After an ugly 2015 season, the Athletics have plenty of flexibility, but also face plenty of uncertainty.
Guaranteed Contracts
- Billy Butler, DH: $20MM through 2017
- Coco Crisp, OF: $11.75MM through 2016 (plus 2017 club/vesting option)
- Sean Doolittle, P: $9MM through 2018 (plus 2019 and 2020 club options)
Arbitration Eligible Players (service time in parentheses; projections by MLB Trade Rumors)
- Ike Davis (5.155) – $3.8MM
- Sam Fuld (5.140) – $2.0MM
- Jesse Chavez (5.108) – $4.7MM
- Josh Reddick (5.050) – $7.0MM
- Craig Gentry (4.125) – $1.6MM
- Danny Valencia (4.118) – $3.4MM
- Fernando Abad (4.073) – $1.5MM
- Eric Sogard (4.064) – $1.7MM
- Brett Lawrie (4.055) – $3.9MM
- Felix Doubront (4.041) – $2.5MM
- Fernando Rodriguez (4.032) – $1.3MM
- Jarrod Parker (4.000) – $850K
- Drew Pomeranz (3.013) – $1.3MM
- A.J. Griffin (3.000) – $508K
- Evan Scribner (2.142) – $700K
- Non-tender candidates: Davis, Fuld, Gentry, Abad, Sogard, Doubront
Free Agents
After a season in which almost nothing went right, the Athletics will attempt to get back on track in 2016. How their ever-creative front office will accomplish that, though, is anyone’s guess. Now that they’ve lost a number of high-profile players (Josh Donaldson, Jon Lester, Jeff Samardzija, Scott Kazmir, Brandon Moss, Derek Norris, Jed Lowrie, Jason Hammel, Luke Gregerson) from their 2014 playoff run and still others (Ben Zobrist, Tyler Clippard) once their 2015 season fell apart, it seems wise to begin with an assessment of what, exactly, they still have.
Ace Sonny Gray still has a year remaining before he’s eligible for arbitration, and he looks like one of the game’s most potent young starters after a terrific 2015. The team also has several other starting pitchers (Jesse Chavez, Jesse Hahn, Chris Bassitt) who helped to one degree or another. Offensively, the A’s have a few young veterans who had decent seasons (like Josh Reddick, Stephen Vogt and Danny Valencia, with Billy Beane’s August claim of Valencia looking like a big win so far), and the team was also able to find playing time last year for a number of relative youngsters (Billy Burns, Marcus Semien, Josh Phegley, Mark Canha) who held their own and look like cheap future role players. The A’s lost 94 games last season, so it’s no surprise that they don’t exactly appear to be loaded with talent.
Of course, Donaldson, for example, once looked like little more than a cheap future role player too, and plenty of analysts have underestimated Oakland rosters barely flashier than the one the A’s have now. The 2015 A’s were also the victims of poor luck — they weren’t a good team, but they scored only 35 fewer runs than they allowed and might well have ended up with far more than 68 wins.
Still, this offseason is going to be a tough one for Beane and new GM David Forst. A series of questionable trades have left the Athletics with a limited talent base. In particular, their decision to deal Donaldson to the Blue Jays makes even less sense now than it did when it was consummated — the Athletics traded an MVP-type player with four years of control remaining and received only one good prospect (Franklin Barreto) plus a disappointing infielder (Brett Lawrie) and a couple low-wattage arms.
That the trade was a disaster for the Athletics is well known at this point, but I mention it here because it’s part of a pattern. Small-payroll teams need inexpensive stars like Donaldson. Other than Gray, the Athletics really don’t have any, and they don’t appear to have many players who have that potential, either. When they traded for Samardzija, they gave up Addison Russell, who already seems to be blossoming in Chicago. Then, when they dealt Samardzija themselves, they got Bassitt, Semien and Phegley, who look like good, helpful players, but not future stars. Their trade of Samardzija was, in isolation, a decent one, and it looks better after Samardzija had a subpar season in 2015, but the net result of the two deals is that it appears the A’s gave up an impact talent and didn’t receive one in return.
So now that potentially game-changing players like Donaldson and Russell are gone, how do the A’s build something new in their absence? For a 68-win team, the Athletics certainly have their fair share of decent players, and it’s easy to see any one of at least a dozen of them becoming useful contributors on a top-quality team. What they don’t seem to have is enough elite players to rally around, and it’s not clear where they’ll get them.
