SB Nation - Ryan Sweeney

Billy Beane Exclusive Athletics Nation Interview: Season End 2009 Part I

Tyler Bleszinski — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 14:00:46 -0000

The A's did make some strides forward in 2009 despite finishing with nearly an identical record the past three seasons. They have a good core of young players who appear primed to only get better, and despite the last week of stumbling baseball, the team was one of baseball's surprises in the second half.

With Brett Anderson, Trevor Cahill, Gio Gonzalez, Brett Wallace, Daric Barton, Rajai Davis and the rest of the team coming back with more experience, 2010 is looking up for us green and gold faithful. Billy Beane is exceptionally busy wrapping up the season and already starting to look ahead, so I appreciate him taking the time out to chat with me this past week. This is the first part of the interview. I will be running the second part first thing Tuesday morning. Enjoy.

Blez: When I talked to you in spring training it looked like you felt like this team could've gone either way. You were hesitant to say it was going to excel. You didn't seem to know what you were going to have.

Billy Beane: If you point to something right away, we had so many young and unproven starting pitchers in the rotation. You just didn't really know how they were going to react and it's hard to predict where you're going to go if you don't know where your pitching is. I think when we spoke it was right around the time when we were just becoming aware of some of the injury possibilities that ended up happening. The two most obvious were Duchscherer and Joey Devine. When you have so many rookie pitchers getting their first taste of the major leagues, it's very difficult to predict where you're going to go.

Blez: What would your assessment on 2009 be then? We're closing in on the final week of the season here.

Beane: It almost feels like two different seasons. I'm very pleased with the second half. I think we've played pretty well and we've surprised some people because we've played so well in particular after some of the bigger name players weren't here anymore. In particular the Holliday trade, and we've made other changes. But I think the most encouraging thing has been the way we've performed in the second half as well as the development of some of these players who I think are going to be here for a long time, which was first and foremost our goal this year. It's been the last couple of years that we've been trying to build that foundation of young talent that people can look forward to seeing for the next few years and creating a winning core for the foreseeable future. For the first time you really started to see that. You can look at some of the young players like Andrew Bailey who made the All Star team as a closer. Certainly Brett Anderson's performance and Trevor Cahill's improvement. Gio (Gonzalez) has made progress this year. Raj Davis, on the offensive side, has come on and shown himself to be a really good major league centerfielder. Ryan Sweeney as well as Kurt Suzuki's continued development and I know I'm going to leave people out. Cliff Pennington has performed very well in the second half. I think if you look around the diamond you'll see that these guys are going to be here for a while and they've proven over the second half that they can perform at the major league level. And as we continue to add guys from our minor league system, guys who are highly thought of, you can start to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Blez: You mentioned people being surprised that the team picked up and became a better team when you ultimately traded away or got rid of some of the "name" guys like Holliday, Giambi and Cabrera. Some of those guys we all expected more from at the beginning of the year. Is there a point where you might've said, "Maybe instead of bringing in some of those guys, maybe I should've just started with the youth at the beginning of the year and perhaps they would've matured and gotten to that point?"

Beane: That's a good question. Personally I always like the idea of if you're trying to rebuild to just got full bore and do it. But there's also a balance as well. In fairness you have to understand a guy like Cliff Pennington probably benefitted from going back and starting the year in Triple-A. What we've seen this year even relative to last year is that he was much more ready to come up this year and contribute than last year. I don't think you could say that that would've been the case in April. But it's a fair question and certainly one that you think about. I do think there is something to be said about having some of those older guys in here so as not to put the pressure on those younger guys to perform. When we made some of these trades to make the commitment to the younger guys it was a different point in the season and I think it allowed them to relax and realize they were going to be able to play every day. They would realize they could make a mistake and still be in there. I'm not sure that that would've been the case had you started that way from the outset. You might've had a different mindset from the younger players. Keep in mind that some of the holdover guys are young too. Those players are different ones than they were in April. Even though we see Kurt Suzuki as the established guy, he's a guy that continues to improve as is Ryan Sweeney. I think having some of those veteran guys gave them the opportunity to continue some of that development. When the baton was handed off to them, they were more prepared then they were in April.

Blez: You were talking about some of those veteran guys you traded away. And obviously it hurt the team quite a bit that Matt Holliday didn't come close to his career numbers with the A's. There was speculation on AN, everything from he knew he was a short timer here in Oakland so he didn't care, to league adjustment, to the adjustment to not being at Coors Field. Why do you think he didn't come close to what he's doing now in St. Louis?

