After four winning seasons, the window may now be closed for the Athletics, as the team seems intent on cutting payroll and trading several key players.
Guaranteed Contracts
- Elvis Andrus, SS: $14MM through 2022, Rangers paying $7.25MM of salary ($15MM club option for 2023 becomes guaranteed if Andrus has 550 plate appearances in 2022)
- Stephen Piscotty, OF: $8.25MM in 2022 (includes $1MM buyout of $15MM club option for 2023)
Arbitration-Eligible Players (salary projections via MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz)
- Sean Manaea – $10.2MM
- Chris Bassitt – $8.8MM
- Chad Pinder – $2.8MM
- Matt Chapman – $9.5MM
- Matt Olson – $12.0MM
- Tony Kemp – $2.2MM
- Frankie Montas – $5.2MM
- Lou Trivino – $2.9MM
- Deolis Guerra – $900K
- Ramon Laureano – $2.8MM
- Non-tender candidates: Pinder, Guerra
Option Decisions
- Jake Diekman, RP: Received $750K buyout after Athletics declined $4MM club option for 2022
- Andrew Chafin, RP: Declined his end of a $5.25MM mutual option for 2022 (received $500K buyout)
Free Agents
- Chafin, Diekman, Starling Marte, Mark Canha, Yusmeiro Petit, Jed Lowrie, Sergio Romo, Josh Harrison, Khris Davis, Mitch Moreland, Yan Gomes, Mike Fiers, Trevor Rosenthal, Burch Smith, Pete Kozma, Michael Feliz
With such a large and increasingly expensive arbitration class on the horizon, 2021 seemed like a make-or-break year for this version of the Athletics, who looked increasingly like an all-in team as the season proceeded. The A’s made big trade deadline moves for Starling Marte, Josh Harrison, Andrew Chafin, and Yan Gomes to help down the stretch but it wasn’t enough, as Oakland finished 86-76 and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2017.
The disappointment is palpable among A’s fans, who already face the uncertainty of whether or not their team will even still be in Oakland in a few years’ time, and now are looking at yet another step-back or reload of the roster. As general manager David Forst plainly put it, “This is the cycle for the A’s. We have to listen and be open to whatever comes out of this. This is our lot in Oakland until it’s not.”
Obligatory note: we aren’t talking enormous payroll numbers here. While the Athletics do have a big arbitration class, those costs are belied by the fact that Elvis Andrus and Stephen Piscotty represent the club’s only guaranteed salary commitments. Cot’s Baseball Contracts and Roster Resource project Oakland’s current 2022 payroll to sit in the range of roughly $81.2MM to $85.36MM, which would still represent one of the lower payrolls of any team in baseball. Just standing pat in this range would make it tricky for the A’s to make any necessary upgrades, but executive vice president Billy Beane and Forst have done more with less in the past, so a case can certainly be made that Athletics owner John Fisher could or should spend enough to allow one more season with this core group of players.
And yet, that is not how Fisher (or any Athletics ownership group of the last 25 years) operates. The only question now is just how much payroll will be slashed, and the first herald of the spending cuts came when longtime manager Bob Melvin was allowed to interview with the Padres and ultimately take San Diego’s managerial job. Melvin was still under contract for the 2022 season, but Oakland let Melvin go without any compensation, seemingly just to get Melvin’s reported $4MM salary off the books. There hasn’t yet been much news about who the Athletics might yet hire as Melvin’s replacement, and under the circumstances, it is probably best to expect a first-time manager more willing to take a lesser salary.
Some reports suggest the A’s might be aiming to spend as little as $50MM on player salaries in 2022, and if such a drop is coming, there is no shortage of potential sell-off moves available to the team. Since extensions now seem to be out of the question, impending free agents like Chris Bassitt and Sean Manaea are the likeliest to go. Matt Olson, Matt Chapman, and Frankie Montas are only controlled through 2023, and Olson’s projected $12MM arbitration salary would represent the biggest outlay on the Athletics’ books, so the All-Star first baseman may have already played his last game for Oakland.
If there is a silver lining to this situation for Athletics fans, past history has shown that the team isn’t likely to deal all five of these players. Beane has never taken the A’s through a total rebuild over his 24 years running the front office, so it doesn’t seem likely that he would embark on such a course now (with the caveat that the A’s may still be feeling pandemic-related revenue losses). If we’re targeting which A’s players are the likeliest to be traded, it is also worth guessing which may still be on the roster come Opening Day. Montas, for instance, is probably the least likely of the “big five” members of the arbitration class to be moved, if for no other reason than he is less expensive that Manaea and Bassitt, and Oakland isn’t likely to move all three of its top starters.
The other optimistic slant on the Athletics’ winter is that Beane and Forst have walked this road before and have consistently been able to get the A’s back on track within a couple of years, at most. As difficult as it will be to replace some of the names likely to leave Oakland within the next few months, it isn’t totally out of the question that the A’s can still be competitive in 2022, if Beane/Forst can acquire some MLB-ready younger players who break out on their new team.
For two years of a power-hitting, Gold Glove first baseman like Olson, for instance, the A’s can justifiably ask for multiple top prospects and a player off a trade partner’s big league roster that could help the Athletics in 2022. Someone like the Yankees’ Luke Voit makes for a reasonable example — Olson would be taking over first base anyway — and the Yankees have already been linked to Olson. (Of course, the A’s might not be interested in Voit and his salary if they aren’t planning to try to contend next year.) The A’s have often focused on MLB-ready starters in major trades as well, which is how they came to acquire Bassitt and Montas in the first place.
