The Oakland Athletics figure they can surprise a few people this season and are hoping it all starts with their two-game series against the Boston Red Sox in Japan. The A's may not be the main attraction when they face the World Series champion Red Sox in the opening-game series but they didn't come all the way to Japan to lose. “Obviously, the Red Sox have a great team,” designated hitter Jack Cust said Friday after the team practiced at Tokyo Dome. “But we came over here to win. I think we have a group of players who can surprise people.” The Red Sox and Athletics each play two exhibition games against Japanese teams on March 22 and 23. Then they face each other in the Major League Baseball regular-season opener on March 25, the earliest start in MLB history, and again on March 26. Oakland almost made it to Japan five years ago. A scheduled 2003 series between the A's and the Seattle Mariners at Tokyo Dome was canceled because of the threat of war in Iraq. The rebuilding A's finished one game out of last place in the AL West last year and manager Bob Geren is hoping the team can start the 2008 season with an upset or two in Japan. The A's will play the Yomiuri Giants on Saturday and the Hanshin Tigers on Sunday before the opening games on Tuesday and Wednesday. __
