By Mychael Urban / MLB.com

Ramon Hernandez's game-winning bunt came just before midnight on the West Coast. (George Nikitin/AP)

Game 1 of the American League Division Series between the A's and Red Sox ended just before midnight local time, and everyone was back at it early for the quick turnaround as Oakland and Boston do battle in of Game 2.

Well, sort of. Whereas the parking lot at Network Associates Coliseum was slowly filling up a few hours before the opener, it was basically bare a few hours before the second act.

Ramon Hernandez sent the home fans to bed happy with his improbable walkoff bunt, but he sent them home late. And nobody stayed later than Oakland's clubhouse workers, some of whom didn't go home at all.

"We didn't finish up until 2 [a.m.] or so," said A's clubbie Mike "Cliffy" Clavin.

Clavin lives nearby, so he did go home. "But then I had to pack [for Thursday's trip to Boston]," he noted.

Co-workers Kurt Johnson and Pablo Lopez weren't so lucky. They live in San Jose, about an hour's drive from Oakland, so they crashed in the clubhouse.

"Yeah, they didn't have much of a choice," Clavin said. "We had to be here at about 8[a.m.] to get everything ready for the plane."

Security guards Eric Daniels and Guss Dobbins, however, had to be in at 7 a.m. Daniels, who said outfielder Jermaine Dye was the first player to arrive -- 9 a.m. -- Thursday morning, got to leave before the game ended Wednesday. Dobbins was among the last out, though, and he had a hard time getting to sleep once he got home.

"I left at about 12:30," Dobbins said. "But with all the excitement, I was still shaking. Not literally, but it's hard to unwind."

A's general manager Billy Beane, a high-energy guy to begin with, didn't have any such problems. He's usually so intense that he doesn't even watch regular-season games, but he watched the first eight innings of Wednesday's from his office at the coliseum, listened to Oakland's game-tying rally in the ninth on the radio in his car and took in the wild finale at home in his underwear.

"I'm a kitten during the playoffs," Beane said before ducking into the clubhouse for a little breakfast. "I'm fine today."

Mychael Urban is MLB.com's national writer. This column was not subject to approval by Major League Baseball or its clubs.