The Oakland Athletics -- A team that just won't quit!

The Oakland Athletics have been hotter than the subject of congressman Gary Condit's infidelities.

Currently, they are riding an 11 game winning streak, having just swept the New York Yankees in Oakland this past weekend, and before that, the Boston Red Sox.

They are 24-7 since coming off the All-Star break, and have the third best record in the majors, behind only the Seattle Mariners and the New York Yankees.

Now here's the hard part to swallow.

As good as the Oakland Athletics are, they still trail the Mariners in the A.L. West by an amazing 17 games. Yes, 17 games. (It only goes to show just how incredible a season Seattle is having.)

Oakland is currently 68-50. If they were playing in any other division, they would be in first place. More than likely, even if they could win their remaining 44 games, with the way the Mariners have been playing, they would still end up in second place in the A.L. West.

The Athletics could hardly by a win early in the season. By June 3, they had a 27-28 record, while Seattle was already 43-12. The A's could have quit, but they refused to do so.

In 2000, the Athletics won the A.L. West by only half-a-game over the Mariners, who were the A.L. wild card team. Oakland finished the regular season 91-70.

The New York Yankees defeated the Athletics in the Division Series, 3-2, and went on to beat the Mariners in the American League Championship Series, 4-2.

Now the tables are turned, and Oakland must fight for the wild card spot.

Will Oakland be the wild card team this year?

Yes, if they keep playing the way they have been, and Boston keeps losing like they have been doing lately.

I also believe Oakland has the advantage over Boston too. Why?

Pitching! You must remember Boston doesn't have Pedro Martinez right now, and he might not be back for another two weeks or so. Plus, Boston's starting pitching has really been struggling lately.

In the meantime, Oakland currently leads the A.L. in pitching with a team ERA of 3.74. Boston did lead most of the year, but injuries have decimated their pitching staff. First, Pedro Martinez went out with a sore arm, then Frank Castillo went out. Pitcher Bret Saberhagen finally returned from the DL, but now he is back on it and he recently stated his career may be through.

Oakland also ranks fifth in the A.L. in team batting, while Boston is sixth. I believe Oakland has better hitters than Boston overall.

Last year's A.L. MVP, Jason Giambi, has been hitting the ball extremely well lately. He won the game for the A's against the Yankees this past Sunday, by hitting a two-run homerun in the bottom of the ninth inning at home. Oakland won 4-2.

Giambi hit 43 homeruns last year, along with 137 RBI's. Currently, he has 29 homeruns with 91 RBI's. So, it looks he's going to get close to those stats of a year ago. He's also batting .330 presently. He wound up last year with a .333 average.

However, I don't think he will win the MVP again this year. Do you know why?

He will probably be beaten out by Seattle's second baseman Bret Boone, who is having the best year of his career. Boone is currently batting .325 with 26 homeruns and 104 RBI's. It's going to be close, but I feel Boone will get it, since Seattle is having such a great season.

There also was a lot of talk before the trading deadline of July 31, that the A's Giambi might be placed on the trading block. It was rumored that the Yankees were interested in him, but the Oakland front office apparently decided it was not too late to make a run for the playoffs. So all talks were discontinued.

As a matter of fact, the Athletics decided to strengthen their team by making a trade for Jermaine Dye from the Kansas City Royals. After having a breakout season last year for the Royals, Dye had struggled some this year.

In 2000, with the Royals, Dye hit 33 homeruns, 118 RBIs and batted .321. Since Oakland picked him up, he has done nothing but contribute to their success. He has hit four homeruns, driven in 19 runs, and is currently batting .303. For the year, he is batting .277 with 17 homeruns and 66 runs driven in.

As I stated earlier, the Athletics lead the A.L. in pitching. This is due in part, to the success of pitchers, Tim Hudson and Mark Mulder.

Hudson, who had an excellent year last year going 20-6 with an ERA of 4.14, helped lead his team to their division win of a year ago over Seattle. He is 14-6 right now, with an ERA of 2.99. He leads the team in innings pitched with 174.1. Mulder had a bad year last year, having gone 9-10 with an ERA of 5.44. Currently he is 15-6 with an ERA of 3.20.

Oakland has some other good pitchers too. I like Barry Zito and Cory Lidle. Both have plenty of talent and potential, and both are still young -- Lidle is 29, while Zito is only 23.

Lidle is currently 7-5 with an ERA of 3.65, and Zito is 8-7 with an ERA of 4.29. Zito, leads all pitchers on staff with 144 strikeouts.

Pitcher Gil Heredia, 35, has seen his better days, but he can still contribute. Pitcher Mark Guthrie, who is 6-2 with an ERA of 5.01, helps where he is needed. Closer Jason Isringhausen is very reliable. He has earned 23 saves for Oakland this year, and is 4-2 with an ERA of 2.47. Erik Hiljus, 28, could become a starter on a regular basis if needed.

There are other players on this team that contribute to the team's daily success, as well.

Shortstop Miguel Tejada currently has 23 homeruns and 77 RBIs, which has him on pace to match his stats of a year ago, when he hit 30 homeruns with 115 RBI's. At 25, he is a very important piece of the puzzle on this team.

Another good player on this team is third baseman Eric Chavez. He's only 23. Currently, he has 18 homeruns and with 65 RBIs, and leads the team in doubles with 31.

Outfielder Johnny Damon, acquired from the Kansas City Royals during the off-season, is reliable, but he's not having the year Oakland expected of him. Currently, he leads the team with 20 stolen bases and 80 runs scored, and is improving.

Oakland acquired outfielder Ron Gant from the Colorado Rockies recently. He's aging fast, but can still play the outfield and hit with some power.

Also, did you know there's another Giambi on this team along with Jason Giambi? Yes, its Jason's brother, Jeremy Giambi, who plays some outfield and DH's. He has hit eight homeruns with 42 RBI's so far. He's a big part of this team.

The A's Manager, Art Howe, has done an excellent job with all of these young players, and he shouldn't be going anywhere anytime soon.

In closing, I'm really impressed with this Oakland ballclub. They started the season off horribly, falling behind Seattle by many games early. It could have destroyed Oakland, or any other team for that matter, but the A's would not quit.

That my fellow baseball fans is nothing but determination and sound, fundamental baseball. While good pitching or good hitting is no guarantee of success, playing as a team and doing the basics consistently right, everyday, is a key to success, and that's what the A's have been doing.

Enjoy the rest of the season. See you at the game!