Saltzman Says...Bay Area Bullets 10/27/2011

• 49ers are coming off a bye week at 5-1, with a three game lead in the NFC West and the Cleveland Browns coming into town.  Even Jim Harbaugh had no idea they could be in the driver seat this much.  "Who's does it better than us?  NOBODY!"  I guess not.
• Raiders head into their bye week with more questions than answers despite a mostly successful first half.  Injuries to key players, including Jason Campbell and Darren McFadden, and the big news of Carson Palmer have turned an up and coming team, back into the Raiders again.  Can Hue Jackson turn the ship around once again...stay tuned.
• Warriors will be having a charity basketball game at San Jose State November 5th.  Matt Barnes has organized a 'We Believe' team vs the current Warriors.  Baron Davis and Monta Ellis have not confirmed attending however.
• Let the cost cutting begin, as the A's cut Michael Wuertz, who would have earned $3.25 million.
• A's might be buying 5 acres of land cheap near HP Pavilion.  The city of San Jose must approve the purchase, as well as Major League Baseball.
• Despite a record of 8-12-14, the Earthquakes only have 1 loss in their last 5 games.
• Stanford takes on USC Saturday at 5pm on ABC.  This will do a lot to determine who has the upper hand in the PAC-12.

Will HP Pavilion have a new neighbor from Oakland?

Saltzman Says...Bay Area Bullets

• Hard Luck Cain - Matt Cain pitched 7 1/3 last night, allowing 2 runs, but the bullpen couldn't hold the lead.  Juan Uribe got the big hit, a 2 out, full count double to left center off of Brian Wilson in the bottom of the eighth.  

• Cody Ross is Boss Again? - Cody Ross hit a three run home run in the 9th to give the Giants a 8-5 win after blowing a 5-2 lead in the eighth.
• Mark DeRosa has played his last game? - DeRosa's wrist hit another setback last night, and it could mean the 2 year DeRosa experiment has failed for the last time.
• Sharks get Chewed Up - Sharks get destroyed in Game 2, specifically on power play after power play and lose 7-3.  No Sharks team has ever come back from a 2-0 deficit in team history.  The Sharks are 0-8 in series after losing the first two.  They have never even taken it 7 in any of those series.  Is this Sharks team the best of them all...only one way to prove it.
• A's lose in extras - A Daric Barton error in the 10th led to an unearned run and a extra innings loss for the A's.
• Ping Pong Balls bounce for Cleveland - Warriors haven't moved up to the top 3 since Joe Smith was the #1 overall selection by the team in 1995.  The Warriors will stay at 11, which means unless somebody in the top 10 wants a current Warrior more than their pick, the Warriors won't be getting a top 10 talent they so desperately need.
• Raiders Head Coach selling tickets - Everyone from the CEO to head coach Hue Jackson to actual ticket reps are being asked by the Raiders to sell season tickets during the lockout.  The Raiders decided instead of laying off their workers, creating furlough days or cutting back, they would put everyone to work.  Of all the strange things to come from Mount Davis, this one is one of the hardest to define.  Is it brilliant and encouraging, or is it crazy and typical of the organization?
• Richard Seymour and Jason Campbell in charge? - Seymour and Campbell are running a camp in Atlanta for all Raiders players, and 25 have already committed to being there for a four day camp.  Seymour will be in charge of the defense and Campbell will run the offense.