Beane: The first thing I can put to rest is that he didn't care because that was absolutely not the case. Matt was an absolute professional here. If anything he was probably guilty of putting too much pressure on himself than people know publicly. Matt had impeccable work habits and was a pro. There was probably a bit of an adjustment period. But keep in mind even right before he went to St. Louis, he was really starting to get going here.

Blez: His numbers definitely were going up before he was dealt.

Beane: Yeah you could see he was starting to feel more like himself and get it going. The fact that he took off when he went there was not a surprise. Certainly the lineup to hit in around Pujols, I think it became a perfect environment for him. I think had Matt stayed here he would've returned to his career numbers and I think he was headed that way before he left. I can tell you this. He was an absolute professional when he was here and any assertion that he didn't care is not true.

Blez: How do you find enough at bats for someone like Landon Powell who seems like he should get more regular playing time? Do you go into the offseason thinking about how you get more time for him despite the fact that Kurt Suzuki is a fantastic catcher, does a great job with the pitchers and is great offensively? Do you start to look at DH or a different position?

Beane: There's been times where Bob (Geren) has tried to do that. Early in the year he played a few games at first base and it's not something everyone can do immediately on an everyday basis. The other thing too is there were times that Landon was slowed down because he had nagging hamstring issues at different points during the season. Even though there are times when Bob wanted to get his bat in the lineup, Landon's body wouldn't allow him to. One of the things we're going to focus on with Landon is making sure he's as physically prepared as possibly to handle even more than he has. But we see it as a good problem to have. To be able to put in a catcher behind Kurt who has the ability to hit the ball out of the ballpark but is also a good defensive catcher is a great luxury to have. But the fact is, and you alluded to this, Kurt Suzuki is one of the top catchers in the game. Not only that but he's very much become a leader on the team so he's going to get the bulk of time, yet we are aware of the amount of production Landon has given us in his brief amount of time. I think the goal is ultimately to get him more at bats, but for the time being, Kurt is going to get the bulk of them. Part of Landon's responsibility is to make sure he can handle more playing time than he has because that hasn't always been the case this year.

Blez: When someone like Rajai Davis has what looks like a "career year," how do you assess whether a reasonable projection for next year is more like what he's doing, or more like what he's done before? How does the team go about trying to figure this out?

Beane: In some sense you have to take it at face value. He was with Pittsburgh and then San Francisco and now us. He's never really been given a full blown opportunity to prove himself as an everyday player and now that he is putting up the numbers he is, the first question is, can he keep this up? But if you go back and look at what Raj did in the minor leagues, he was a good minor league hitter so it shouldn't come as a total shock. You're not talking about a guy who was a .220 hitter in the minor leagues. He was a good player when he played. Right now we just see it as a guy who has hit well in the minors who has finally been given the opportunity and is carrying it forward. We're going to enjoy it and go with it and try not to overthink. Anyone who has seen Raj with us over the last year and three quarters, when he's played, he's played well. He's one of the unique major league players who continues to just get better. We're going to take it at face value and he's done enough to show that he's a good enough player to play every day at center field. He's such a weapon on the base paths and he gives you such a unique dynamic. If you look at the stolen bases he's had without even having a full season, it isn't out of the question that next year you could see stealing 65-70 bases.

Blez: You reference stolen bases and obviously it's something that has changed quite a bit about the A's. I think you're in the top three in stolen bases and Raj is one of the league leaders in that number and he really makes the overall team number larger. Did you make a decision to be more aggressive on the base paths because of the lack of power? Did you think, we've got to get some offense some way?

Beane: I really think it's Bob (Geren) trying to take the personnel he has and trying to do the best he can with it. He's playing to the strengths. We don't have a lot of power and it's certainly something in order to be a more complete offensive team it's something we need to get. In a perfect world you have both guys who can steal bases and guys who can hit it out of the ballpark. As much as anything, it's Bob really trying to take advantage of what he has. Early in the year we were having trouble scoring runs and he wanted to create a mindset of being aggressive and when you have a guy like Raj doing it the way he's doing it, it has a tendency of rubbing off on everybody. There's a sense of confidence guys have when they get on the bases and they look to steal bases. They're looking for that steal sign. It also has a carryover effect with the rest of the base running. We've been by and large a very good baserunning team and it was just a matter of Bob looking at his personnel and he thought that this is what we're going to have to do to scrape some runs out. The second half we've actually swung the bats really well also and if you combine that with the aggressive baserunning, that's why you're seeing a lot higher run totals. The one thing it really has done is just given the guys a more aggressive mindset. They realize they're not going to win a whole lot of ballgames by getting into home run hitting contests. I give a lot of credit to Bob and his staff as they've really scratched and clawed their way through nine innings of these games.

