OAKLAND -- In the overwhelming chaos of a winner-take-all game, the A's can take solace in one thing. They've been here before.
Last year, Oakland found itself in the exact same spot, except they were the road team entering a hostile Yankee Stadium. Of course, that experience didn't go well, with the Yankees coasting to a 7-2 victory. But the A's believe that experience has them better-prepared for Wednesday night's AL Wild Card Game against the Rays.
"Without a doubt," said closer Liam Hendriks. "I think going through something like this and kind of being in the pressure cooker a little bit last year with a bunch of the guys returning is huge. All of a sudden, we have a little bit more experience. They have some guys who haven't done it before. Hopefully, that experience can work well for us and we can control our emotions a little bit."
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The emotions will certainly still be there. How can they not when your entire season comes down to a single game? But now the A's know what to expect, at least as far as the circus and surrounding the game.
"I think going through that, we feel that we know what the electricity is going to be like in the building," outfielder Mark Canha told NBC Sports California. "Going into it in that way I think will help us, especially the younger guys, who now not only have last year's Wild Card Game under their belt but also another year of big-league experience. That's invaluable."
Even for veteran players, the concept of a winner-take-all game is somewhat foreign. Baseball is all about series, both in the regular season and playoffs. Most major leaguers go through their entire careers without playing in a one-game playoff.
"I think the experience plays more in the fact that they've played in that game before," said manager Bob Melvin. "They've played in a game where it's winner-take-all. You don't often go through that in baseball. It's basically just this game where it's a seventh game or a fifth game and there have been some games leading up to that. So this is very distinct in baseball that you're playing one game for a winner-take-all."
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"I think it's a big help because we just don't do the one-game take-all very often," added A's first baseman Matt Olson. "It's a different scenario for us, so to already go through that and know what to expect, it's nice."
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Oakland has also experienced what it feels like to lose a must-win game, a feeling they'd desperately like to avoid this time around. Ultimately, these types of matchups tend to come down to which team can block out the spectacle and just play baseball.
The A's hope that last year taught them how to do that.