The Oakland Athletics are aware of the public perception entering their wild-card game against the New York Yankees. They're a nice little team with baseball's lowest payroll, with a home park a notch or two below decrepit and a bunch of players who could walk through any airport in America without being pestered for selfies.
They've had a terrific season, with 97 victories and a run differential of plus-139. But somebody had to make the AL playoffs besides the Red Sox, Astros, Indians and Yankees, right?
So now they go to Yankee Stadium with Liam Hendriks on the mound and a parade of relievers to follow, against a Yankees lineup that uses the right-field seats for target practice, as the sole impediment to a dream TV matchup between Boston and New York in the division series.