Pitchers and catchers for the Oakland Athletics are set to report to spring training this weekend, bringing the club”s up-and-down offseason to a close.
The A”s, who finished the 2011 season at 74-88 and 22 games behind the division-winning Texas Rangers, dove right into the giving pool during the holiday season.
General manager Billy Beane made headlines in early December after dealing All-Star pitcher Trevor Cahill and reliever Craig Breslow to the Arizona Diamondbacks for three young players.
The front-page font got even bigger Dec. 23 when news broke that Beane traded 2011 All-Star Gio Gonzalez to the Washington Nationals for four prospects.
The moves left Oakland with gaping holes in the starting rotation – last season Gonzalez went 16-12 with a 3.12 ERA and Cahill was 12-14 with a 4.16 ERA.
The A”s front office capped December by sending ace closer Andrew Bailey and outfielder Ryan Sweeney to the Boston Red Sox for major-league outfielder Josh Reddick and two minor leaguers.
Losing three of their top pitchers probably wouldn”t have seemed so bad for the A”s if their offense hadn”t gotten crushed in free agency.
Outfielders David DeJesus and Josh Willingham, who figured to be one-and-done in Oakland coming into 2011, lived up to expectations this offseason, rushing out of the Bay Area in favor of bigger money in the Midwest (Chicago and Minnesota, respectively).
Early on, Beane appeared to be belly-flopping his way through the offseason.
Little did we know Beane, red chest and all, would get back on the platform and eventually stick a solid cannonball, making February”s biggest MLB splash in the process.
The A”s re-signed outfielder Coco Crisp and brought in aging starter Bartolo Colon during the first half of January – moves best characterized as lackluster but necessary.
Oakland made an understandable trade in mid-January, exchanging two big-league pitchers for Seth Smith to shore up a depleted outfield. Acquiring veteran Jonny Gomes Jan. 20 served the same purpose.
By late January, rumors flew about the A”s wanting Manny Ramirez to fill the designated hitter void left by free agent Hideki Matsui.
Apparently the recent deals and chatter gave team ownership confidence enough to offer Beane an extension through 2019, which he accepted last week.
Then reports surfaced Monday that the A”s finally won a bidding battle in the Beane era, agreeing to a four-year, $36 million deal with Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes (who, if he settles his immigration dispute, should be an opening-day starting rookie outfielder).
By acquiring Cespedes, Oakland put itself back in the national baseball conversation.
But, judging by their roster and schedule, it looks like the A”s will have difficulty staying there.
The Athletics” preseason begins this weekend and their regular season opens March 28 and 29 in Japan against the Seattle Mariners.
If Oakland wins those two games, it”ll find itself atop the AL West – for what would likely be a short-lived division lead.
While the A”s appear to have their late-2011 starting infield in place for the upcoming season, the outfield looks to be a makeshift collection of experienced underachievers and bright-eyed rookies.
And without a designated hitter in place, the A”s look like they are going to have trouble scoring runs.
Then again, the offense might not matter too much in light of how Beane gutted the pitching staff.
Oakland”s top starters consist of a decrepit Colon (who did OK for the New York Yankees last year) and two guys with the injury gene (Dallas Braden and Brandon McCarthy).
The only bullpen talents are Grant Balfour and Brian Fuentes – the rest of the relievers are putting “green” in “green and gold.”
Considering how uninspiring Oakland”s roster is (and how stacked the Rangers and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are), this season will either be another dud or another Beane miracle.
Recent history certainly points to the former, given that the team hasn”t had a winning record since 2006.
So, the highlight of the year for the A”s might come fairly soon; on Feb. 26, when “Moneyball” could nab an Academy Award.
If the movie does win one, Oakland fans should revel for as long as they can because it”ll likely be a long, tough season.
Either that or Michael Lewis will be penning “Moneyball 2.”