Blez: Two questions. Do you believe in that the stolen bases must be a 75 percent success rate or higher or it's counterproductive and second of all, do you believe that someone like Rajai Davis actually puts additional pressure on the pitcher? The assumption is that the opposition pitcher somehow loses that concentration because they're so worried about the baserunner stealing.

Beane: There is no question that if a guy like Raj gets on base, everyone is aware that he is on base and there is going to be some adjustments to how quickly the pitcher might deliver the pitch and the catcher might call for a different pitch than he otherwise would. So the game calling might change as well. I'm sure you could quantify it. I'm not aware of exactly how to, but you can certainly tell from a game situation how teams react differently if you're willing to steal a base so I do think it does have an impact. The Angels have certainly done that for years and I think it's had an impact on how teams play them. It creates a tense situation for not just pitchers and catchers but defenders because they have to come up with a perfect play. As far as the rate, there is certainly a point where if you're constantly running and constantly getting thrown out it's definitely having an adverse impact and the demarcation line certainly seems to be around that 70 percent area. You also have to keep in mind that it doesn't take into account some of the things teams are doing to adjust to a team that runs a lot.

Blez: Do you think that the stolen base has become a bit of an unvalued commodity in baseball considering how few there are now, especially in the American League, compared to years past?

Beane: What I think I've noticed more than anything is that a lot of the teams that are running have sophisticated coaching staffs and sophisticated ways to apply the running game, and I might not be accurate and this is just my impression, but those teams seem to be successful more often. The percentage at which they are stealing bases just seems to be higher.

Blez: The Rays are a good example from last year.

Beane: The Red Sox, who historically haven't been a running team the last few years, specifically with (Jacoby) Ellsbury at the top of their lineup. Yet they also seem to steal at a very high rate too. I think everyone is just trying to take advantage by making a percentage play as well. That's why the success rate seems higher. It just seems very much a part of the strategy as opposed to just indiscriminate running for the sake of doing it.

Blez: We talked about Raj and his career year. This is similar to that. Does Daric Barton seem like he's finally arrived or do you need to see more than a month of red-hot hitting, especially given that he's done that before?

Beane: I knew I'd forget somebody earlier and Daric has, certainly this last month, been swinging the bat the way we knew he could and very similarly to the first month he came to the big leagues a couple of years ago. One thing to keep in mind with Daric is that he's still extremely young. He came up at an age when many kids are still in college. He needs to be given the benefit of time and we need to do that. Through no fault of his own, he's had a few nicks here and there that have kind of interrupted his development. The biggest thing is this guy has been a very, very good minor league hitter and at times has shown that he can be a very good major league hitter. With young players, you just can't expect they're always going to be Andrew Bailey where they step on a mound and they never look back. Daric's development path is not unlike a lot of successful major leaguers where he shows you something and maybe he goes through some difficult times. That just means we have to be patient and hope that the guy that you saw in the minor leagues ultimately becomes that guy at the major leagues. This last month Daric has made some huge strides and we're not just excited about next year, but the next five or six years. The other thing you can't forget about Daric is how good a defender he has become. This is a converted catcher in the minor leagues. He's become a very good defensive first baseman, not just with the glove, but when needed, he throws very well from that position too. We're excited and it's great to see. We've always had high hopes for Daric particularly after that first month at the big leagues. He's one of the reasons we've played so well.

Blez: Staying with the first baseman theme, you have Barton, Doolittle and Carter as potential first basemen, but Doolittle and Carter also have some OF experience. What does the first base depth chart look like right now, and which of the players might be more likely to end up elsewhere on the field?

Beane: It's a question we may face and face very soon. We played Chris Carter a little in the outfield in Double-A. He's a good athlete. In a perfect world, all those guys become very good major league hitters and you have to find a spot for them. It potentially is something we're going to face. We're going to have to make a decision and it will be made on production first and foremost. Secondly, as you mentioned, it might be based on somebody's ability to play another position. In Chris' case we started to play him some in the outfield and I've even talked to his agent as he's going to play winter ball in Mexico and we've talked about getting him out there as much as possible because we think he's a good enough athlete to do it. We were doing the same with Doolittle in Triple A this year before he had the knee issue. It is definitely something as we go into the offseason and spring training we're going to have to prepare for.

Blez: Would the power potential for the position have a big deciding difference in who you play at first base? It's obviously still a concern with Daric because he hasn't put up much in terms of power numbers, but Carter has and Doolittle has some pop as well. Or do you maybe weigh the defense first?