The Yankees, to be clear, are just one example. Any of the Brewers, Guardians, Padres, Red Sox, Mariners, Dodgers, Mets, Phillies or Braves could make sense for an Olson trade, perhaps in some cases hinging on other roster moves at first base and/or whether National League teams will have a DH in 2022.
Olson is valuable enough that the Athletics shouldn’t dilute their potential trade return by attaching an undesirable contract (i.e. Piscotty or Andrus) to a possible trade package, yet the club might explore this tactic with other trade chips at some point in the winter. For instance, if Olson and Manaea are dealt to get some new young talent in the pipeline, the A’s could go into full salary dump mode and package something like Bassitt and Piscotty together to a team willing to absorb Piscotty’s salary in order to ultimately give up lesser prospects in the deal. As much as it would hurt to give up any of the “big five” for a miminal return, deploying this strategy in one trade would sting less if Oakland has already banked some prospects in earlier trades. Also, moving Piscotty or Andrus might free up enough payroll to spare the A’s from having to make a subsequent trade of a Chapman or a Montas.
Identifying specific target areas for the 2022 A’s is a little difficult at the moment, considering we don’t yet known the breadth of the club’s fire sale. Third base, for example, could either be a set position or a big vacancy depending on whether Chapman stays or goes. To this end, Chad Pinder might be a useful piece to keep in his final year of arbitration eligibility, since Pinder’s versatility at least gives the A’s some flexibility in how they address various positions.
It is safe to call outfield help a must, since Marte and Mark Canha are both free agents. Ramon Laureano is the lone starter remaining and will return in center field, though he’ll miss the first 27 games of 2022 to complete the remainder of his 80-game PED suspension. Piscotty is penciled into the right field job at the moment, but after three seasons of injuries and replacement-level play, it is difficult to know what expect from him next year.
Among internal options, Seth Brown and Tony Kemp are the most probable candidates to see time in the corner outfield slots. However, both could also be needed at other positions (Kemp at second base, Brown at first base or DH), thus opening the door for any of Luis Barrera, Skye Bolt, Cody Thomas, or Buddy Reed to earn some outfield playing time. A low-cost veteran could be added to that group, yet this is another decision that could hinge on how much emphasis the Athletics are putting on 2022. If the A’s are taking a full step back from a run at the playoffs, the team might decide to just let the youngsters play and see who emerges as an MLB-capable player.
Assuming Kemp isn’t traded, shortstop prospect Nick Allen’s development could factor into Kemp’s primary position in the lineup. Allen is expected to make his Major League debut in 2022 and is already more than ready from a defensive perspective, so his longer-term role is Oakland’s shortstop of the future. With Andrus at shortstop for one more year, the A’s could break Allen in as a second baseman, thus freeing up Kemp to see more time in left field.
Jed Lowrie is one of the Oakland free agents who might be a realistic candidate to be re-signed, and thus he could also be part of the infield picture. After two injury-ruined seasons with the Mets, Lowrie returned to the A’s and played in 139 games last season, providing around league-average offense over 512 plate appearances. Heading into his age-38 season, Lowrie may have a tough time competing with younger utility infield types on the free agent market, and the A’s could welcome back a familiar veteran to provide leadership through what might be a transitional year.
James Kaprielian and Cole Irvin could end up being the top two starters in the Oakland rotation depending on what happens with Manaea, Bassitt, and Montas. Since it seems quite likely at least one of that trio will be dealt, the Athletics will need some starters. Daulton Jefferies probably has the inside track on one spot and A.J. Puk another if he can stay healthy, which is a big if considering all of the injuries Puk has already faced in his short career.
Any of Grant Holmes, Brian Howard or Paul Blackburn will be in competition for another starting role, but this is certainly an area where the A’s will have to land some kind of inexpensive veteran depth, just to cover any possible innings. It also isn’t exactly a surprise to say that the Athletics will look to acquire some MLB-ready starting pitching in any trades since every team is always looking for more arms, yet Oakland’s need is particularly strong considering how many of their current starters could be traded.
Chafin declined his half of a mutual option and Jake Diekman’s club option wasn’t exercised, so those two join Sergio Romo and Yusmeiro Petit as prominent A’s relievers now set for free agency. Beane and Forst have traditionally been pretty aggressive in adding to their bullpens over the years, though that strategy might not be optimal in a winter of budget cutbacks (and with the Trevor Rosenthal signing still lingering as the major misfire of last year’s offseason).
The Athletics could at least offer opportunity to any free agent relievers, as the A’s head into 2022 with Lou Trivino penciled in as closer even if he had trouble sticking in the role last year. In the event of a lockout related to collective bargaining talks, the subsequent roster freeze could lead to a flood of relievers hitting the market when (if?) the freeze is lifted just prior to or during Spring Training. A surplus of available relievers could help Oakland score a bargain signing or two — particularly since the A’s could reasonably offer save chances and a spacious home park to any potential targets looking to reestablish value.
If the front office succeeds in landing some intriguing prospects over the winter, A’s fans may feel a bit better about the team’s overall direction by Opening Day. Unfortunately, getting to whatever promising longer-term future awaits will require some more immediate pain, as the Athletics’ “cycle” of roster construction and destruction never stops spinning. With the Astros reinforcing their pennant-winning squad and the Mariners, Angels, and Rangers all looking to make substantial upgrades this offseason, the Athletics’ first goal may be figuring out just how to avoid a last-place finish.
Everyone.
How Many Core Players Are The Athletics Preparing To Trade?
Athletics: Yes
Q: How many fans are going to be upset?
A: Both of em.
This team needs new ownership, one who cares about running a competitive team rather than just being a member of the lucky sperm club. New ownership can decide about the stadium and geography.
