The Oakland A’s took a tough loss in the Cactus League on Tuesday, and if it was a regular season game we’d all be pretty bummed out about it. But since the final result doesn’t affect anything, we can instead focus on the positives that happened leading up to the disappointing conclusion.
The final score was 9-8 against the Chicago Cubs, so naturally our good news begins on the offensive side of the ball.
Before even considering who played well, the first note is who was playing at all. Two players were in the starting lineup for the first time this spring after injury delays, with veteran Jed Lowrie at second base and prospect Skye Bolt in right field.