UNEMPLOYMENT MAKES STRANGE BEDFELLOWS

On cnnsi.com the following was reported:

The A's need a new manager, and former Giants skipper Dusty Baker says he'd "be interested."
-- Contra Costa Times

This is just bizarre. The Oakland A's were the subject of the book Moneyball. The person on Wikipedia wrote what I believe is a fair summation of the part of the book I am referencing: " . . . real statistical analysis has shown that on base percentage and slugging percentage are better indicators of offensive success and that avoiding an out is more important than getting a hit." The A's, the book says, have really bought into this.

Meanwhile, in another dimension, Dusty is on record discussing on base percentage (with walks being an important part of that statistic) with MLB.com's Carrie Muskat, saying:

Do the Cubs need to improve their on-base percentage next year? They currently rank last in the National League with a .318 OBP.

"On-base percentage is great if you can score runs and do something with that on-base percentage," Baker said. "Clogging up the bases isn't that great to me. The problem we have to address more than anything is the home run problem."

That was August of 2006. The Cubs Chronicle has similar comments going back to March 2004.

So, yeah, Dusty seems like a great fit for the A's.