Really sad when you think about the Mustache Gang from the mid-70s, although in holding a fire sale Fisher’s approach resembles how Charlie O. Finley reacted to the dawn of free agency.
Or the fact that in MLB history, the Athletics are 2nd or 2rd in total championships/WS rings.
Can anyone explain why the A’s not have any money to spend in the first place? I can understand Florida teams.. No one goes. This is a team with solid fandom 30 minutes from a team that spends around $175M a year or twice as much. How are they not hoarding more money than any ownership in baseball?
Billionaire greed while seeking public welfare.
You know that story about Warren Buffet, who is worth $100 billion, living in a house he bought in 1958 for $32,000? Or that he drives a 2014 Cadillac instead of a really high-end car? Any car gets you from A to B. Any house can hold your valuables and give you a place to rest for a night.
That’s Oakland ownership. The same team, winning or losing, gets you what you’re looking for. They look at the bottom lines and the idea of losing any money is bad business. All they have to do is sit on that team and watch as the overall value continues to rise while they don’t pay a penny.
They bought the franchise for $180 million in 2005. Every year it goes up in value at least $40 million. According to sources, the team is currently worth $1.1 billion. Spending money on players isn’t going to affect that.
It’s all business to them.
Because there’s literally no rule saying you have to invest a certain amount into the product, and the ownership would prefer to make as much money as possible rather than win as much as possible. It’s the same reason the team cries poor and begs for public money for a new ballpark, despite the ownership being able to afford whatever they want.
You don’t get rich by spending money, you get it by getting people to give you their money. The A’s are a business that happens to be a sports team, not a sports team that happens to be a business.
It’s the lack of a decent TV/Radio contract. The A’s have one of the worst in all of sports. A few years ago I attended a forum with one of the Producers and someone asked why all A’s games (instead of a handful) weren’t being broadcast on local TV rather than subscription cable. “You don’t want to oversaturate the market…” was the response. Yah, the Yankees, Red Sox, Braves, Dodgers, Cubs and White Sox have really suffered from broadcasting their games so often. As it is A’s games are blacked out as far away as Hawaii and into Utah.
They’re also not going to spend a dime upgrading the Mausoleum until they know if they’ll move to Vegas or to a new place in Oakland. Crappy stadium, awful fan experience, low revenues from ticket sales … it’s a vicious cycle.
Oakland was 29th out of 30 teams in MLB in ’21 in home attendance with an avg of 8,767, ahead of only the Marlins … solid fandom? I think not.
In the 1980s and early 1990s the team was bringing in over 2 million a season. I think they even hit 3 million.
There is a fanbase there. Or there was, anyway.
Yeah, but stadiums have changed over the course of time, but not in Oakland. I do agree with what others are saying regarding ownership and needing owners who are interested in the interest of the fans and not the investment. As an owner (and illustrated by a commenter above), why would they want to seek based on the increase in value? Personally I think Hockey and Basketball got it right with regard to min/max amounts. In this case, a higher minimum needs to be established, IMHO.
@statman. Maybe read the post right above yours and maybe you will find a clue as to WHY the attendance is so bad.
A’s should have a great TV deal. That is ownership incompetence,
They were literally handing tickets away for free last year.
Trade everyone who can bring back great value of multiples of top young major league players and top almost MLB ready talent….
Teams will pay and over pay for the right talent that helps put them on the path to the playoffs and World Series..
A’s will be reloaded and ready to be the surprise team in the AL West.
Also, sign a bunch of 1 year free agent pillow contracts…
All 18 core players? The core is too big to make 18 trades.
Maybe Bassitt and Manaea will be traded but the A’s have 6 SPs right now, so Beane scrapheap picking the rest isn’t a thing that makes the A’s a 90 win team to a 81 win one, he’s excellent at that, he would probably flip out Bassitt for the next Cole Irvin.
As for everyone else, with the Mariners literally pulling all their top 5 prospects off the table, they have no one to get Chapman with, so that’s not happening. Rays and Padres would probably try and trade for Chapman just because the Mariners offer would be so pathetic. Teams talk trades as if there isn’t 28 other teams looking at what they’re doing, it makes no sense. A’s won’t trade Chapman or Olson unless they get a franchise-altering offer for them.
Bassitt back to White Sox!
Can never have too much pitching!
Looks like the A’s are going to eat the apple & throw away the core.
@A’sfan Olson is gone already my friend. There are too many teams that covet 27 year old gold glove first basemen who also happens to be one of the top fifteen hitters in the game. I guarantee the Yankees are currently trying to decide if they want to trade Volpe. After Volpe’s past season he’s hot. A package of Volpe, Voit, and a couple more youngins and maybe some cash gets it done. Cashman just has to figure out which SS he’s gonna go after. Hopefully Semiem but probably Seager.
I think the Yanks really want to hold on to Volpe . And may not go after SS, other spots to fill. But if they have other players to fill the spots for the A’s to make it work. Maybe take Elvis back. But that kick in at 550ab not good. I think Beane is sharp enough to get players. And if a player like Frazier is healthy a good take a chance as a through in.
I don’t know how many times I have to make this point as an A’s fan but just for old times sake I’ll make it again.
The A’s WON’T take cast offs (see Voit, Torres, Urshela) because it WON’T save them that much money. They WILL take near MLB ready six year controlled kids. Not 31 year old balky kneed Bucknors for half the price of an Olsen.
Is that clear?
Repeat repeatedly….
Prospects NOT cast offs.
The A’s will be particularly intrigued by blocked prospects not mediocre veterans. Finally it’d make sense to trade BOTH Chapman & Olsen in the same cycle so you don’t get to see one without the other.
The A’s won’t give a flying fox whether they play SP/CF/SS or hen house if it means they’re competing two years later….
