Tag: Oakland Athletics

Josh Reddick Trade Rumors: Latest News, Speculation on Athletics Outfielder

Oakland Athletics right fielder Josh Reddick is playing under a one-year, $6.6 million contract, per Spotrac

With Major League Baseball’s Aug. 1 trade deadline approaching, Reddick could be dealt within the next three weeks if he and the Athletics don’t improve their contract negotiations. 

Continue for updates.


Likelihood of Trading Reddick Increasing

Sunday, July 10

According to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, Oakland and Reddick haven’t picked up contract talks since spring training: “The outfielder was offered a three-year, $36 million deal during the spring, sources confirmed, and Reddick’s representatives countered with four years and $56 million, which is considered below Reddick’s market value by at least $5 million to $10 million.”

The 29-year-old outfielder is on pace for a career-high batting average, as he’s recorded a .296 mark through 52 games. However, his power numbers have dipped, with just five home runs, compared to 20 last season. 

Reddick has seen a vast decrease in power since a monster 2012 season in which he launched a career-best 32 home runs. In the following two seasons, he hit a combined 24. 

This season has come with an unexpected break, though, after he suffered a fractured thumb May 19. He landed on the disabled list the following day and did not return until June 28. 

Still, the dip in power and injury concerns haven’t impacted his value much. Per Slusser, some believe that Reddick could receive a $100 million deal thanks to the lack of outfield talent that is projected to hit the free-agent market during the winter:

He has plenty of interest, too. According to Slusser, the Kansas City Royals are “closely” following him, while the San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers, Toronto Blue Jays and Washington Nationals are also believed to be keeping an eye on him.

With that kind of attention, the Athletics should be able to find a trade partner, but it’s imperative that they get the right pieces. Oakland was 38-50 entering Sunday and already 15.5 games out of first place in the American League West.

One possible problem to address is pitching, as the Athletics staff ranks as the fifth-worst in the majors with a 4.77 ERA.

Putting a player like Reddick on the trade block could yield a solid return that should help Oakland start rebuilding its roster.

    

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


A.J. Puk: Prospect Profile for Oakland A’s 1st-Round Pick

Player: A.J. Puk

Position: LHP

DOB: April 25, 1995 (21 years old)

Height/Weight: 6’7″, 230 lbs

Bats/Throws: L/L

School: Florida

Previously Drafted: 2013 (35th Round, DET)

 

Background

A.J. Puk possesses the all the tools to be a front-line starter at the highest level, which has made his inconsistent play at the University of Florida that much more confounding.

Ranked as the No. 85 prospect in the 2013 draft class by Baseball America, he slipped to the 35th round due to signability concerns and ended up in Gainesville.

After being used primarily out of the bullpen during his freshman season, he joined the Gators rotation as a sophomore and quickly established himself as one to watch at the top of the 2016 draft class.

He finished the season 9-4 with a 3.81 ERA and 104 strikeouts in 78.0 innings, turning it on late to earn SEC All-Tournament Team and Gainesville Regional All-Tournament Team spots thanks to a pair of postseason gems.

Puk’s junior season got off to a slow start, and he saw his stock begin to slip a bit, but he rounded into form as the spring wore on and once again asserted himself as the top college arm in the country in terms of draft stock and upside.

In 15 starts for the Gators, he’s gone 2-3 with a 3.21 ERA, 1.157 WHIP and .195 opponent batting average. He’s struck out 95 batters and walked 31 in 70.0 innings of work. It’s been a bit of a mixed bag, as his 12.2 K/9 opens eyes, but so does his 4.0 BB/9, and for the wrong reasons.

At any rate, 6’7″ lefties with power stuff and ace upside aren’t exactly a dime a dozen, and Puk has done more than enough this season to keep the hype train rolling.

 

Pick Analysis

With a three-pitch repertoire that can be overpowering at times and the big frame to be a workhorse, continued improvement in the command department will ultimately be what determines just how good Puk can be.

Baseball America provided the following scouting report:

Puk was inconsistent at the start of the season and was briefly sidelined by back spasms. But he has since rounded into form and again looks the part of dominant starter.

Puk throws his fastball in the mid to upper 90s and thanks to the downhill angle and the excellent extension his 6-foot-7 frame enables him to get, the pitch plays up even further. Puk’s slider and changeup both could use further refinement, but both have a chance to develop into average offerings. His slider sits in the mid-80s with horizontal sweeping action, though it can sometimes back up.

