A's hope to avoid a first-round exit

OAKLAND, Calif. — After three remarkable regular seasons and three first-round playoff exits, the Oakland Athletics have begun to wonder if they'll ever break through in October.

Of course, playoff failure is relative. The A's merely must look across the Coliseum field Wednesday night at the Boston Red Sox — a talented team in its ninth decade without a championship.

"We've got to keep it intact," A's manager Ken Macha said with a grin.

Belief will be a large factor in the teams' AL division series. The A's must have faith that their good pitching finally will beat good hitting in the playoffs, while the Red Sox must mentally overcome years of struggle for generations of Boston players.

"You think about history when you're a baseball player sometimes, and there's a little superstition involved, too," said Macha, who managed in the Boston organization for four years and nearly took over the Red Sox two years ago. "But it's not the main issue. We're focused on winning the opening game, and so are they."

The teams are connected by much more than their postseason struggles. For less than a day last winter, A's general manager Billy Beane accepted an offer to take the same job in Boston before changing his mind.

Under first-year general manager Theo Epstein, the Red Sox have begun to retool their organization as a high-budget version of the A's, with an emphasis on on-base percentage, strong pitching and a deep farm system.

Both teams will pitch their aces in the opener, with league ERA champion Pedro Martinez facing 16-game winner Tim Hudson. The late start (10 p.m. EDT) should only add to the tension when Boston's league-best offense takes on the best of Oakland's top-notch pitching staff.

"That's very hard to handicap," Texas shortstop Alex Rodriguez said. "The game may be 1-0, and a solo home run or a bunt may be the difference. In order for Oakland to win, Game 1 is paramount. Oakland is the type of team . . . the more they play, the better they get."

' Perhaps that's because Hudson pitched a two-hitter when he faced Martinez in Oakland nearly two months ago. While Hudson dominated, the A's ratcheted up Martinez's pitch count, and the Boston ace pitched just five innings in a 4-0 loss.

Neither team set its postseason roster on Tuesday, but few major decisions remain. Macha plans to start outfielder Jose Guillen, who broke a bone in his hand on Sept. 14.

Oakland needs all the pop it can get from its lineup. The A's offensive production declined for the fourth straight year, finishing with just 768 runs and a .327 on-base percentage — 10th in the league in Beane's favorite statistical category.

The Red Sox were a phenomenal offensive team, leading baseball in runs, batting average, slugging percentage and on-base percentage. Eight players drove in at least 85 runs. Bill Mueller won the AL batting title at .326.

But the A's earned their fourth straight playoff berth with their usual recipe of impressive starting pitching and timely hitting.