Many 68-win teams can upgrade simply by identifying positions where they have massive deficiencies and addressing those, but the A’s actually have fewer gaping holes than most. One priority, though, could be adding another corner outfielder or first baseman. Canha profiles decently as a semi-regular either in left field or at first base, and Vogt figures to pick up at bats at first base when he’s not catching, but the Athletics can use a bit of help. They’re unlikely to be top players for free agents, but they could find a lefty outfielder to upgrade on Sam Fuld — someone like Gerardo Parra or David Murphy might make sense, particularly with Jake Smolinski available to bat against lefties. Coco Crisp, a switch-hitter who’s under contract for next season, might be able to help in that regard, although he’ll play next season at age 36 and suffered through a miserable 2015 due to a lingering neck injury.
Beyond first base, the Athletics appear fairly set in the infield. With Lawrie and Valencia in the fold, the A’s can give Semien another shot at shortstop, although Beane seems open to using him at other positions at some point in the future. The A’s could add an infield backup via free agency, though, particularly if they decide to non-tender Eric Sogard.
The Athletics could also use an upgrade at DH; the three-year deal to which they signed Billy Butler was perplexing at the time, and it doesn’t make any more sense now. It seems more likely, though, that they’ll hope Butler improves in 2016, since he’ll still be just 30, and they owe him an additional $20MM. A trade involving another bad contract also might be a possibility.
Then there’s the rotation. Gray ought to be back, along with Chavez, Bassitt and Hahn, health permitting. Jarrod Parker, who hasn’t thrown a pitch in the big leagues since 2013, was back to throwing at the end of the season after spending most of it recovering from an elbow fracture. The 26-year-old Parker got off to a great start to his big-league career in 2012 and 2013, but there’s no telling what the Athletics can expect from him, if anything, after multiple arm injuries and two full years on the shelf. Another talented young starter, A.J. Griffin, is in a similar boat — he was making his way back from Tommy John surgery last June when he got shut down again, this time with a shoulder problem. Now he hasn’t appeared in the big leagues in two full years, either.
Beyond that, the Athletics’ best options right now are back-of-the-rotation types like Kendall Graveman, Aaron Brooks and Sean Nolin, plus Drew Pomeranz, who could conceivably move to starting full-time. (Sean Manaea, who they acquired in the Zobrist trade, could be in the rotation picture by midseason.) It’s safe to say, then, that they could add another starter this offseason without causing a logjam.
Given the Athletics’ extremely limited future commitments, they could easily sign a free agent starter, although it’s doubtful they would want to be on the hook for a contract that would still be on the books, say, three years from now. A creative short-term addition like Doug Fister, Mat Latos, Rich Hill, or old friends Trevor Cahill or Bartolo Colon might make sense.
Then again, all this speculation assumes the A’s will look to stay competitive next year without sacrificing their ability to compete in the future, but Beane often forgoes the obvious path. One off-the-grid possibility might be spending heavily on righty relievers in an attempt to improve by building a good bullpen around Sean Doolittle, Fernando Rodriguez and Pomeranz. Relievers would require shorter-term commitments than starters or position players, allowing the A’s to spend a bit while still keeping their payroll relatively clear in 2018 or 2019, when they might have a better core than they do now.
Beane has also alluded to the possibility that the team could extend Reddick, who is eligible for free agency following the 2016 season. Reddick was already a very good all-around player before cutting his strikeout rate in half over the past three seasons. The change came at the expense of some of his home-run power, but his newfound strike-zone judgment increases the possibility that he’ll continue to be productive in the near future, particularly since he’s still just 28.
Other than that, who knows? The only constant with the Athletics is change. Would it really be a shock if, after previously emerging as the high bidder for top international talents like Yoenis Cespedes and Michael Ynoa, the Athletics suddenly entered the bidding for Korean first baseman Byung-Ho Park? Would it be impossible for Beane to sense an inefficiency in the market and pounce on, say, a three-year deal for a bigger-name player at an unexpected position, given that most of the team’s current options are passable but unspectacular? Would it be a surprise if, after previously trading their top prospect (Daniel Robertson) for Ben Zobrist in an offseason in which they looked to be re-tooling, they dealt someone like Barreto for a big win-now upgrade? After emphatically denying he would trade Gray, would it be out of the question for Beane to deal him anyway, a year after an anonymous A’s official emphatically denied that the team would trade Donaldson? Could the A’s trade Vogt, say, or Chavez, or even Reddick? With Beane and Forst, there’s no telling.
