Big Surprise Team of 2018

That has to be the Oakland A's. Billy Beane's low-budget, analytics-driven club has now moved within a game of the defending World Champs!
Last night's 10-inning victory over the Astros was another signal that these guys aren't flying under the radar anymore.
Down 3-2 entering the bottom of the 9th, Oakland tied it on Nick Martini's RBI double. An inning later, Matt Olson led of the inning with a walk off homer.
I'll plead guilty to paying less attention to the A's than I should. I didn't catch them on their only visit to the Bronx this year -- or last.
The Athletics have turned their roster over since April 2016. In fact, only two regulars remain from the last group I saw -- slugger Khris Davis and shortstop Marcus Semien (above). Plagued by low attendance in an awful stadium, Oakland doesn't keep many players through the first six seasons of team control. You won't find many big names here. Instead, Beane has elevated the theory of getting the best out of promising young talent then flipping them into a science.
And his lab's results so far in 2018 have been impressive.

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