Spiegel: Here's hoping Oakland goes on deep postseason run

Sometimes the team to root for jumps up and declares itself loudly.

Two years ago I saw Oakland A's fans standing in the ninth inning as closer Grant Balfour came into the game, pumping their forearms at nothing as if they were fighting invisible monsters. Add that unique excitement and joy to an organization I respected, and they became “my team” in a Cubs-less and Sox-less postseason.

So here we are, again, staring at an October without the locals. Who you got?

I'm with the A's as they free-fall toward an epic collapse.

I appreciate when a GM like Billy Beane decides it is the year to finally go for it. Knowing Scott Kazmir was due for a regression, and that Sonny Gray's workload could catch up to him, Beane dealt for three starting pitchers in July.

Sadly, it has blown up in his face as everyone stopped hitting. The A's led their division by 4 games on Aug. 19, then went 12-25. They were averaging more than 5 runs a game before the Cubs trade, and have averaged less than 3.5 since.

You have other options on who to root for, assuming there are no familial or regional ties drawing you to an obvious choice.

• The big-money Tigers? Not much feels good about wishing them well.

• The bigger-money Angels? Mike Trout deserves anything he gets, and Mike Scoscia has held a rotation together through injuries and an underperforming C.J. Wilson.

• The biggest money of all, the Dodgers? I'd love to see Clayton Kershaw under the brightest possible lights, and watching Yasiel Puig is always compelling. Even if you despise the financial gluttony, they deserve consideration.

• Those plucky Royals? I want to see them make it and throw Big Game James Shields in the coin flip game. But I just don't like Ned Yost enough to get behind them in full.

• The confounding Orioles? I can't figure out how they win. Buck Showalter deserves credit, but they're too boring.

• The ever-present Cardinals? No, I've seen enough of them. Haven't we all?

• The irrepressible Giants have won enough too.

• The long suffering Pirates? Success for them would bring good feelings, and it'd be fun to watch that young outfield for as many games as possible.

• The Nationals, this time with Stephen Strasburg in the mix? That is a largely homegrown lineup and rotation, with some wise bargain acquisitions in Denard Span and Doug Fister. Local kid Tanner Roarke has been a nice surprise. Another local, Mike Rizzo, yearns for a ring. They're my second choice.

Oakland has likable players, including Jeff Samardzija gunning for a postseason start. Adam Dunn handled failure in Chicago with class, and before he retires to be a dad I'd be happy to see him get his first postseason at-bats.

Josh Donaldson is one of the best players in the game who your kids probably don't know anything about. Coco Crisp plays with an ebullient abandon I've always enjoyed. And Beane, after years of stringing constrained budgets into contention, picked up the best postseason pitcher on the market.

Now the A's will be lucky to have Jon Lester start a wild-card coin flip game.

Beane will regret losing six seasons of a cheap Addison Russell in the Samardzija deal, while the Cubs reap the benefits. But, as it is with smart power hitters, selective aggression ought to be rewarded.

Go Oakland.

• Matt Spiegel co-hosts “The Spiegel & Mannelly Show” 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday-Friday on WSCR 670-AM. Follow him on Twitter @mattspiegel670.