Puk repeats his arm slot well and gets his torso over his front side consistently. When he stays balanced and online, he is very difficult for hitters to square up, even if they make contact. He throws a lot of strikes, particularly for someone of his size, and can locate his fastball to both sides of the plate.

There are probably safer picks among this year’s crop of college arms, but none have the upside of Puk, who could wind up being the marquee player from this class 10 years from now.

 

MLB Player Comparison: Andrew Miller

The hope will be that Puk takes a smoother path to contributing than Andrew Miller did, but there are certainly worse players to be compared to.

Miller was the No. 6 selection in the 2006 draft with hopes that he would quickly emerge as a front-line starter. However, he entered the 2012 season with a 5.79 ERA and 1.750 WHIP in 359.1 career innings, and the Boston Red Sox made the career-changing decision to move him to the bullpen full-time.

He’s taken since making the transition and parlayed a terrific 2014 season into a four-year, $36 million deal with the New York Yankees.

Just like Puk, Miller is a 6’7″ left-hander who generates plenty of swings-and-misses with a mid-90s fastball and a plus slider.

Puk will be given every chance to stick as a starter, but the best player to compare him to right now appears to be one of the game’s premier relievers.

 

Projection: Ace-caliber starter if he continues to display plus command, late-inning reliever if he doesn’t.

 

Major League ETA: 2020

 

Chances of Signing: 99 percent

Even with an inconsistent performance in his junior season, Puk has consistently been viewed as one of the elite arms of this year’s class. It’s hard to see him boosting his stock or making himself more money with a return to Florida.

 

All college stats courtesy of The Baseball Cube, unless otherwise noted, and current through Wednesday, June 8.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


How 36-Year-Old MLB Journeyman Rich Hill Has Become a Potential All-Star

Rich Hill doesn’t dwell on things that aren’t important. Even if that means shrugging at his status as one of baseball’s best pitchers and, in all probability, a likely first-time All-Star at the age of 36.

With a 2.25 ERA through 11 starts, the Oakland Athletics left-hander has indeed been one of the American League‘s elite starters in 2016. Add in what he did in four starts with the Boston Red Sox late last season, and MLB‘s ERA leaders over the last calendar year line up like this:

  1. Jake Arrieta: 1.32
  2. Clayton Kershaw: 1.46
  3. Rich Hill: 2.03

But when this was tossed at Hill as he was sitting in Oakland’s dugout this past weekend, it had the same effect on him that a bullet has on Superman. As far as he’s concerned, reveling in success is not the best use of his time.

“As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that there’s no real time to waste,” he said. “The opportunities are in the present, and focusing on what you’re doing means focusing on the process and not the results.”

Such laser-guided focus would suit any player well. But coming from a guy who’s been on a journey like few others, it feels less like a luxury and more like a well-honed survival instinct.

Way back in 2005, Baseball America ranked Hill as the Chicago Cubs‘ No. 5 prospect and gave him a projection as a possible No. 2 starter. That’s where he seemed to be headed by 2007, when he broke through with a 3.92 ERA and 183 strikeouts in 195 innings as a 27-year-old.

But then the injury bug bit him, and it kept chewing. A bad back limited Hill to five starts in 2008. In 2009, he needed surgery to repair a torn labrum. In 2011, it was time for Tommy John surgery.

By 2012, Hill’s career wasn’t sidetracked so much as derailed. What was once an over-the-top delivery had become a sidearm delivery, and what was once a life as a promising young starter had become a life as a not-so-young LOOGY.

But after stops with the Baltimore Orioles, Red Sox, St. Louis Cardinals, Cleveland Indians, New York Yankees, Los Angeles Angels and Washington Nationals organizations, a chance to turn back the clock arrived last June. All it took was his release from the Syracuse Chiefs, Washington’s Triple-A team.

“Timing and opportunity came together to where I was able to go home for a month and reassess getting back into starting,” Hill said. “It was something that I’d always wanted to do, but while I was relieving…I was dedicating my time and effort to being the best I could be as a left-handed reliever.”

Back home in Milton, Massachusetts, Hill began working out with the same American Legion team he played for growing up. As he stated at the Players’ Tribune, he began with a 75-pitch bullpen session and went from there, proving to himself he could maintain his old over-the-top delivery.

The problem was that no affiliated team was going to gamble on a guy whose last major league start happened in 2009. With a nudge from Jared Porter, formerly the Red Sox’s director of pro scouting and now a member of the Cubs front office, that’s how Hill ended up with the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League.