Beane: Being a regular major league baseball player, the player brings a lot of elements: it's his baserunning, it's his fielding, it's his power, it's his ability to hit for average and it's when you add those things together usually one player is going to be better than the other even if he's deficient in one area because he may do one thing very well. It's not something we have to answer yet and it's definitely getting closer. We think all these guys are major league players, it's just about finding a spot for them.

Blez: What will most determine the timeline for when Chris Carter is called up to Oakland? Could he win a job out of spring training if he looks ready?

Beane: It's probably a little early to answer that. The only thing I'll say is that we wanted to give Chris some time at Triple-A and give him some confidence going into next year thinking he's seen the highest level of the minors and he could perform there. I think he did a great job in the few weeks he was there. It's just too early to answer that. I don't like creating definites at this point when you don't need to. A player usually decides when he's ready for the major leagues by performing at the highest level and at that point there's nowhere for him to go but up. Some of these guys are getting close to that.

Blez: Based on what you have seen so far, what's the current thinking on Brett Wallace's chances of being a major league every day third baseman?

Beane: We're going to leave Brett over there. He's played one full season, a total of a season and a half of professional baseball as he's moved very, very quickly because of his bat. We're going to give him the benefit of some time over there defensively and particularly given the long-term need we're going to have at that position, it would behoove us to give him every opportunity to give him the development time defensively to see if he can play the position because it would definitely be a great fit if he can play third base in the big leagues based on the personnel we have here and have coming up. It would be absolutely perfect. Especially given that Chavy (Eric Chavez) is coming into the last year of his contract, the chance that Brett with some further refining would be a very nice fit for us there long term. I guess the question is, is it still a work in progress? And we're going to give him every opportunity to prove he can play that position.

Blez: What do you do about third base, at least short term? I'm not even sure where Eric Chavez stands at this point or if he's a part of the conversation. I've read reports that he could do permanent damage to himself if he plays again. Where does Eric stand right now?

Beane: From a rehab standpoint, he's doing very well. The good thing about him having surgery when he did is that when we get into the offseason, he should have as normal an offseason as any other player. He should be able to start resuming normal baseball activities when everyone else starts. The time that he's had has been good. I think we have to be realistic including Eric because he's faced a number of surgeries and he's been more disappointed than anyone that he hasn't been able to come back completely. We have to be realistic on him coming back and have some short-term preparation as it applies to that position going into next year. I also think that Eric, given his talent level, deserves the respect and the opportunity to get healthy and given the opportunity to get back to doing what he does best. In short, we're going to try to prepare for both sides of the equation.

Blez: Where does Travis Buck stand with the team now as he seems to be caught in an almost purgatory state now between Triple-A and being up with the team but not really seeing much regular playing time? Is it the type of thing where he needs to get in there for a while to get his confidence back as he's seemed to have hit well in Triple-A?

Beane: The one thing about major league baseball is that it's pretty Darwinian. If you hit, you're going to play. Raj is probably the best example of that. When Raj got a chance to play he hit. Since he's been playing, he's looked around saying I'm not going to let anyone else play because I know I have to perform here in order to keep myself in the lineup. Most recently, Ryan Sweeney has done the same thing. With all players, not just Travis, it's ultimately going to be based on performance. Travis has had a couple of years in a row, unfortunately, where he's had concussions that haven't enabled him to even play regularly at Triple A. He's missed some time there because of these injuries. We still think very highly of Travis for the same reasons that most people did when he first came up. We think he's got the talent to be a good major league player. At this point it's when he's given the chance he has to take advantage of it and ultimately hopefully avoiding some of those injuries he's had the last couple of years. But we still think very highly of him and one of the best things about Travis is that when he first came up one of the areas we wanted him to work on was his defense and that was addressed to him and he did. He's improved significantly in the outfield and it was an area of weakness when he first came up. Ultimately when he gets to this level it will be based on performance.

Coming tomorrow: Beane delves into the pitching, the status of the injured A's pitchers and how he sees 2010 shaping up.

Tomko Sails to a Century as A's Use Doubles Onslaught to Hammer Rangers, 9-0

emperor nobody — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 04:12:10 -0000

Brett Tomko practices secret cross-sports ritual allowing baseballs to appear the size of golf balls when he throws them.

The A's cracked 7 doubles (not one, not two, but THREE from Ryan "Swoubles" Sweeney off 3 different pitchers) to further damage the Rangers' ever-slimming postseason chances, with the occasion sweetened yet more by the 100th career W for Brett Tomko, who tossed a complete-game ~~fore~~ five-hitter for his 2nd career shutout.