Rinse. Repeat.
Voit is controllable and cheaper than a lot of firstbasemen, take Voit and the cash and shut up so he can hit.
Not cheaper than Seth Brown, with his 20HR last season, lack of knee issues, extra year of control and better range at 1B, and ability to play corner outfield.
Half the teams in both leagues would load up the young players and young MLB ready prospects truck for Olson or Chapman.
Indeeddownderelikedat
The rentals should be obvious but they don’t like to tear it completely down for revenue. If Montas is only 5M they’ll probably keep him unless there’s an absurd offer, and will target MLB ready guys with the other deals
I really do not see this “tear down” all the media keeps telling me is for sure happening. The A’s FO literally say they will listen on anyone every offseason, they said it again right after Melvin left and people made connections that do not directly come from A’s brass, now we have this probably false narrative that the A’s will definitely tear it down.
The problem here and with the media on everything is that there are no absolutes. In this case, there are different degrees of rebuilds.
I wrote the day that Melvin was said to be going to the Padres that the A’s were at the end of a cycle. A month earlier I’d written that. Melvin simply confirmed it.
The A’s have been in cycles for over 2 decades now. Later I used the term “rebuild”. To everyone that read it they thought I was saying that the A’s would dump everyone as the Astros and Cubs did. They believe in absolutes – you either go all in, meander, or take it down to the studs.
A person that either watched and digested, or did some research, would see how the A’s handle these situations. No, every marketable player is not going to be traded. The FO knows what they want to end up with, They’ll see who they can get via the market by moving different players, and take actions to carry out their objectives.
lol where did you write any of this? lol lies
@ A’sfaninUK;
I wrote it right here.. And more than once.
I said that there was an opening coming for the Angels and Mariners as the Astros would lose some players and that the A’s were at the end of a cycle and should be taking a step back (their cycles conform to the 6 years of control a team has with a player).
If you’d like to have us both put $5k into an escrow account and have an objective arbitrator look at the results with the $10k going to the person that’s correct, I’ll go back and pull up the posts.
I remember you said that
Why are they blowing it up? I Understand that they won’t have enough money but they built a pretty solid team, Hope the Phillies get one of the Matt(s).
Bohm+ for Chapman? A la the Lawrie+ for Donaldson trade from a few years ago
Phillie fan here.. Love to have Chapman which will shore up the defense but it will take more than that.
Yeah, that’s why the “+” was there. Bohm would be the big piece, would expect a few intriguing low-level prospects and cash to be involved as well.
Bohm was pretty awful last year. Can’t imagine he is a centerpiece for a guy like Chapman.
No one has said they are blowing it up, but the press loves to say the A’s are blowing it up. Its all hype. Bob Melvin literally did not move the needle as manager of that team – Lawrie and Butler happened on Melvin’s watch, remember? He’s not even good and cost $4M a year, who cares if he leaves? 7-13 playoff record, he’s a choker.
” He’s not even good and cost $4M a year, who cares if he leaves? 7-13 playoff record, he’s a choker.”
Check the A’s playoff record since Billy Beane was put in charge.
Every manager was a “choker”.
Even Beane once commented that the stats didn’t work in the post-season.
I’m an A’s fan, I watched all 13 losses where Melvin got exposed for his poor in-game managing. You literally cannot argue that is an unacceptably bad record. Bob Melvin is only as good as the players he gets, Joe Maddon-types will always work him in the playoffs. Good riddance, loser.
LOL
Joe maddon is so overrated. Ill take bob melvin over him all day. You dislike melvin when you should dislike your owner and the horribly disgusting cesspool oakland is
“7-13 playoff records, he’s a choker.”
– cries in Minnesota twins fan
B/C as currently constructed they are not a WS contender and at best a fringe playoff team. Why bring back the squad for 1 more non-playoff year just to lose their players in FA? They need an influx of talent so they might as well sell and sell big to justify their positioning 3-4 seasons from now.
If they feel they’ve been passed by the Mariners and the Angels and are unable to add too much, they may as well just go full blown rebuild. They have 4-5 guys who would bring back grade A packages so a potential rebuild could end up being relatively unpainful.
This is the problem, have you looked at the roster? If you think Nick Allen is ready they have a core of 18, which is the same as all contenders and good teams.
I get blowing it up, but the window is still open right now. It closes at the END of this season. Might as well run it back one more time.
It’s the A’s style to trade early and capitalize on trade value so I expect them to do just that. I don’t disagree though, most teams would ride it out one more year with a group like that but they tend to trade early to maximize trade value.
As an A’s fan, I’d take Bohm and top prospects for Chapman (and hopefully Andrus!)
If the Phils took Andrus, that would severally hurt the caliber of players you got in return.
Haha yeah, hence the “hopefully”!
None of those players leaving in FA move the needle.
The A’s have a playoff core right now.
This “trade everyone” thing doesn’t make sense this year, this years window is still open for one more year. Name any other team that has a solid 6 SP rotation already set in November?
That said, Chapman and Olson for Gleyber, Jasson, Voit, Urshela and Deivi is a move the A’s should make all day if the Yankees want to be ballsy.
No thanks.
I like that deal.
Its frees the Yankees up to play DJ at 2B and they can get into the FA SS market. Chappy and Oly are routinely getting MVP votes if healthy. This trade helps both teams make the playoffs now and in the future.
Seriously?
You don’t think the A’s can find players like that with at least 4 years of control at reasonable salaries for much less?
Can’t see the Yanks trading a potential generational talent in Jasson. They blew up there farm last season. I’m not sure how desperate they are now to trade there biggest prospect! I would not include Jasson or Volpe in any deal. I would take back Andrus to play stopgap ss in a deal if it meant Olsen prospect price is reduced.
