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The Oakland A's aren't just playing the rest of the American League. They're also playing against the calendar.
They not only have to worry about the Yankees and Red Sox and Twins and Indians -- the Mariners are another issue -- but they have to keep one eye on the trade deadline.
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Center stage
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It was four weeks ago Thursday that Carl Everett went down with a sprained knee, just one more injury for the Red Sox to overcome.
But the loss of Everett has meant a boost for Trot Nixon, who moved from right field to center and from second in the batting order to third.
Nixon has played sterling defense in center -- his instincts are superb -- and become a big-time run producer in the heart of the Red Sox order.
"Right now," said an executive with another major-league team, "he's their best player -- hands down."
Since the All-Star break, Nixon has hit .436 with four RBI through Wednesday. He's put together three three-hit games in a row. He's second on the team in homers, and his average continues to climb. But it's not just the numbers that are catching everyone's attention.
"He's as tough an out as there in the game right now," marveled starter David Cone. "He's having great at-bats every time up. I can tell from how carefully opposing pitchers are pitching him how much other teams fear him now."
"I think he really feels like he belongs at this level," said manager Jimy Williams. "He seems to have settled in and been productive."
Nixon's emergence has been a long-time coming. A first-round pick in 1993, he didn't become anything close to an everyday player until 1999. That year, Williams carefully brought him along, hitting him ninth and keeping him away from lefties.
Last year was a disappointment, since Nixon seemed to regress despite additional playing time.
This year, he's responded to the challenge.
"I'm just trying to get myself in position to hit good pitches," Nixon said. "I feel comfortable (in the third spot). I'm getting good pitches to hit with Manny (Ramirez) behind me, and in those situations, I've been able to put good wood on the ball."
And, in the process, help soften the loss of Everett and others.
-- Sean McAdam
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Do the A's keep the team together and hope that the second-half resurgence continues? Or do they cash out, sell off some free agents-to-be and reload for the future?
It's not an easy question and the A's don't profess to have all the answers.
"I think it's day-to-day," said an A's source. "That's the only way to view this."
General manager Billy Beane must walk a most perilous tightrope. If Beane holds onto Jason Giambi and Johnny Damon and Jason Isringhausen and the A's hit a skid in August to fall completely out of wild-card contention, he'll have missed an opportunity to get something for three players who almost assuredly are going to walk away at the end of the season.
If, on the other hand, Beane acts prematurely and sells off the trio, only to have some of the rest of the American League contenders stumble, he'll have missed an opportunity.
"I don't envy them," said an executive with another AL team. "When you're a small-market team, you've got to take your chance while you've got it. They gave the Yankees all they could handle last fall (stretching them to an elimination game for the first since the ALDS in 1997) and they're a team no one would want to meet in a short series."
Indeed, Oakland's blend of power and speed, coupled with a formidable front three (Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder and Barry Zito) would make them a tough draw for anyone in the first round.
There's a feeling that Beane owes it to the A's fan base to go for it now, and worry about next year later.
"The window (of opportunity) doesn't stay open very long for a small- or medium-market team," said the executive. "I think you've got to make the most of it."
Giambi is, of course, the most intriguing piece of the puzzle. Until recently, last year's AL MVP seemed hung up only on no-trade language on a contract extension that would keep him in the Bay Area -- or wherever the A's move -- for the next five seasons or so.
But that changed recently, with agent Arn Tellem announcing that the A's "hometown discount" proposal was no longer sufficient.
There's little doubt that the Yankees would love to get a head start on signing Giambi by making a deal for him. What's more, they have the young first baseman (Nick Johnson) who could soon replace Giambi in Oakland.
But the A's may hold on to everybody and gamble that the first half was an aberration and, that with a strong second half, they could be the October powerhouse that many projected they could be when they added Damon over the winter.
Last year, the A's didn't secure the AL West title until the final day of the season. This year, they may find out a lot about their playoff fate two months in advance. By July 31, Beane and Oakland ownership must decide whether to make their run or drop out of the race.
It's not an easy call. A second straight postseason appearance could bolster their standing in winning a new ballpark or finding a new home outside Oakland. But if the A's miscalculate, they could set the franchise's development back and forfeit some goodwill.
Up and down
Up: Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers have lost three of their starters in the last month -- Darren Dreifort and Andy Ashby are gone for the season and the fear is that Kevin Brown may be as well.
