OAKLAND — There’s something downright cruel about it. Sadly, such a punishment is not unusual from the Oakland Athletics. Of course, the A’s developed into a team worth watching just before they head out of The Town. Yes, there’s something to these 2024 A’s. They’ve won back-to-back straight series, sit in the middle of the American League West standings (above the Astros), and have arguably the best 1-2 end-of-game bullpen punch in baseball right now. They’re young, homegrown, punchy, and now that they’ve started hitting a bit (10th in baseball in OPS over the last 15 games), they’ve become quite interesting. Now, I don’t think the A’s are going to close out the Coliseum with a World Series win, or even playoff baseball, but while this organization might not be building a ballpark in Oakland — or Las Vegas, for that matter — early returns suggest that the front office has, against all odds and the will of their owner, built another worthwhile team. These guys might just be mediocre. And I mean that as a compliment. After all, in the modern game, mediocre pays