Those “add a player to offset money/talent” trades never happen. A’s would rather play out Andrus and get a massive, massive haul for a perennial MVP talent in Olson, who is by far the best 1B in MLB right now.
You understand both Olson and Chapman will be fully healthy next year and will get MVP votes? You give up Dominguez for that, just like how Gleyber was given up for elite talent.
Yankees fans gotta stop being delusional about their prospects. Jasson probably won’t be as good as he’s being hyped to be. But adding him makes Beane sign off on that trade, bet on it. Without him, it simply isnt happening.
@A’s FanUK Olsen is the best 1B in MLB? By far??? How are you measuring that? I see there is some guy named Guerrero who’s stats are superior to Olson’s in just about every way. Forget about him? Such an oversight tarnishes your credibility.
DeFeNsE
Why would the Yankees want Chapman?
He’s the best 3B in MLB and will be fully healthy this year, unlike last year.
Not the best 3B in MLB. Hate to break it to ya.
He’s not the best third baseman in his division.
Chappy is sadly not the best 3B in baseball. Hip Injury killed him last year. Top 5 certainly.
Omg. You are a homer
Why. Adding $ Gleyber & Voit. Gleyber has shown to be not the player from 2 years ago. Voit has to be a question mark because why would a team trade 1B for 1B. So you want 2 borderline all stars for parts. Not happening. You will not get 1 Matt for that package.
A’s would not make that one sided trade. They don’t want big contract guys like Urshela and Voit. The values are way down on Deivi and Gleyber.
Volpe, Dominguez, Peraza, Gill. Schimitt, Gleber would only be the start of a deal for both Olson and Chapman.
Yankees may not have the farm to get both those All Star,
Gold glove, 30+ home guys on relatively cheap salaries,
It’s next level when your team doesn’t even wait for free agency, but players just hitting arbitration :/ It’s mind-boggling they have made playoffs half the time the last 20 years (00, 01, 02, 03, 06, 12, 13, 14, 18, 19, 20), I’m sure most teams would take that!
This is all speculation largely based on the notion that the A’s were willing to let Bob Melvin go to San Diego without compensation. However, the A’s let Art Howe go to the Mets 20 years ago. It’s not like there wasn’t a precedent already set. Further, Melvin failed badly down the stretch in 2021 and the post season history is littered with Melvin’s poor decision making costing the A’s a chance at advancement. That being typed; the A’s are ALWAYS open to trading anyone at any time if the deal makes sense. That has never been a question during Billy Beane’s tenure. Much ado about nothing.
Yeah, the only reason the A’s dropped out of the playoff race was because the bullpen was completely mismanaged down the stretch, starting with that Toronto series
Baseball insiders believe that the A’s have already lined up a manager to replace Bob Melvin
Morris Buttermaker !!
Answer should be all of them:
Retool don’t rebuild
Trade Chapman to the Mets
Mauricio
Allan
Ginn
Vientos
Whatever else is needed to finish the deal
Trade Olson to the Giants: Belt and Olson can rotate 1B/DH
Heliot Ramos
Kyle Harrison
Patrick Bailey
Will Wilson
Whatever else is needed to pit together a strong quantity package
Trade Bassit to the Brewers
Ethan Small
Brice Turang
Korry Howell
I don’t see how those trades count as a re-tool when all the A’s receive are prospects. A re-tool is when you get cheaper current MLB talent for a more expensive star
Interesting, I’ve always thought of a retool as a rebuild that will last 1-2 seasons rather than 3-4.
I’m not saying you’re wrong I’m just saying there’s not necessarily a correct distinction between retool and rebuild
So how I believe most people see it:
Retool – Trading away talent while still anticipating to compete the next season.
Rebuild – Trading away talent to compete after 1-2 years.
Tank/Teardown – Trading away talent prepared to suck for as long as it takes.
Lemme know if you think I’m wrong.
My definition of rebuild is the same as your tank/teardown. I think a retool can last 1 year, so what the Twins are doing gearing up for 2023 is a retool to me, but this is all just semantics.
Yeah, I always saw a retool has a quick turn around approach vs a rebuild being a lengthy process that will take several years.
There is no way that the Giants trade Harrison.
The Mets are not trading any of the players you noted. Vientos could be the Mets 3B next year. Mets gave up less for Javy.
Probably because Baez was a rental (Mets werent able to attach a QO to him) and Chapman has 2 years of team control, just a guess though. 2 years of team control and the ability to issue him a QO comes with a decent price tag for a 3B of Chapman’s caliber.
Brandon Belt has 10/5 rights and just accepted a qualifying offer…you’re suggesting the A’s can’t afford a better hitter and defender in Matt Olson at $12Million…so they should trade for a guy making $18+Million?
Reading is fundamental kids
“Belt and Olson can rotate 1B/DH”
Assuming the poster thinks the NL will be adopting the DH and the Giants would be able to play one at first and the other at DH.
A retool means they would be ready to compete for the Division and/or /Wild Card in ’22. A’s would demand some top young major league ready players and AAA guys who are highly rated, super talented, but blocked at the MLB level..
Zach Thompson, Braxton Garrett, Kyle Nicholas, Conner Scott and Jose Salas to Oakland for Matt Chapman and Montas to Miami. Who says no?
A’s clear about 15 million and get 2 solid mid to back of rotation starters for 2022… Nicholas who has mid rotation potential in about a year or two, Scott who can become a good MLB regular in the OF in about a year and Salas who is about 2-3 years away but also looks like another future MLB regular…
For Miami they get Chapman, which shifts Brian Anderson to RF, where he graded as a plus defender, and Montas who can slot in behind Alcantara and Rodgers in the Marlins rotation, in addition to Sixto and Cabrera. This can further enable Miami to flip Elieser Hernandez or Lopez for a catcher or a Centerfielder.
