A's riding D-list starting rotation right into October

If Edwin Jackson doesn't start the American League wild-card game for the Oakland Athletics, manager Bob Melvin might have another task in mind for him.

Shortly after Jackson exercised an opt-out clause with the Washington Nationals and signed with Oakland in early June, Melvin entrusted him with taking the lineup card to home plate. The A's reeled off six consecutive victories against the Tigers and Indians, and Jackson had a semi-regular gig as the team's resident good-luck charm and minister of outreach to the men in blue.

"That was a first," Jackson said. "I just laughed. I was new still, and he said, 'E.J., you're taking out the lineup.' I was like, 'For real?' And he said, 'For real.'…