Ry.the.Stunner
“Their trade of Samardzija was, in isolation, a decent one”
Haha…whatttt? I don’t think anyone thinks the Samardzija/Hammel for Russell/McKinney/Strailey deal was even close to decent. The A’s got fleeced.
Jeff Todd
That’s not the Samardzija trade he was referring to.
Ry.the.Stunner
You’re right, my mistake. I should’ve read “their trade of Samardzija” a little closer.
Ry.the.Stunner
The trade was even made worse by the fact that the A’s had a commanding lead in the AL West at the time and decided to go “all in” at the trade deadline, and still ended up barely squeaking in as the 2nd wild card, and then got immediately eliminated.
cxcx
Troll or eight-year-old? Former, I think.
skyebolt
Why is it bad to go all in when you look like a very good team?
Ry.the.Stunner
It’s not bad to do so. I was just pointing out the irony of them being one of the best teams in the MLB at the time, then they acquired some excellent players and immediately did a nosedive.
ryan211
The post-season is largely a crap shoot, so spending talent/money to go “all in” is largely a waste if your team is already a lock to make the playoffs. Or at least, I could see that being a decent argument.
6blairpaul
I agree. The O’s gave away their best LH pitching prospect to Boston for a 2 month Andrew Miller rental. Now with Chen leaving we don’t have a single lefty starter for ’16. Erod at 22 had a nice year with the Sox. It made zero sense as our bullpen was already solid. If we had him in ’15, it’s possible we make the post season as we were 7 wins short!
A'sfaninUK
*got eliminated in the craziest game in the last 10 or so years.
RedRooster
That was because they traded Cespedes. I don’t know what the heck Beane was thinking trading that guy!
User 4245925809
Somehow think Fister has a 2nd life inside of him, even with his rapid loss of velocity of late. The Colosseum would be the perfect place for such a guy to attempt that rediscovery. Maybe he feels the same? Also hope Beane and Reddick have joint interest ina LT agreement to stay at Oakland, they really need him and Reddick to me, just belongs there.
A'sfaninUK
I wouldn’t mind seeing Chavez traded and the A’s bring in both Fister and Colon to join Gray, Hahn and Bassit in the rotation. It’s a roll of the dice but both those two really could benefit from the Coliseum. If they fail then there’s Graveman, Nolin, Manaea, Parker, Griffin, Pomeranz, Brooks and Overton potentially ready to join the bigs by midseason.
cxcx
Baseball-reference has Butler making $11.67M each of the next two years after having made $6.67M this season. Is that his right contract, or is it $10m per year this article seems to be saying?
charliewilmoth
Butler got a $5MM signing bonus last season, and BBRef’s accounting spreads that over the duration of the contract. His salary in 2016 is $10MM, as stated above.
6blairpaul
I’ll get neg. feedback for this but I’d happily trade Adam Jones with another piece for Sonny Gray and a top outfield prospect. It’s the perfect time to get big returns for AJ. If Oakland would go for it. A career 300 or so OBP for a #1. His popularity through his social media, etc…will likely make him untouchable. To me there’s 2 guys I wouldn’t part with,(everyday players), and that’s Machado and Schoop.
A'sfaninUK
Sonny Gray could bring back a lot more than Adam Jones. Gray’s still on minimum wage next year and Jones is in decline. Its either Machado for Gray or both teams (rightfully) walk away. There really just isn’t a match here.
6blairpaul
In decline, I don’t think so. But I’d throw in Bundy. Machado for Gray is silly. Manny is one of the best everyday players in baseball. He’s an untouchable.
shyamr2897
Adam Jones is a very good player who is over 30 years old (the age when most hitters begin to decline). His performance (at least his hitting) has slightly declined each of the last four years. He is under contract for two years and 35 million.
Sonny Gray is also a very good player, probably about as good as Jones right now. Unlike Jones, he will be 26 next year. Unlike Jones, he hasn’t even hit arbitration yet and has 4 years of team control left. This combination of talent and low cost puts Gray in the top 1 or 2 tiers of players with the most trade value.