Salas is the miami piece with the most trade value but is irrelevant to the A’s as he’d be blocked by Nick Allen, and the trade still works out light on the return going to Oakland … in that it’s not enough to get Chapman, let alone Montas as well.
Salas is the Marlins #10 prospect, you don’t think another team will offer a trade around someone better?
A’s pass
(baseballtradevalues dotcom is a thing, and surprisingly accurate, it rejected that trade for Chapman alone)
It is possible that this package is light for two players however I highly doubt this package does not get the Marlins Chapman alone if offered. A’s would be nuts to turn down 5 prospects with value for Chapman.
BTV Trade Values:
Chapman (24.1) + Montas (39.6) = 63.7
Garret (4.5) + Nicolas (1.7) + Salas (7) + Scott (2.1) + Thompson (5.9) = 21.2
It only works out if the A’s get THREE of every miami trade piece.
Yeah, BTV seems to undervalue prospects a little, but that package is definitely light. There’s also a general preference for difference makers as opposed to a bunch of spare parts.
A’s would be looking for pitchers with top of the rotation talent. and top young players and mlb ready top rated prospects for a top of the rotation veteran starter and an All Star, gold glove, cheap, young 30+ home run 3B.
I wouldn’t mind seeing the Braves go after one of their starters.
The Oakland saga is getting old. Unfortunate these A’s teams are subjected to such economic & strategic shifts. Figure out a long term solution or relocate.
LOL
They figured out a long-term solution over 20 years ago.
It’s what they’ve been carrying out.
Samuel – you think all these A’s undertakings are a solution? No. The Athletics have been treading water for decades. That ain’t a solution – they’re treating the symptoms while the cause rages on. Try to be less condescending and more informed. Have a good day.
@ 30 Parks;
They live within the revenues they take in.
I don’t think you understand how bad their TV contract is, their attendance is (even in years they’re winning), and the rest of their revenue streams. They may be in physical proximity to the Giants, but their similarity ends there.
A guy below wrote about the WS-winning A’s of Charlie Finley. I read books on it. He wasn’t making money in those years, and when arbitration passed which would force him to (in his words) pay his players like the Yankees paid theirs, he held a real fire sale which the Commissioner vetoed. Subsequently Charlie sold the franchise.
The real issue is this – in order to get into the East Bay, Finley had to grant concessions to the Giants – who at that time owned rights in the market. As I noted below, with the news I’ve been following it appears that if the A’s don’t break ground on a new park within the next 2 years, MLB will force the owner to move out of the area. It should have happened decades ago. And my belief is that the park does come it will not help all that much – look at the Marlins new park and other than a short blip, how little that has affected a revenue increase (they remain a bottem feeder in revenue).
The bigger issue is this – MLB had too many franchises, there are not enough markets to support a ML team…..and yet they want to expand.
Stop assuming what people don’t know – “less” condescending, not more. The “saga is getting old” – exactly the same point you’re making. Less, not more. I appreciate your insight, but not after “lol.”
OK mom……
No! The real issue is the A’s former ownership helped save the Giants for the SF Bay Area when the Giants had the trucks loaded for Tampa.
The Territory was shared 50/50.
Former A’s ownership agreed to help the Giants say in the San Francisco Bay Area by granting the Giants the A’s portion of the Santa Clara County/Silicon Valley portion of the “shared territory”.
IF THE GIANTS BUILT THEIR NEW STADIUM IN SANTA CLARA COUNTY SILICON VALLEY/SAN JOSE!
But, the Giants did not do that. The Giants build their stadium in downtown San Francisco about 50 miles away.
The Santa Clara County/Silicon Valley/San Jose part of the shared Bay Area territory should have reverted back to the A’s.
The Giants and MLB have been blocking the A’s from reasserting their 50% ownership rights in Santa Clara County/Silicon Valley/San Jose EVER SINCE THE GIANTS RENEGED ON THE EARLIER AGREEMENT BY BUILDING THEIR STADIUM IN SAN FRANCISCO AND NOT SAN JOSE..
Congress needs to remove the Anti Trust exemption from profit making MLB and let the A’s move to Santa Clara County/Silicon
Valley/San Jose.
If someone like Al Davis owned the A’s, then the A’s would have moved to Santa Clara County/ Silicon Valley/San Jose at 10-20 years ago.
You’re mischaracterizing it. Originally there were no “territorial rights” at all.
In order to aid the efforts to pass a ballot measure to build a new Giants stadium in the South Bay/Peninsula, then owners Haas and Lurie agreed to establish/create territorial rights and split the Bay Area in two, with the Peninsula/San Jose/South Bay falling on the West Side for the Giants.
The stadium was the catalyst for establishing territories, but then became part of the value of each of the teams.
When the new owners bought from Lurie and Haas, that territory was part of the purchase, part of the business, part of the value.
Any agreement to rescind the rights should have been made between the original owners, and one cannot possibly imagine that current Giants ownership would give up the territory without compensation. The Giants have invested heavily in building a South Bay/Peninsula market.
Haas likely felt comfortable establishing the territories because the A’s were amazing during his ownership with soaring ticket sales and drawing better than the Giants, who were stuck at Candlestick. They also likely felt like they would draw some SF fans away in the vacuum of a southward move.
Now that the A’s aren’t doing as well because current ownership refuses to invest in their team, they keep asking for handouts, and pointing fingers elsewhere.
