A baseball rhyme is A’s-Rays-Padres, and a baseball riddle is this:
Why do the A’s and Rays continue to achieve much more baseball success than the Padres, despite the Padres playing in a palace while the A’s and Rays slum it?
The A’s and Rays will meet today in the American League’s wild-card game after winning 97 and 96 games, respectively, this year.
The Padres, who’ve exceeded 92 victories just once in their 51 years, are coming off their ninth consecutive losing season.
The simple answer to the riddle is A’s and Rays braintrusts are smart and nimble, which isn’t to say the Pads are dummies.