Dylan Bundy is a former top prospect who has thrown around 60 innings over the last 3 years. He’s also out of options, so, if a team were to trade for him, they’d have to stick him on the MLB roster and wouldn’t be able to develop/build up innings in the minors. He has almost no trade value right now.
There’s is no way the A’s trade Gray for Jones straigh up. However, there’s also no way the Orioles trade Machado for Gray, since Machado is also cheap and is better right now.
A'sfaninUK
The Orioles have nothing the A’s would want other than Machado, so unless that’s the trade, its time to give up the dream, O’s fans. Gray is bringing in a massive, massive haul of some kind, either 5 of a teams top 12 or so prospects, or a fellow young, cost-controlled star – and plenty of teams will entertain that. The O’s won’t. Move along, nothing to see here…
6blairpaul
Great educated response!
thecoffinnail
While I agree with you that Manny is a one of the great young players today I think you are probably selling Gray short. He is a stud true ace making league minimum. Two Adam Jones’s wouldn’t be enough for Gray straight up. It would take someone along the lines of Moncada from Boston to get Gray one for one.
6blairpaul
I’m very aware how special Gray is. I just threw something out there for discussion. A few of you A’s fans are nasty. AJ is still one of the best CF’s in baseball. Multiple gold glover and all star every year.And played injured the last few months. 30 hr. 100 rbi guy for 4-6 more years. I believe you guys in Oaktown need to chill out and get real. You need lots of D out there. What team has led the AL in D seemingly every year? Shyamr is the only one who seems to be civilized and smart in this DISCUSSION.
Thank you Shyamr2897 for the great educated remark!
runthetable
Asking the A’s fans to “get real” while proclaiming that Jones is still a top CF in MLB is quite funny. As it was pointed out earlier, he has declined over several years in a row and to be expecting him to pull in 30 hr, 100 rbi till he’s 35-37 is pretty outlandish.
A'sfaninUK
Billy Burns is a better CF than Adam Jones from 2016 onwards, straight up. He costs nothing and had 2.3 fWAR in 125 games while playing with a leg injury that stopped him from running as much as he should have.
You’re talking about Jones past as if he will keep it up in the future, he’s not and won’t.
A'sfaninUK
Here’s a bunch of moves I think would put the A’s right back into contention:
Sign:
C Rasmus $50-60M – A’s get an all-Georgia OF
D O’Day – $30-40M
M Thornton – $1M – LH specialist
G Soto – $1M – nice bat, can play everyday in an injury situation
B Colon or D Fister – $8M (maybe both)
DREAM SIGN
B Zobrist part 2 – would allow a potential Reddick and/or Valencia trade with BZ moving to RF or 2B full time, otherwise he’d replace Ladendorf and just move around everywhere.
Trade for:
A Blanco – he absolutely mashes LHP and plays 2B/SS/3B. He’s such a perfect fit on a team that struggled VS LHP.
C: J Phegley – C/DH/1B
1B: M Canha – 1B/LF/RF/DH
2B: D Valencia – 2B/3B/LF/DH/RF/1B
SS: M Semien – SS/2B/LF?
3B: B Lawrie – 3B/2B/DH – I think he has to stay at 3B – his hitting fell off a cliff once they moved him to 2B.
LF: C Rasmus – LF/CF/RF/DH
CF: B Burns – CF
RF: J Reddick – RF/DH/CF
DH: S Vogt – DH/C/1B/LF/RF
Bench: C Crisp – LF/CF/DH
Bench: T Ladendorf – 2B/CF/LF/RF/SS/3B
Bench: G Soto – C/DH
Bench: A Blanco – 3B/2B/SS/DH
SP: S Gray-B Colon-J Hahn-C Bassitt-J Chavez
RP: S Doolittle-D O’Day-R Dull-D Pomeranz-F Rodriguez-M Thornton-?
vtadave
Somehow I don’t think spending $100 million on Rasmus and O’Day is a good idea.
A'sfaninUK
Why not?
A'sfaninUK
A’s need to overpay for hitters, Rasmus has good career numbers in Oakland and fills a gaping hole in LF. O’Day might be the best reliever of his type on the market and the A’s pen was shockingly terrible, it cost them their season. I don’t see any problem at all.
thecoffinnail
So you think O’Day should get an equal contract to Andrew Miller? He can be had for less than $20m and Rasmus can be signed for under $40m. I am sure the notoriously free spending A’s will once again overpay and bring in every one of your suggestions. Fister is the only one you were close on but he will probably get closer to $10m. Something similar to what Masterson got last year to try and rebuild value. I doubt a 43 year old Colon breaks $5m. Finally, if you think the A’s are going to pay Crisp $11m to ride the bench while bringing in Rasmus then you are dreaming.