They had many years to come up with solutions while they were getting subsidies from the rest of the MLB, and have really made a public stink now that they just finally got all the way phased out of revenue sharing money from MLB. And they are frothing up their fan base with bad faith disinformation about territorial rights and how the Giants should give the A’s back rights, and how it’s the City of Oakland’s fault for not giving them enough tax concessions and agreeing to fund infrastructure. At what point do the A’s ownership start talking about their own responsibility?
The territorial rights could get voted out of existence by a 2/3 vote of MLB teams. It has never happened. Instead, MLB has recognized in their constitution these territorial rights over and over and over again. It isn’t the Giants doing this or that, it is EVERY team, respecting a team’s ability to assert and retain the value of their product, and not wanting to set a precedent for other teams to move and enter another team’s market.
They need to figure out something about their stadium situation. I think It’s time to move to Las Vegas. Vegas is already home to their Triple A team. LV Ballpark only has a capacity of 10k but the blue jays played in Buffalo last year. Probably around the same. A’s to Las Vegas start building the stadium now. There’s a ton of room out here.
There’s been rumors for the last few years. The Rio hotel and casino would be demolished and they built a a stadium in its place. Personally I think should try to build it close to Aliegent Stadium. If they relocate here.
I don’t understand why they didn’t move 25 years ago.
The owner that everyone hates has been keeping the team there. If all he wants to is to make money, he’d have moved by now.
I think they’re in the 9th inning with the Oakland Mayor and City Council. Either a new park will have ground broken within the next 2 years, or MLB will push the owner to move the team. LV seems to be the top option.
Because they were determined to stay in and be viable in the San Francisco Bay Area(Read above posts)
MLB and the Giants have been blocking their move to San Jose
(over a million residents and the largest city in the Bay Area).
Congress should repeal MLB’s Antitrust exemption.
@SportsFan0000
Wrong. Read above post.
Fans should really stop making excuses for the A’s ownership – they’ve made their choices to not invest in the team, and tried to milk every penny out of their fans, MLB, Oakland and Alameda County. Now that the gravy train has dried up, they need to take care of business and invest in their product instead of expecting everyone else to subsidize their operations.
The A’s just placed a bid on land in Las Vegas: reviewjournal.com/sports/athletics/as-put-in-offer…
Whether this is just posturing to pressure Oakland, or real movement, remains to be seen.
It’s the Oakland “Method”
…and the only thing missing, imo, is the willingness to make a short-term “overcommittment” (Is that even possible?) to a Championship run.
There are examples every year of the boost trade pick-ups give to winning teams, and the players, it seems to me, REALLY like it when management adds when they see the team has a shot. Once in a while, you have to pay the prospect price to get proven talent/leadership to go after the World Series. Players respond to that, especially veterans who have learned how hard it is to get the chance.
One GM who I think gets that is Alex Anthopoulis. They won’t always work out (Just ask ANY Blue Jays fan!) but he will try to add every time he thinks the team has a chance.
Get used to it, Braves fans. Alex understands he’s part of the TEAM and the goal is to win CHAMPIONSHIPS!!!
The long term solution is for MLB to allow the A’s to build a new stadium in Santa Clara County/Silicon Valley and/or San Jose to load up on those rich high tech sponsorships and the huge fan base there.
MLB has been “sabotaging the A’s and their fans for decade.s on the stadium issue
Matt Olson is the most likely candidate to be dealt and I hope they shake someone down for a king’s ransom to move him. To expand the prospect return, a package of Olson and Bassitt would appeal to just about anyone. The A’s could demand a team’s best farm assets this winter.
A’s can demand all they like, but everyone knows they want to shed contracts. A’s need new ownership more than a stadium.
Yes and a large % of MLB teams want many of the A’s players.
That translates into a auction to the highest bidder situation.
The A’s are not going to hand over their best All Star, gold glove players to the Yankees for some scrubs the Yankees do not want LOL!
It’s time for Farhan Zaidi to strike…
I’d love to see Andrew Chafin to return to the cubs.
I get the feeling that if a team was interested in one of the hot dog vendors the A’s would be on the phone…
Hal (@ashotdog) is a PhD candidate in Environmental Economics at Cal. He’s not going anywhere.
If Hal is close to his PhD, then the A’s are probably looking to unload him before he becomes too expensive… for a prospect or two
They need to figure out the Howard Terminal and Southern Nevada parallel paths. They need a decision as soon aa possible.
They need to figure out the Howard Terminal and Southern Nevada parallel paths. They need a decision as soon aa possible.
Josh Harrison, come to Papa. It would be great to have you back with the Nats.
First of all, I believe John Fisher traded Bob Melvin to the Padres in exchange for the Padres ownership group to agree to vote yes on the A’s moving to Las Vegas.
Regarding the team. I think it’s time that the A’s make some changes. The team did not play well this year. At times it was brutally ugly. Olsen and Chapman are nice players but they are not in the same league with some of their predecessors within the Oakland organization. Olsen he’s not in the same leagues with Jason Giambi and Mark McGwire. Similarly, Chapman will never be considered as good as Carney Lansford or Eric Chavez. So if the A’s need to move these guys to get better I am all for it.
I’m an A’s man with no say , but I can tell you even I don’t want any Luke Voit in a Matt Olson trade . Just as well offer Dave Revering . Better come with Volpe, Wells , and a starting pitcher . Jasson Dominguez is looking like Willen Astudillo from the Twins .
The A’s have generally been profitable through the years but not greatly so. Usually in the $10-30M range if you believe Forbes. The problem is revenue, which is less than some of the top spending team’s payroll. Hard to spend money if there isn’t much coming in. Despite the area they are in, they are essentially one of the smallest market teams in baseball.