The result was two starts of utter dominance: no runs, two hits, three walks with 21 strikeouts in 11 innings.

The Red Sox pounced, signing Hill and sending him to Triple-A Pawtucket. And though he wasn’t guaranteed a shot at Boston’s rotation, a chance materialized when the Red Sox called him up to be part of a six-man rotation in September.

Hill immediately made it clear he didn’t mean to waste it:

That was the first of Hill’s three straight 10-strikeout games. After a fourth solid effort, his return to starting featured a 1.55 ERA, 36 strikeouts and five walks in 29 innings.

That got everyone’s attention, including the A’s, whose offseason to-do list included finding a starter.

“We’ve followed Rich for a long time,” Dan Feinstein, Oakland’s assistant general manager, pro scouting and player personnel, said in a phone interview. “But after he put together four really good starts for the Red Sox, we looked at potential free agents and we saw him as a low-risk option with plenty of upside.”

Oakland’s offer was $6 million for one year. Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reported Hill did have a better offer elsewhere, but he wanted the rotation spot the A’s were offering. Done deal.

Fast-forward six months, and what was a small-sample-size slice of dominance has turned into the real deal. So at this point, the only question is why anyone is still surprised.

As Feinstein said, Hill has always had two valuable talents: “He’s been able to induce a high number of swings and misses, and he’s been able to keep hard contact to a minimum. He’s never really given up a lot of extra-base hits.”

No kidding. Hill’s career strikeout rate now stands at an even 9.0 per nine innings. And among lefties who’ve made at least 80 starts since 2005, the .374 slugging percentage he’s allowed is a top-10 mark.

At first, these numbers look out of place on a pitcher who only throws a 90-91 mph fastball with a curveball and not much else. But this is a day and age of newfangled pitching metrics, and Hill is a poster boy for several of them.

Such as, a “Spin Rate!” poster. According to Baseball Savant, Hill has averaged more spin on his pitches than any other starter since resurfacing last year:

  1. Rich Hill: 2,565 rpm
  2. Garrett Richards: 2,554 rpm
  3. Justin Verlander: 2,495 rpm

Hill’s Uncle Charlie leads the way, averaging 2,792 revolutions per minute. Ho hum, says he.

“I think it’s the same as asking a guy about his great fastball. They’ve always been able to throw a fastball at 96, 97, 98, 100 miles per hour,” he said. “With my curveball, I’ve always been able to have a feel for spin.”

That spin creates a curveball unlike any other. According to Baseball Prospectus, the amount of glove-side run on Hill’s curveball dwarfs that of any other curveball thrown by any other lefty starter. In person, it looks like this:

Except for those times when Hill feels like throwing sidearm, of course. Then it looks like this:

Other times, Hill’s curve takes the form of an eephus worthy of Rip Sewell:

Whatever the shape, the damage Hill has wrought with that curveball could fill a disaster movie. Per Brooks Baseball, it’s held hitters to a .183 average and racked up 48 of 110 strikeouts since last September.

It’s therefore no small compliment that Hill’s fastball has been just as good. It’s held hitters to a .181 average and recorded 54 of those 110 strikeouts. This season, the whiff-per-swing rate on his four-seamer is the highest of any starter. That’s good for a guy who maxes out at 93 miles per hour, which points back to the spin.

“We can sit here and talk about a 90-93 fastball and why it looks like it’s 96-97,” he said. “When you have the highest swing-and-miss percentage in baseball on your fastball, people might ask, ‘Why is that?’ Because when people see velocity, sometimes they don’t understand the perceptual side of it.”

If you want to be a dominant starter, overpowering stuff is a good foundation. But it’s also necessary to have an idea where it’s going, and that’s where Hill’s rebirth looks more like a transformation.

After walking 4.3 batters per nine innings through his first 10 seasons, Hill has walked only 2.8 batters per nine innings since his return. And that’s actually underselling his ability to find the strike zone. Over the last year, he’s frequented the zone more often than every starter except Steven Matz.

The easy explanations are Hill going back over the top and also back to the third base side of the rubber. But as Hill sees it, it also has to do with an unexpected gift from one of his career’s darkest chapters.

“It’s really my shoulder strength, and I think that came back due, in part, to having Tommy John surgery,” he said. “Having Tommy John and being able to come back from that with a well-rounded shoulder program really strengthened my ability to command the ball better.”

