The Athletics are looking for offense with Vladimir Guerrero and Hideki Matsui on their list, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The A's prefer free agents to trades, Morosi notes. Lance Berkman turned down a two-year offer from the A's; Vlad may require at least that long of a deal to sign.
The A's are also in on Josh Willingham and Derrek Lee, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, but the Nationals' asking price for Willingham is said to be absurd. Rosenthal feels that the A's could offer Lee more than the Padres or Diamondbacks.
Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reported yesterday that A's GM Billy Beane met with Matsui's agent Arn Tellem. Tellem tells her the A's are not the only team in on him. The Orioles are in, but Matsui prefers a contender. She considers Nick Johnson and Lee "among the other potential options." The A's don't find Carlos Beltran a realistic option, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post. They don't believe he'd waive his no-trade clause to come to Oakland.