I don’t know what the answer is. Is the bay area big enough to support two MLB teams? Would a better stadium situation help? Or is Oakland just such a city in decline that it isn’t going to be able to support a team. Baseball has to figure it out because they are not the only franchise in this situation. They want to expand but just about every other city that is being mentioned for expansion is a smaller market than Oakland. Baseball will be in trouble if expansion franchises can’t make a go of it.
The Bay Area has 3 very large cities 1) San Jose, 2) SF, 3) Oakland
The A’s are viable in San Jose/Santa Clara County/Silicon Valley.
(largest/richest tech companies and headquarters in the World)
The A’s are not viable in Oakland.
CONGRESS, REVOKE MLB’S ANTI TRUST EXEMPTION SINCE MLB HAS BEEN CONSPIRING WITH THE GIANTS TO BLOCK THE A’S MOVE TO SANTA CLARA COUNTY/SAN JOSE/SILICON VALLEY FOR DECADES.
It’s funny that all these people that hate on Oakland, probably have never been to Oakland. A bunch of haters that never amounted to anything.
I really want to see the MLB enforce 100 mill salaries on all teams that way the A’s can build a dynasty. They’ve been contenders for so long, with so little.. that if they get a bump let’s say 25 million more in salary they’ll be putting all these scrub ass teams to shame.
Tampa and Cleveland would likely stop that destiny from happening
But very high likelihood the three AL divisions would end up with their own tough to beat standard-bearer, and it may become a question of which of the three will be the one in the world series each season
Not hating on Oakland. Just believe the A’s are much more viable financially
in Santa Clara County/Silicon Valley/San Jose.
That is why the 49eers moved to Santa Clara County..
“How Many Core Players Are The Athletics Preparing To Trade?”
Maybe all of them
…then still finish higher than the Angels in the standings
Weep
Yes everything must go sale. The Yankees will be after Manea or Montas. They will also be players for Olson and maybe even catcher Sean Murphy. Chapman isn’t a good fit for the Yankees considering they have Urshela. So he isn’t a need. Let’s make a deal!
Yankees do not have enough top prospects and top young major league players to acquire all those A”s players.
A’s would get better deals by dealing those players separately.
Wondering if the A’s will go for very young prospects with the hope that they’ll sync up with the new stadium
No. Beane usually insists on players who are already young major leaguers or players who are ready to play in the majors.
Piscotty has zero trade value and is guaranteed to have his option bought out next winter. They might be able to get a low level minor leaguer or a PTBNL in a trade.
Andrus has no real value in a market over saturated with SS’s. Even with the Rangers paying half his salary the A’s would have to kick in some cash.
Olson and Chapman will require large prospect hauls and i would be surprised if either are moved.
The starting pitchers could all be moved. The A’s are lucky enough to have the internal depth to replace all three and that doesn’t count whatever they would get in return.
Guys like Pinder and Kemp are nice bench pieces but won’t fetch much of a return.
The one thing with the A’s is even if they punt on next season by ’23-24 they’ll be right back in the playoff mix
Matt Olson and Matt Chapman are too of the most valuable players in MLB…Both are gold glovers who hit 30+ home runs per year on relatively cheap salaries for the next 2 years.
A’s would be smart to deal both and get a couple of truck loads of young players and prospects.
They don’t really have pitching replacements unless you trust puk, jefferies suddenly being healthy after 3-4 years of injury delays and setbacks. Which I don’t. They’ll probably target upper minors or mlb ready pitching prospects in trades or sign short term scrap heap veteran starting pitchers. As is if they trade everyone, by default their top 3 sp’s will be kaprelian, Irvin, Blackburn etc…ugly lol
Honestly, if they do it right, moving all the pieces they have for prospects at a certain level could put them right back into contention relatively soon and stay in contention based on the years of control they’d have. Mix that up with some veterans they are able to acquire via FA and it may be a decent strategy. I’m sure there’s plenty of teams that would line up for Manea, Chapman, Bassett, etc.
Maybe the Twins and As can help each other out.
Bassit/Mannea and Andrus for Rooker and others.
Andrus gives Twins stop gap SS and obviously the addition of either Bassit or Mannea is the get.
As get to shed salary, although the inclusion of Andrus limits the return. Rooker would give them a young outfielder who can plug in immediately with some upside yet.
What if the new CBA has a salary floor? I can’t see the A’s dealing until there’s more certainty on that detail.
The A’s have great opportunities here to build the core out of their next contender
The A’s Beane is is the drivers seat to load up on great young MLB talent
and almost ready MLB talent..
All Star/Gold Glove 3B Matt Harrison lands A’s 3-4 top young MLB players and prospects
All Star/Gold glove 1B Matt Olson lands A;s 3-4 top young MLB players and prospects
Starting pitchers: Manea, Bassit, Montas, if traded separately,
will each land the A’s at least 2-3 great young players and major league prospects
CF Lauriano (at least half dozen teams are in on CF Starling Marte..Teams that don’t get Marte could pivot to Lauriano. and give up young major league talent or almost ready major league talent.
If done right, the A’s will be “loaded” with young, hungry, exciting talent ready to overachieve and ready to prove themselves as the next wave of major league stars.
A’s can then sign 6-8 or more 1 year “pillow contracts” to get more hungry players looking to pump up their free agent value for ’23 or ’24.
If it’s all about cutting costs, then insist that Olson and Andrus are a package deal. The Yankees want Olson hitting 50 HRs for them? Cool, you get to pay for Andrus too. Dodgers or Rangers want a new All-Star 1B? You get Elvis too.
Dodgers should offer up Gavin Lux and other prospects for Matt Olson and an Oakland SP.