Yet, against these odds, the Dodgers remain on the Diamondbacks' heels in the division. Entering Thursday's action, the Dodgers had won five straight and 15 of their last 20.
The more bodies they lose, the better the Dodgers play, which is undoubtedly a reflection on their rookie manager Jim Tracy. Tracy won't allow the Dodgers to feel sorry for themselves because of the loss of personnel.
The Dodgers are more worried about finding a way to make the playoffs then they are about finding excuses.
In the absence of The Big Three, the Dodgers are getting terrific pitching from Terry Adams, Eric Gagne, and Chan Ho Park. Park two-hit the Brewers Wednesday night and looked like a true ace, not just one filling in for Brown.
"The last few years," said Adams, "everybody's ridden Brownie's back. Now, he's not here to pick up the team every five days so other guys have to step up and do the job."
Down: Colorado Rockies
No wonder the Rocks are so active in the trade market. Their miserable second-half start has them setting quickly in the (NL) West.
The Rockies are, of course, shopping Pedro Astacio, hoping to both replentish their roster with younger players and rid themselves of Astacio's $9 million option for next season.
That may lighten their payroll and improve things in the long-term. But it won't erase the horrific slide the Rockies have been through. Toward the end of June, the Rockies got a season-high four games over the .500 mark and were a mere half-game out of the wild-card spot in the National League.
Then, the Rockies proceeded to lose 21 of their next 25, sending them far out of contention and looking toward next year.
"I felt like we were ready to make our move," sighed pitcher Denny Neagle of that June surge. "I don't think any of us thought we'd be in this kind of slide."
Question of the week
What is it about the Montreal Expos that so many of their former executives go on to become general managers elsewhere?
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The List
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Five CDs to listen to on the way to the trading deadline:
1. Neil Finn, One Nil. Adult pop, expertly crafted with some interesting twists.
2. Continental Drifters, Better Day. Call it a modern day Rumours -- a documentary of intra-band breakups and recovery, told with heart and humor.
3. Pernice Brothers, World Without End. Joe Pernice wears his Brian Wilson influences on his sleeve and the results are breathtaking.
4. Lucinda Williams, Essence. Raw, honest songwriting.
5. Buffalo Springfield, Box Set. Together for less than two years, their influence is legendary. This set collects it all, with plenty of rarities.
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The list grew some again recently when Dave Littlefield was hired to become the Pittsburgh Pirates GM last week.
Littlefield, who prior to getting the Pirates job was the assistant GM for the Florida Marlins, spent his formative years in Montreal.
So too did Dan Duquette (Boston), Dave Dombrowksi (Florida), Bill Stoneman (Anaheim) and recently deposed Los Angeles Dodgers GM Kevin Malone.
Duquette, who was farm director and GM with the Expos before being hired in Boston in 1994, says Montreal is a valuable training ground.
"I think when you're in Montreal, you learn the importance of managing a budget," Duquette said, "and the importance of player development. You have to find ways to be creative, and those are skills that are important no matter where you go.
"I'm sure it's not much consolation to the Expos fans (that so many executives have gone elsewhere), but the industry owes the Expos a debt of gratitude for developing front-office people."
McAdam's Corner
Once, the mighty umpires' union did as it wished, confident that their solidarity and history of success against baseball provided it with a protective bubble.
But now that MLB has regained control over its umpires, has the pendulum swung too far in the other direction?
Sandy Alderson's misguided attempt to dictate pitch counts to umpires as a means of enforcing the game's new-old strike zone suggests as much.
It's one thing to strive for consistency and accountability from the umpires, two qualities often lacking from the umps for too long. But just because MLB now has the hammer, it doesn't have to use it to beat the umpires over the head.
Few would argue that the umpires should follow the guidelines, be subject to evaluation and face dismissal if they fail to do their jobs in a satisfactory manner.
But little comes of MLB issuing silly edicts in an attempt to artificially engineer changes, nor in the ham-fisted way in which they were handled.
It wasn't good for the game when the umpires flaunted their labor muscle and acted in their own interest, rather than that of the game. It isn't any better when the commissioner's office attempts to do the same.
Sean McAdam of the Providence Journal writes a major-league notebook each week during the baseball season for ESPN.com.
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