The A's might have bullpen issues, and they might have a lot of them. But no team in the history of baseball has been a .118 team in one-run games over a full season. I should research that and cite something ...
The answer is no. Your objective as a writer or speaker of a quotation is to make an impact. Evaluate both choices -- paraphrase and direct quote. Usually, paraphrasing makes more sense if: 1  the quotation is long and wordy. 2  the words in the quotation are not powerful. 3  the source of the quotation is unknown or dubious. 4  you are capable of making a good paraphrase without making it seem like plagiarism.
Direct quotation is the exact words used by an expert in an article. For example, TV is not healthy for kids, according to Ken Haller, MD, and a member of the aap.