Happy Wednesday, Athletics Nation!
Remember July 31, 2014?
I’m sorry for bringing it up, but it’s relevant to the topic at hand. That was the day that the Oakland Athletics, the only team in MLB with a winning percentage above .600 at the time, traded slugger Yoenis Cespedes for Red Sox ace Jon Lester. Much controversy ensued, and if the proof is in the pudding, well, that trade proved to be a misstep on the part of GM Billy Beane and crew.
I’ll spare most of the remaining details of that ill-fated autumn of 2014 except to say that it was an epic skid that involved a whole lot of one-run losses.