Armed and Athletic

The alluring Oakland A’s acquired one of the off-seasons’ most sought-after free agents, Matt Holliday. Historically, Oakland has relied heavily on the arms of their rotation to carry the load for the team. They have been anemic on offense yet have had some success in the playoffs because of their pitching prowess. How will the West be won this season? Not with arms. The A’s need Holliday, homerun giant, Jason Giambi and oft-injured Eric Chavez to bash the ball like the 1980’s Bash Brother A’s. The Athletics cannot simply skate by with their pitching because they lack the star power they formerly enjoyed.
The 29 year old righty Holliday is a career .319 hitter who plays an lustrous left field. The former Colorado Rockie appreciated and took pleasure in the hitter-friendly Corrs Field for five seasons. He joins the Bay Area A’s and switches over to the American League. Holliday slugged 128 homeruns in those five years and drove in 483. As Oakland looks to return to the playoffs, the team will definitely expect Matt to provide many a scoring opportunity with his big bat.
Manager, Bob Geren, is searching for his first winning season as Oakland skipper. Geren’s coaching staff embodies changes at they embark on a new season and break camp this Spring. Tye Waller is slotted as the new bench coach. Waller moves over from that same role at third base. Replacing Tye is former A’s infielder, Mike Gallego. Jim Skaalen is the new Oakland hitting coach.
As far as the roster goes, Oakland returns most of the position players from a year ago and they are a mediocre set. The team has a mix of young and old professionals in the arms department. The starting rotation lacks experience, even though the projected Opening Day starter made the all-star team in 2008. Justin Duchscherer is Oakland’s number one righty as long as he’s ready to throw by April. His 2008 season was cut short because of a hip injury. The four other starters are all under age 25. They included lefty, Dana Eveland, righty, Sean Gallagher and lefty, Dallas Braden. Jose Outman and Gio Gonzalez are competing for the fifth starter. Gonzalez had an over 7 ERA in 2008 in just 10 games. Outman went 1-2 with a 4.56 ERA in only 6 appearances, so both are novices with little expected in their first full years at the helm. Brad Ziegler is the team closer and he is a participant in the World Baseball Classic for team USA. The rest of the bullpen includes Joey Devine, Russ Springer, Jerry Blevins, Michael Wuertz and Santiago Casilla. Newcomers who could pan out as either starters or relievers are prospects, Vin Mazzaro, Brett Anderson and Trevor Cahill. Devine will likely close games in place of Ziegler the sidewinder too. Both relievers could be setup men or star as saviors. Blevins is only in his second year and it’s hard to forecast what he will bring. Casilla is inconsistent and sometimes incompetent. Springer is a surefire and reliable right hander who pitched well in the National League for the Reds last year. A switch to American League ball won’t do anything to help his ERA (an impressive 2.32 in 2008) but he still looks to be a good fit here.
Holliday’s bat is guaranteed to contribute positively at the three hole in the lineup. His outfield mates, CF Ryan Sweeney and RF Jack Cust, will probably hit safely before him. DH Giambi returns to the team where he earned an MVP and was a fan favorite. Giambi hits cleanup and could play some first base. Jason might switch to the 3rd or 5th spot depending on the pitcher and other player streaks. Cust and Holliday are both capable of cleaning up and Geren might use that as motivation for them. 3B Chavez returns from an injury-plagued year to find himself batting 5th, while emerging all-star, Mark Ellis, is pegged for 6th. Ellis is an original Oakland Athletic and has been through the ringer as their second baseman. He does not play sloppy. In fact, his glove is a nifty one, especially alongside the flashy shortstop, Bobby Crosby. Crosby’s potential is enormous but the front office is losing patience with him. They seem to still be waiting for Crosby to explode at the plate. Instead, he continues to stock up strikeouts and hit into double plays. Bobby worked with Holliday and former slugger, Mark McGwire, to re-tool his swing this winter. In any case, he will probably find himself batting 9th. With only 7 homeruns and a .237 average, Crosby needs to start strong and cream the ball or he could be riding the pine come May. The A’s have expressed interest in signing Orlando Cabrera at shortstop. Catcher, Kurt Suzuki and 1B Daric Barton, land at the 7th and 8th spots, respectively, for the Oakland offense.
25 year old, Travis Buck, will see time in RF. Buck has had successful power streaks but it too fickle to play everyday. Infielders, Jack Hannahan and Cliff Pennington are quality reserve players. Both could replace Chavez if he needs downtime or is overworked and tired. Jeff Baisley is another infield backup showing promise, and Ben Copeland has a chance to produce form an outfield position. Copeland was picked up from San Francisco in the Rule 5 draft.
The A’s waved goodbye to their stud closer, Huston Street, in a trade with Colorado. They also parted ways with pitcher Dan Meyer, who started to come around last season but will not be missed. LHPs Greg Smith and Alan Embree, and outfielders Carlos Gonzalez and Matt Murton, were also traded to the Rockies.
The A’s biggest asset is their ability to win at home. The Coliseum is their home for now, as news of a move to Fremont were squashed just yesterday. The 2009 A’s do not have much depth pitching-wise. Pitching has been their ace in the hole for years but they have to depend more on their heart of the order to compete this year. They do have patience at the plate, walk a lot, and are pesky on the bases. That is going to play to their advantage in the AL West. The division is overall very weak. Overall, I think the A’s will finish with a winning record and possibly a division crown. However, they are still a far cry from the Bash Brother days.

Parting points: “Hello, I’ve waited here for you…everlong