Hill’s resurgence is not a case of a guy making good on a bargain with the baseball gods. What he’s doing is making better use of the same great stuff he’s always had. Health permitting—and this is where his recent groin strain permits crossed fingers—there’s no reason it can’t continue.

Clearly, his first All-Star Game is just around the…uh, wait.

“That’s nothing I even think about,” he said at the mention of the idea. “All the extracurricular stuff outside of what you’re focusing on in the moment is irrelevant because you can’t do more than what you can do right now in this moment.”

Hey, if it works, it works.

 

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs unless otherwise noted/linked.

Follow zachrymer on Twitter 

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


Josh Reddick Injury: Updates on Athletics Star’s Thumb and Recovery

Oakland Athletics outfielder Josh Reddick suffered a fractured thumb during his team’s 4-1 loss to the New York Yankees on Thursday. He’s been placed on the disabled list, and it’s unclear when he will return.

Continue for updates.


Reddick Placed on 15-Day DL

Friday, May 20

The Athletics announced they recalled Jake Smolinski from Triple-A to take Reddick’s spot on the active roster.


Latest on Reddick’s Recovery Timeline

Thursday, May 19

Jane Lee of MLB.com reported the Athletics will need to wait for the outfielder to see a hand specialist before they determine how long he will be out. However, she noted that “Reddick believes he’ll be out at least four to six weeks.”

Reddick drilled his fifth home run of the season before exiting the game. He scored Oakland’s only run in a lackluster offensive effort. The outfielder hit 20 long balls in 2015 and adds power to the middle of the Athletics lineup.


Reddick Provides Athletics With Middle-of-the-Lineup Power

Losing Reddick for the amount of time he expects to be out for would be a blow because he is off to a quick start for Oakland.

Entering play Thursday, he was hitting .315 with an impressive OPS of .830. Both of those numbers would mark career bests if they hold, as he has never posted a batting average better than .280 or an OPS better than .784.

The Athletics will likely turn to Chris Coghlan in right field while Reddick is out. Coghlan is a versatile defender who can play the corner outfield spots or second base, but Tyler Ladendorf can occupy second in this scenario.

Coghlan has struggled with his bat in the early going and was hitting a mere .168 as of Thursday. However, he has flashed some power with five home runs and is coming off a solid year for the Chicago Cubs in 2015, when he hit 16 home runs and tallied 41 RBI. He was responsible for a career-best 1.9 offensive WAR in 2015, per ESPN.com.

The Athletics will need him to carry the load until Reddick returns as they chase the Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers in the American League West.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


Sonny Gray Becomes Must-Watch Trade-Deadline Chip with Stephen Strasburg Signed

Under normal circumstances, a struggling pitcher with an ERA north of 5.00 wouldn’t inspire feverish trade speculation.

But the Oakland AthleticsSonny Gray isn’t a normal struggling pitcher. And these aren’t normal circumstances. 

Stephen Strasburg signed a seven-year extension with the Washington Nationals on May 10. Just like that, the only legitimate ace in next season’s shallow free-agent pool and one of the biggest possible trade-deadline prizes disappeared.

The demand for pitching, however, isn’t going anywhere. Toss a rosin bag—particularly in the wide-open American League—and you’ll hit a flawed contender with holes in its rotation.

Enter Gray and his 5.84 ERA.

That’s an ugly number, and it hasn’t been a pretty stretch for the Oakland right-hander. In his last four starts, he’s 0-3 with a 10.31 ERA, 14 strikeouts and nine walks in 18.1 innings. 

He’s also 26 years old, owns a 3.13 career ERA, eclipsed 200 innings each of the last two seasons and finished third in American League Cy Young Award balloting in 2015. He’s under team control through the 2019 season. And he opened 2016 by going 3-1 with a 2.73 ERA and 24 strikeouts in 26.1 innings. 

If you’re looking at recent results, there’s risk. If you focus on track record and body of work, it’s mostly reward.

Again, the pitching cupboards are practically bare. Among next winter’s free agents, second-tier talents such as the San Diego Padres‘ Andrew Cashner and New York Yankees‘ Ivan Nova could incite bidding wars.

And with the second wild-card slot keeping so many clubs on the fringe of the playoff picture, the list of true sellers could be exceedingly short come July.

Will the A’s be one of them? And if so, will they unload Gray?

At 19-22, Oakland sits four games out in the AL West entering play Thursday. A hot streak in the next few weeks might change the calculus, but right now, the A’s appear headed for a patented midseason sell-off.

There are other chips on the roster, including impending free-agent outfielder Josh Reddick. Gray, however, would be the big fish.

