Goodbye to a Gamer

Oakland A's Days is really broken up about the news that Tim Hudson has been traded (to the Braves!  and for who?  we know Cruz is supposed to be good, but we are skeptical, and why do we need Thomas if we have Swisher, and who the hell is Dan Meyer?).  As much as we tried to prepare ourselves for this, it hurts.  A lot.  We thought it would be cathartic to list 10 things we love and will miss about our dear Huddy.

1.  His fierce, fierce competitiveness.
2.  That amazing Alabama accent (we will admit that he was our favorite part about the Pepsi K Krew pitchers ad).
3.  His bald head.
4.  The way the number 15 on his jersey almost gets tucked into his green belt, which highlights his smallness.
5.  The fist pump when he gets out of a jam.
6.  That he is always one of the first guys out of the dugout to congratulate the team.
7.  That he said his heart was in Oakland.
8.  The tatoo on the inside of his lower arm.
9.  That he appeared on Extra Innings with Robert Buan every week, even after a tough loss.  And when he was there, he was candid, engaging and funny.
10. Those bulldogs hanging on the railing. 

We know that part of being an A's fan is learning to accept that we lose our favorite players.  Every year, we mourn the departure of a home-grown star so we know the drill.  But we do not want to get so used to this that we lose sight of the fact that it is fundamentally unjust.  It should not be forgotten that the financial inequities in baseball are to blame for the loss of Huddy.  Rooting for the oppressed rather than the oppressor allows us to have the moral high ground in any debate about what's wrong with baseball, and when we lose in the first round of the play-offs there is a tiny, tiny, miniscule amount of comfort in the fact that we stood toe-to-toe with teams that cost double and triple what we cost and took them to the final inning or out of a 5 game series.  It should never be overlooked, however, that it is so unfair and utterly frustrating that the Oakland A's continue to be a second farm system to all the rich, greedy monsters in baseball.  Damn.

Comments

[War]

Guess Blanton is getting his shot this year...

[Eck's Mullet]

The A's always find a way to abide, but things just won't be the same without Huddy's Soul Patch.

[Nickolai]

Dammit, I'm gonna miss him! I am glad that he's going to a classy organization like Atlanta - I hope they lock him up for a while, cuz I wanna see what kind of magic Huddy and Mazzone can spin together. Plus we'll get to watch him bat on TBS...

It kills me that Huddy's last start was a meaningless who-cares game against Anaheim's bench players.

[Will]

Meyer is the pick of the litter here. He'll be the #5 starter by July.

[leah rose]

i am so so sad.

[Will]

Muler traded to the Cards for Calero, Haren, and a prospect. Interesting to say the least.

[Will]

Make that "Mulder"

[Ken]

The next player to wear #15 better be a flat out warrior.

[Lorraine]

I just came across this website, and as well as the A's doing at the moment, now that they have gotten out of the basement, (June '05), I couldn't help but wax nostalgic for the 'ol Huddy days. Still miss him!
The top 10 list is just perfect! Thanks.