SEATTLE -- For as many unpredictable happenings that have occurred during a tumultuous season for the A's, there are certain events that have simply come to be expected.
Billy Burns swinging at the first pitch is one of them.
The rookie leadoff man has put the ball in play on the first pitch 94 times in 437 plate appearances this season. Three times he did it in Wednesday's 8-2 loss in Seattle, including the first inning, when he launched the first pitch of the game from Mariners ace Felix Hernandez over the center-field wall for his third home run of the year.