6blairpaul
O’Day will get 8 or 9 for 3 or 4. 10 per wouldn’t shock me by a team that sees him as a closer. I agree it’s too much but he’s been great the last few years and some team with a 200 MM+ payroll will grab him.
A'sfaninUK
O’Day is a rare player in this years FA market, he’s in line for a huge deal for a guy who might not even have to be a closer. I think he’d fit in perfect before Doolittle and the A’s love overpaying for relievers, like Jim Johnson and Clippard. See him getting 35-40 for sure.
A'sfaninUK
Crisp is a singular play away from having to retire. Its his last season because everyone knows his neck is toast and he can’t play more than a month without getting hurt. He’s only on the team because of his contract, and I can see the A’s releasing him in the middle of this year if he’s not producing. Yes, I think the A’s bringing in Rasmus is a great idea, and even adding another OF, or UTL who can play OF to pair with Crisp out there in case a RF is needed.
That’s cool you want to be conservative towards your salary predictions. You will be wrong more often than right. Just be aware of that.
runthetable
If we’ve learned anything about the A’s during the Beane era is that relievers are a low cost priority. Clippard was picked up to close the gap till Doolittle could return and potentially Cook get his game in order, and to potentially be a trade chip when necessary.
A'sfaninUK
He traded for Jim Johnson and paid him $10M.
The Oregonian
Beane utterly dismantled his club. And since he’s a minority owner, he’ll probably continue to do so for the political reason of trying to get the A’s out of Oakland.
6blairpaul
I don’t know the components but I see Oakland and Baltimore making a trade. I know for a fact they’re going all in except for Machado to try and get Sonny. That’s the word in the preverbial hotline.
ilikebaseball 2
I’m sure “try and get Sonny” is on 29 team’s prOverbial hotline.
mookiessnarl
28. I don’t think the Mets are interested.
ilikebaseball 2
Nice.
6blairpaul
Good point! I can dream can’t I.
bradthebluefish
Orioles have a lot of arbitration raises and four players heading towards free agency. Add onto the fact that JJ Hardy is dead weight and they do not have an ace. With a weak farm system that inhibits their ability to trade, I suggest the Orioles enter rebuild mode.
6blairpaul
Since when is a gold glove shortstop who both Manny and Schoop have great respect for as a teacher is dead weight. The FA’s. Let’s see, Wieters hasn’t been around most of the last 2 years. Davis hit .190 and was a cheater who got caught in ’14 and according to Encina had no tue in ’12 or ’13. So his ADHD is a mystery. Gyvens trumps O’Day. Starting pitching couldn’t possibly be worse. Norris and his 9MM and 7era are gone. Gonzo is shot and Tilly is a ?. Gausman,Jiminez, Bundy somewhere, Wilson and Wright, who knows. We’ll pick up 2 ‘capable’ pitchers. Rebuild mode is absurd. We were 7 wins short of the playoffs and made the LCS without Wieters and Davis suspended and a.190 avg. More wins than any team since 2012. Machado and Schoop with a healthy J.J. and AJ. Great pen and D again.
Keep it real!
bradthebluefish
The Orioles were 7 wins short because of Chris Davis and his 47 HR and 117 RBI. If he goes then what? There’s no Nelson Cruz anymore to pick up the slack.
So Jones, Machado, and Schoob are going to make up the core of the lineup I suppose.
The rotation is still dismal and Bundy is not likely to come up until mid-season at best.
So that means the Orioles are going to have to spend money on free agents, but everyone keeps talking about how little they have to spend. They’ll need at least one outfielder and a true top end of the rotation piece coupled with another SP.
So when I sit back and think about it all, maybe a quick 1-2 year rebuild wouldn’t be so bad.
6blairpaul
First off it’s Schoop. Second Davis is not Babe Ruth. They made it to the playoffs without him in 14. We won’t miss his prolonged slumps,200+ strikeout yearsa or cheating. Machado, Jones, and Schoop are all gold glove caliber power hitters. They’ll find someone at first or promote Mancini. Dont be rediculous with rebuilding nonsense. Buck does not rebuild and already has a very solid core to work with.
bradthebluefish
Mancini is another guy who shouldn’t be coming up to the MLB right away considering he – like Bundy – have not been to AAA yet. They do skip AAA sometimes, but I’d be weary of trying.
