--RHP Andrew Bailey made his big-league debut on Monday, pitching a perfect inning with one strikeout in the opener. Bailey, 24, gave up only one run during the spring, and he could wind up making regular appearances with Joey Devine starting the season on the DL.
--LHP Josh Outman pitched in an intrasquad game in the A's minor league complex in Phoenix on Sunday in order to prepare to start Oakland's home opener on Friday. According to pitching coach Curt Young, Outman threw 95 pitches in seven innings and struck out 10 while allowing "four or five" hits. --LHP Gio Gonzalez was sent to Class AAA Sacramento to start the season, though he'd been considered a top candidate for the final spot in the rotation. A sore shoulder sidelined him for two weeks in the spring and though he was still up for a job in the bullpen, Gonzalez's control wasn't as sharp as the team had hoped. He will be stretched out to start again at Sacramento.
--RH Justin Duchscherer needed only a minor cleanup of his sore right elbow in an arthroscopic procedure on March 31. Duchscherer could return to the A's by early to mid-May, though the team has not indicated if he will be pointed toward a spot in the rotation or in the bullpen. Duchscherer has been an All-Star in both roles, so it might depend on the team's greater need at the time.
BY THE NUMBERS: 63 -- Major league starts made by Oakland's entire rotation entering the 2009 season.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "I like their makeup and how they handle themselves. So far so good, as long as they go out and throw strikes. We've already told them the pressure should all be on us, the offense. We're going to be able to put runs on the board." -- Jason Giambi on the A's young rotation in the San Francisco Chronicle.
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