American League Wild Card game thread: A's at Royals

For the eighth year in a row, the MLB postseason will kick off with the Padres on the outside looking in. Of course, even if they had made the postseason, they wouldn't be playing in this game since Bud Selig was merciful enough not to move the team to the American League while he was "saving" it. See, there's one good thing that can be said about Selig: "He didn't screw us over as much as he did the Astros and their fans."

But I digress. Tonight's one-game playoff is between the A's and the Royals. Oakland's roster includes two former Padres: infielder  Andy Parrino and reliever Luke Gregerson, along with two former Friars farmhands: second baseman Eric Sogard and bench bat Nate Freiman. The Royals have no players with ties to the Padres, but the last time they were in the playoffs, Bud Black was a member of their starting rotation.