Here’s how ESPN.com’s Buster Olney assessed the situation in late April:

Whether the Athletics actually seriously consider trading Gray is something more likely to be determined in July than in April or May…

But history tells us general manager Billy Beane is always open to discussing a deal, especially when he perceives the value of a player to be nearing its apex, and Gray’s position in the market could be unique over the next 14 weeks. Considering the rest of the pitching landscape, Gray could be Mount Everest sitting in the middle of Death Valley.

That was before the Strasburg extension. Now, Beane and Oakland have even more leverage. They can toy with prospect-rich contenders and crank the price into the stratosphere.

The Boston Red Sox have a deep farm system and questions in the rotation. Same goes for the Los Angeles Dodgers. The St. Louis Cardinals could use another arm to support their potent offense, as could the Baltimore Orioles.

The Houston Astros‘ starting pitching is in disarray. The defending champion Kansas City Royals went out and got Johnny Cueto at the deadline last year and could go ace shopping again.

Really, it’d be easier to list the teams that wouldn’t at least put loafer to Goodyear if Gray is made available.

Yes, his early hiccups and crooked ERA dampen his value. A few strong starts, however, could reverse that in a hurry.

Gray expressed optimism after his most recent outing May 15, when he surrendered three home runs but lasted 5.2 innings in a 7-6 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays and made an in-game adjustment that helped him keep the ball down, per MLB.com’s Jane Lee.

“I’ve constantly been leaving the ball up, and you can tell,” Gray said, per Lee. “It was literally just a visual thing to get the ball back down, and you could tell there, when it’s back down, it’s got great life on it, and you start to see the swing and misses.”

Catcher Stephen Vogt concurred.

“He got his movement down in the zone back,” Vogt said, per Lee. “And I think for him he felt it and was excited when he came out of the game.”

Now, imagine if Gray builds on that and starts to look like this guy:

The Athletics, as Olney pointed out, don’t have to move him now. They could wait until the offseason, when teams will be scrapping over free-agent bones. Or they could hold him until next summer.

Beane, however, is always ready to pick up the phone. As the postseason races heat up, his line will start ringingand a lot of the calls will be about Gray.

The risk is real. But, particularly in these pitching-starved times, so is the reward.

 

All statistics current as of May 18 and courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


Mark Canha Injury: Updates on Athletics 1B’s Hip and Recovery

Oakland Athletics first baseman Mark Canha was diagnosed with a hip impingement Friday, three days after the team placed him on the disabled list because of hip and back issues, according to MLB.com’s Jane Lee.

Continue for updates.


Canha Could Miss Rest of Season

Friday, May 13

Lee reported that Canha could face season-ending surgery as a result of his injury, although there is no labral damage to his hip. Canha also suffered a mild back strain.

Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle added that Canha may not have many options aside from surgery:

The 27-year-old has struggled this season after breaking out in 2015 as a rookie. He is batting .122 with three home runs and six RBI in 16 games played.

Canha racked up 16 homers and 70 RBI last year while appearing in 124 games. 

Canha’s troubles are a microcosm of Oakland’s season. The team is 15-21 and was in the midst of a five-game losing streak before Friday’s 6-3 win over the Tampa Bay Rays.

Losing another bat for the long haul would further debilitate a flawed lineup. Outside of Josh Reddick, who is hitting .318 with four home runs and 17 RBI, Jed Lowrie is the only other player on the team batting over .300, and the Athletics have scored the ninth-fewest runs in MLB this season.

According to SB Nation’s Jeremy F. Koo, utility infielder Tyler Ladendorf is expected to help replace Canha.

Ladendorf has largely been used as a defensive substitute and a pinch runner during his brief MLB experiences. He has appeared in 18 career games with an average of .190, so the 28-year-old should not be expected to make up for the offense Canha can provide. 

Hopefully, Canha can recover with some injections and come back later this year. With the way the Athletics’ season seems to be heading, though, it would be wise not to force him onto the field if there is a chance he could worsen the injury.

 

All statistics are courtesy of ESPN.com.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


Jed Lowrie Injury: Updates on Athletics 2B’s Shin and Return

The Oakland Athletics placed second baseman Jed Lowrie on the 15-day disabled list Wednesday with a bruised right shin, per MLB.com’s Jane Lee.

Continue for updates.  