Davis (5 WAR), Chen (4 WAR), O’Day (3 WAR) is a lost of 12 wins right there via free agency. The Orioles will have to open their pockets or pull some trade because there is essentially no way all 12 wins are coming from performance improvements of the current roster. Considering they were 7 wins short last year, they now have A LOT to make up.
6blairpaul
I don’t mind educated discussions and I have animus towards certain teams but try hard to be atleast civil. Bundy’s out of options. Mancini tore up AA but does need to prove he belongs with the big club. If and when Davis gets caught cheating again he’s gone for quite a while. He’s gotten tue’s 4 years out of the last 8. A person with ADHD get’s them every year and when suspended for amphetamines doesn’t blame his agent for not getting his papers to MLB on time. O’Day will be missed as a great teammate but they have Gyvens and Brach. They don’t need him and will put the 9 or 10 per year to good use. Of all your obvious dislike for Balto. the one smart thing you said was Chen will be missed but not at 20MM for 5. They will continue to win under Buck with great D, power at 2nd, 3rd, cf and a healthy 3 time gold glove ss. Plus a great pen. They’ll get starter’s like a Kazmir, etc…with all the extra cash in’16. Most of the arbitration cases aren’t for too much money.
thecoffinnail
Although I don’t think it is going to be as easy as you think. Especially, with the Blue Jays lineup staying intact and the Yankees being the Yankees. But, I think they could trade for Lind to help with the loss of Davis and they could package Gausmann and Bundy together and send them to Cincinatti or Atlanta. Both Cincy and Atlanta have the time to work with Bundy and have pieces that would help the O’s in 2016. (Bruce/Maybin) They could then concentrate on signing a couple of mid-tier starters.
bradthebluefish
Those would be very ambitious trades of the Orioles, but those are the types of moves they may have to make in order to compete now while they have Machado and Jones on the roster up until 2019.
6blairpaul
Gausman isn’t going anywhere. Lind is a good thought. I expect they’ll try for Smoak or some other power lefty. Bundy will be tough to trade as he’s out of options but he’s doing well in the AFL and should be an asset in the pen. For years Bruce has been mentioned and is a good thought. I really think Gausman is due to break out in ’16 and hopefully Tillman will get back to where he was from ’12-’14.
aff10
Am I the only one who read this article as, “A’s offseason outlook: it’s Billy Beane, who the hell has any idea? “
charliewilmoth
That pretty much sums it up.
A'sfaninUK
Yeah, absolutely no idea. The narrative of the A’s being broke is false now, after last year with Butler, and Beane has always said Wolff wants him to spend but the guys he wants refuse to come to Oakland, but what if the ownership group decides to raise ticket prices so they can get a huge name free agent? Or he could trade Gray & Reddick. Or maybe he extends them both? Who knows.
shspringer99
Three way trade:
Cubs get Puig and more
Athletics get Javier Baez
Dodgers get Sonny Grey
Dodgers rotation if they sign Grenkie and do this trade
1. Kershaw
2. Grenkie
3. Grey
4. Wood
5. Urias
Bullpen
1. Jansen
2. Howell
3. Garcia
4. Anderson
5. Frias
6. Hatcher
7. Free agent signing
Fair to all teams right?
sigurd 2
Unless there is a LOT of money changing hands or lots of other pieces to this deal in no way is that fair. So in the end the A’s give up Sonny Gray and get Javier Baez and that’s a fair deal for them??
A'sfaninUK
Baez by himself is absolutely in no way shape or form bringing back Sonny Gray. Grays going to cost 2-3 young stars or 6 of any teams top prospects. Beane has zero reason to move him unless its for something he can’t refuse, like Schwarber & Russell.
