PROGRAMMING NOTE: NBC Sports California is looking back at the A's 50 Memorable Moments since the franchise relocated to Oakland in 1968. Below are the next two moments you can vote on. Tune into A's Pregame Live today at 12:30pm to watch highlights of the two moments. After the A's and White Sox conclude their doubleheader, tune into A's Postgame Live to see which moment will move on to the next round!
1. Dallas Braden's Perfect Game on Mother's Day 2010 (12-time winner -- Defeated Terrence Long's game-saving catch over the wall at Fenway in 2002)
(From Dallas Braden)
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Well, they haven’t taken it away yet so I guess it might not be a dream after all. It’s still insane to think that on such a special day for so many people, my teammates and I were able to etch ourselves into the hearts of A’s fans everywhere.
In the moment, I had no clue. At the same time, I was fully aware. Completely focused and emotionally distracted at the same time. Hell, I talked myself into the wrong count in the last at-bat of the game. The 27th out. In that moment I had no clue. No clue I’d become the vehicle for such an emotional moment shared between mothers and their families across baseball that special day. I do believe that’s what I was -- merely a vehicle to connect people through our beautiful game. My mom, along with the baseball gods, and Landon Powell, I guess, all steered us down the path of history and to be able to share and relive those special moments and memories is a blessing a young little leaguer can only dream of.
I hope that through my passion for the game you feel the same love I, myself, my wife, baby girl, and grandmother have felt from each of you, the fans of the Green & Gold. We couldn’t be happier to share this Mother’s Day and every Mother’s Day from here on out, TOGETHER! It’s a perfect fit if you ask me.
VS.
2. Mark McGwire's rookie home run record in 1987
(From Dave Stewart)
Oakland Athletics
It was an unbelievable year for him as a rookie. It seemed like, every time you turned around, he was hitting a home run. He had a lot of solo home runs, the guys started calling him “Marco-Solo”.
He was hitting home runs at an unbelievable pace, I think if my memory serves me right, he was hitting a home run every 9 at-bats. They were towering home runs, they weren’t line-drive home runs, towering shots that were hit way out of the ballpark.
He was always real calm, and in that period of time, real quite, not vocal at all, he got to the ballpark early, got his work in. I mean he worked on his skill, he worked on his trade, people talked about his hitting, but I thought he was a gold glove first baseman as well.
He really worked at being a good baseball player
When McGwire came in, he didn’t make our team as our first baseman, he made it as our third baseman, I don’t remember our first baseman’s name at the time, probably nobody does now, but we sent him down and Mac took over at first base and took off, he was on a tear. For a rookie season, that’s an unbelievable year.
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