Athletics Taking Cautious Approach with Lowrie

Wednesday, May 11

A’s manager Bob Melvin explained how Lowrie’s trip to the DL is more of a proactive move to ensure he comes back fully healthy, per Lee: “It’s a severe contusion, and we didn’t feel like he was even going to be able to do baseball activity for seven or eight days, so it made sense to put him on the DL and make sure that when we get him back this isn’t something he’s fighting through and trying to manage while he’s playing.”

The injury occurred during Oakland’s 14-7 loss to the Boston Red Sox on Monday when Lowrie fouled the ball off his right shin. He left after the top of the seventh inning, with Billy Butler taking his place in the lineup and Chris Coghlan moving from third base to second.

The 32-year-old is on pace for a relatively strong season compared to his output the last two years. He’s batting .302 with 17 RBI, though his .345 slugging percentage leaves a lot to be desired.

Injuries have been Lowrie’s biggest problem since hitting the big leagues. Only twice in nine years has he played in more than 100 games.

Coghlan will likely remain at second for the next couple of weeks. He’s only hitting .165 in 107 plate appearances, but the Athletics don’t have many other choices, especially after announcing they moved Eric Sogard to the 60-day DL on Wednesday.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


Oakland A’s Ball Boy Snags Foul Ball with Unbelievable Catch

You see a foul ball. He sees a tryout opportunity.

For the Oakland A’s ball boy, opportunity came knocking in the third inning, when the Kansas City Royals‘ Christian Colon sliced a foul ball to the right side.

Springing easily from one leg, the young man casually plucked the ball out of the air, securing the errant hit before tossing it to a nearby fan—all while maintaining an understated confidence.

But the astounding grab didn’t just stun the front-row fans—it likely spared one of them from a whack in the head too.

Sometimes, rather than capes, heroes wear baseball gloves and helmets.

[MLB.com, h/t For The Win]

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


Felix Doubront Injury: Updates on Athletics P’s Recovery from Tommy John Surgery

Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Felix Doubront underwent Tommy John surgery on Tuesday.

Continue for updates.


Doubront’s Estimated Recovery Time Is 12-18 Months

Tuesday, April 12

Jane Lee of MLB.com reported Doubront’s surgery was successful, and the pitcher will begin his rehab on Friday. Doubront’s wife posted a photo of the pitcher on Twitter after the procedure: 

On Monday, the San Francisco Chronicle‘s Susan Slusser noted the timetable for Doubront’s eventual return, based on the span often associated with those undergoing Tommy John surgery for the first time. 

The 28-year-old southpaw began his career with the Boston Red Sox but has bounced around a lot since 2014 in brief stints with the Chicago Cubs, Toronto Blue Jays and now with the A’s.

Doubront has a unique sweeping delivery but hasn’t lived up to his potential in the big leagues, posting a career record of 31-26 with a 4.89 ERA to date. Now he has an uphill climb just to get back to the mound in light of Monday’s severe injury news.

Based on the rather surprising move the A’s made in the first place to keep Doubront in their rotation and option Jesse Hahn to Triple-A, it stands to reason Hahn will get the call-up to be Oakland’s new No. 5 starter.

Twenty-six-year-old Sonny Gray, who is a solid ace but is the only proven commodity in the Oakland rotation, headlines the A’s staff. Hahn, Kendall Graveman and Chris Bassitt have potential but are inexperienced.

Manager Bob Melvin shouldn’t have too much trouble adjusting to Doubront’s absence. It’s bound to create even more opportunities for Graveman, Bassitt and Hahn, who will hopefully round out a solid staff of the future using the 2016 campaign as a springboard, pivotal development year.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


Josh Reddick Shares Photo of A’s Flying on Plane with Giants Logo

The Oakland Athletics finished off a three-game sweep of the Seattle Mariners with a 2-1 win on the road Sunday night and prepared to hop on a plane to return home for a series against the Los Angeles Angels.

However, outfielder Josh Reddick wasn’t thrilled to fly on this particular aircraft:

It’s hard to blame him, considering the rival San Francisco Giants logo was plastered across the front of it. The Giants noticed Reddick’s post and decided to have some fun of their own on Twitter, but Reddick wasn’t willing to let it go without again voicing his disapproval:

As far as Twitter beefs go, this one is tame, but props to the Giants for jumping at an opportunity to troll the A’s. Of course, they better hope Reddick doesn’t get his revenge at the plate when the two teams meet for a four-game series from June 27 to June 30.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com


Copyright © 1996-2010 Kuzul. All rights reserved.
iDream theme by Templates Next | Powered by WordPress