A'sfaninUK
Its so absurd and homer-ish I can’t even think about it. Sure, trade the guy you don’t really need for the guy everyone in MLB wants and needs.
aff10
I’m not sure he meant for it to be absurd. I would guess he’s a Dodger fan, based on his outlook of the Dodgers staff, so maybe he’s just unaware that Javy Baez is no longer being viewed as a potential centerpiece of a trade for a superstar player
aff10
Per Keith Law of ESPN, Baez was the Mlb’s 7th best prospect in 2014, so a trade with him as the key piece wouldn’t have been out of the question just over a year ago, but his value has obviously plummeted since then due to underperformance and injury issues
A'sfaninUK
Baez is good, but Sonny Gray is such a rare commodity that he will need an absolutely stunning package to be moved. Baez, no. Baez, Schwarber and 2 or 3 others? Yes.
thecoffinnail
I suppose McCarthy and Ryu will be pitching in AAA next year?
nookster
Team full of role/utility players and back of rotation pitching. The Donaldson trade & Butler acquisition I will continue to ponder for a long time, and should have been grounds for firing and not promotion, though I didn’t know Beane was a minority owner. The fleecer has been getting fleeced, the jig is up. Donaldson wouldn’t have had an mvp season in Oakland but I have no doubt a personality conflict/argument was the precursor. You can’t say Donaldson’s arbitration was getting expensive and then sign Butler to a ridiculous contract.
A'sfaninUK
One theory: Donaldson needed to move to Canada so his criminal family members can’t stalk him like they were doing in Oakland. Boston went hard after him and even offered Betts and Beane still said no, meaning that Canada was the only place he’d trade him, and after the Astros hack, we all saw that Lawrie was the only player deemed 100% untouchable, so he’d have to be in the deal for it to even make a little bit of logic.
Now JD doesn’t have to worry about the criminals going to games and stalking him and trying to get money from him, he put up the crazy numbers.
The only part of that trade I didn’t like were Graveman and Nolin, who I don’t like very much. It should have been Stroman, with Lawrie and Barreto. Beane did get a couple more courtesy pieces later on in Doubront and Valencia from AA, but if Stroman is in that deal no one is saying Beane should be fired.
GreenandGold
What do think about puig and peraza as a starting point for sonny gray.
Zaidi and Beane are bound to make a deal at some point…I think???
A'sfaninUK
I’ve written in other posts on here, due to the rarity of Gray, the minimum wage ace on almost every staff who has a fantastic postseason record, he’s about one of the top 3 best value for money players in the game, behind Trout and Harper.
Now Jesse Chavez & Josh Reddick for Puig & Van Slyke, that’s a deal I think works for both sides. Reddick’s probably going to the Dodgers anyway when he’s a free agent next offseason and Chavez’s arm plays better in the NL. A’s trade out Reddick for the higher ceiling’d Puig and a better hitting backup OF than Sam Fuld.
BTW the OF free agents next offseason are Reddick and Calros Gomez and a whole lot of older guys. If Reddick hits 30 HR again while winning another gold glove, he could get $150M around this time next year. Yikes.
jhnsnh9
He probably could’ve gotten Stroman instead of Graveman & Nolin. Probably even more if he would’ve waited until after this season.
Philliesfan4life
I think the cubs or red sox make a package to try and get sonny gray from the a’s
thecoffinnail
I think the Yankees might give it a shot too. They could absorb Crisp’s contract as part of the deal. With Young leaving they have the roster spot. They could send Gardner (while picking up most of his contract) Refsnyder (who Beane wanted for Zobrist) and one or more of their 4 untouchable youngsters. Sanchez or Murphy also makes sense. I am sure Beane’s phone will be ringing non-stop until he trades Gray. Especially, since it came out the the Jays got Donaldson pretty much by pestering Beane for months. But you are right. The Cubs Red Sox, and Dodgers are probably the favorites. Followed by another 20 teams or so.
runthetable
The A’s like Coco and aren’t looking to move him. They didn’t give him that contract expecting him to outperform it. It was merely a clubhouse guy/fanbase/veteran contract.
A'sfaninUK
Yankees are not getting Gray unless Severino, Bird, Judge & Sanchez are the package. Zero percent chance that happening, so…
mcdan29
I’ve been waiting for the A’s off-season outlook article to come out since the end of the season… And to be honest it was about as disappointing as the 2015 A’s season.
runthetable
The Donaldson trade was very perplexing on paper and who knows what the organization’s thoughts were behind it. For the life of me, I will never understand the Billy Butler signing. I can find no redeeming quality in that deal, the timing, the need, or the length. I think the combination of JD being dealt coupled with the Butler signing and then the midseason sell off, has left the A’s fan base jilted. I think its safe to say that the casual fan, along with the diehard fan’s should have no expectation going into this offseason for Beane and the front office.