	A+, AA
20	Michael Taylor	OF	Wallace Trade	AAA

Bold has played in Oakland during 2012 season. Carter, Cowgill, Norris and Parker have been removed.

Baseball America named Céspedes (14), Parker (26), Peacock (36), Cole (57), Gray (65), and Choice (80) to their Top 100 Prospects list. Baseball Prospectus named Choice (39), Parker (50), Cole (60), Peacock (64), Gray (72), Norris (96), and Green (100) to their Top 101 Prospects list.

External links

• 2012 Oakland Athletics season at Baseball Reference
• 2012 Oakland Athletics season Official Site