In this Feb. 16, 2009 file photo, Oakland Athletics owner Lew Wolff, left, and general manager Billy Beane, center, talk with pitcher Brad Ziegler, right, during spring training baseball in Phoenix. Beane's reign over the Oakland Athletics, the franchise has never been afraid to buck tradition or to challenge conventional baseball wisdom. Beane and his A's have relished this aura of innovation as it became a large part of the franchise's identity. Yet Beane has never really tried anything that seems as risky and audacious as the five very young men making up Oakland's starting rotation heading into the 2009 campaign. AP Photo logo AP Photo 8 months ago

In this Feb. 16, 2009 file photo, Oakland Athletics owner Lew Wolff, left, and general manager Billy Beane, center, talk with pitcher Brad Ziegler, right, during spring training baseball in Phoenix. Beane's reign over the Oakland Athletics, the franchise has never been afraid to buck tradition or to challenge conventional baseball wisdom. Beane and his A's have relished this aura of innovation as it became a large part of the franchise's identity. Yet Beane has never really tried anything that seems as risky and audacious as the five very young men making up Oakland's starting rotation heading into the 2009 campaign.

More Photos of Billy Beane

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  1. Oakland Athletics' Andrew Bailey, right, smiles beside A's general manager Billy Beane during a baseball news conference on Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2009, in Oakland, Calif. Bailey was selected as the American League Rookie of the Year on Monday, Nov. 16.

Explore Photos of Related Topics

  1. Former New York Yankees and Oakland Athletics hall of fame baseball player Reggie Jackson (L) talks with current Yankees player Alex Rodriguez prior to the Yankees' MLB American League baseball game against the Oakland Athletics in Oakland, California in this August 18, 2009 file photo. Separated by a distance of sixty feet, six inches, Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson and Hall of Fame hitter Jackson were once natural enemies. In retirement, however,the two share a mutual respect, a love of the game and 38 seasons of insight in "Sixty Feet, Six Inches," a collaborative book about baseball at the highest level.
  2. Los Angeles Angels' Ervin Santana works against the Oakland Athletics during the sixth inning of a baseball game Sunday, Oct. 4, 2009, in Oakland, Calif.
  3. Oakland Athletics shortstop Cliff Pennington, right, prepares his double play throw to first base over Los Angeles Angels' Chone Figgins (9) during the third inning of a baseball game Sunday, Oct. 4, 2009, in Oakland, Calif. Angels' Bobby Abreu was out at first base.
  4. Los Angeles Angels' Joe Saunders works against the Oakland Athletics during the first inning of a baseball game Sunday, Oct. 4, 2009, in Oakland, Calif.
  5. Oakland Athletics' Brad Kilby works against the Los Angeles Angels during the first inning of a baseball game Sunday, Oct. 4, 2009, in Oakland, Calif.
  6. Los Angeles Angels pitcher Scott Kazmir throws to the Oakland Athletics during the first inning of a baseball game, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2009 in Oakland, Calif. The Angels beat the Athletics 4-2.
  7. Oakland Athletics manager Bob Geren, left, argues a call with first base umpire Angel Campos during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2009 in Oakland, Calif. The Angels beat the Athletics 4-2.
  8. Los Angeles Angels' Howie Kendrick jumps over Oakland Athletics Daric Barton (10) while completing a double play during the fourth inning of a baseball game, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2009 in Oakland, Calif. Athletics Mark Ellis was out at first base.
  9. Oakland Athletics' Andrew Bailey, right, smiles beside A's general manager Billy Beane during a baseball news conference on Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2009, in Oakland, Calif. Bailey was selected as the American League Rookie of the Year on Monday, Nov. 16.

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  16. EU Commissioner for Consumer Protection Meglena Kuneva, addresses the media on the safety of Christmas lights, at the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2009. The Commission issued a pre-Christmas alert that nearly one third of festive lights could be a "serious safety risk", with a Commission-led market survey involving authorities from five EU member states, Kuneva said the findings were a "wake-up call". Tests were carried out in Germany, Hungary, Slovenia, Slovakia and the Netherlands, on nearly 200 sets of "lighting chains" in all price categories, and many failed comprehensively, with just over thirty per cent of the samples from the five countries at serious risk of starting a fire or causing electric shocks - or both.