This game, which through five innings went by faster than Kanye West's career, really turned on the first of the Ryan Sweeney two-baggers, where the relay had a chance to nail Adam Kennedy at the plate but Elvis Andrus, no doubt distracted by the strains of Are You Lonesome Tonight wafting through his head as he pictures Andrew Bailey hoisting the AL Rookie of the Year trophy, clammed it and AK scored easily, extending the inning and the Feldman pitch count for the mayhem that followed in the 7th. There the Athletics batted around and plated four: the dagger being the second double from Sweeney, this time off Jason Grilli, who lasted a third of an inning that must have seemed like half his life.

Ryan Sweeney's big push for an NBA contract continues unabated with a triple-double to burn Texas

Like I alluded to in the pre-game, Scott is a lot closer to Marty or even Morton Feldman down there in the bandbox (he is 12-1 on the road), and tonight the Athletics made him into Corey Feldman the 3rd time through the order, turning the Rangers into Lost Boys on a night they really needed to prevail to keep their dwindling October hopes alive. I have always thought that one everything's-big-in-Texas reason the Rangers haven't ever won anything since they built that place is the stadium, the most hitter-friendly park in MLB and kind of a hopeless cause in the summer, when the ball flies like an eagle and causes the Rangers brass to lament their inability to find a soluuuution to their pitching woes for yet another season.

Come to think of it, the only guy that I remember ever doing well in the Arlington National Cemetery for Pitchers was Barry Zito, who used to just flog the Rangers whenever we'd play them in TX... but then, we all know what happened to him *strum*

Sloppy Early Defense And Bad Baserunning Cost A's Extra Inning Game

baseballgirl — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 04:41:15 -0000

More photos » by Jeff Chiu - AP

Not my day.

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On a day when AN played like the A's did (AN is back up now; after some SB Nation tweaking), it was a small wonder that a loss was the ultimate outcome. This was not the A's best game of the year, and I understand that it's hard to play in September for a club that is out of the race, but we deserve better than what the team gave us today. Yes, Mr. Hairston, I'm talking to you.

Truly, it was amazing that the A's got to play 13 with the way the game started out; the A's took the early 1-0 lead on a ground ball by Hairston, but Cahill allowed the tying run on his own throwing error in the bottom of the first inning. He gave up two more on a ground-rule double and another error in the second (this time by Kennedy). Cahill, who would be the first of 8 pitchers on the night, lasted only three innings, allowing the three runs.

I actually don't know what was more astonishing; the fact that the bullpen held the White Sox scoreless for nine more innings or that the A's were able to muster up only the tying run, wasting countless baserunners and scoring opportunities. Gray, Blevins, Ziegler, Wuertz, Breslow and Kirby all did their job beautifully tonight. It's a shame their efforts were wasted, and it's also a shame that thirteen innings came and went, and we never saw our best reliever. I understand keeping him for a save, but at some point, you have to end the game knowing you gave it your all. Right, Mr. Hairston?

Ryan Sweeney doubled in the A's second run in the third, and that's all they would get until an eighth-inning, two-out Hairston double (after Rajai was picked off), and a Suzuki single to send the game to extra innings, tied at three.

The A's stole 5 bases during the course of the game (bringing their season total to an eye-popping 113), but were caught stealing 3 times in the late innings (if you believe that Mark Ellis was actually out in the eleventh).

The A's best chance to win the game came in the 10th inning; a single from Rajai Davis (Rajai Watch after a 3-6 night = .307) and a single from Ryan Sweeney put the go-ahead run at third with one out. But Scott Hairston popped out for the second out, and Suzuki flied out to end the inning.

That wasn't the lowlight of Hairston's night. In the thirteenth, Hairston popped up a ball to center field, and didn't really run it out. At all. The ball was dropped by Rios, and he was barely to first base. Ironically, he didn't really make up for it on the next play; running or not, he might want to pay attention to the high popup to the first baseman that was caught while Hairston slid into second base. Not a great showing. So ugly, in fact, that Hairston was pulled for Patterson in the very next inning.

"Cutting off your nose to spite your face" is certainly apt here; after a one-out single brought up everyone's favorite A.J.; A.J. doubled over Rajai's head...and there was no backup.

Where was Patterson?

I have to quote AN here; 'cause it's the only time I laughed all game:

worldblee: What is Patterson doing?
emperor nobody: I think he may have been texting someone and failed to back up the play, hmmmm.
Flashfire: Check his Twitter account - "Hey guys I’m in the…oh s***."

Not one you want to remember, especially on a flight. A's fly to Minnesota; play Friday. I'll be here; please keep me company!

Cahill Sparkles in Shutout Win Over Angels

baseballgirl — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 07:03:38 -0000

More photos » by Chris Carlson - AP

I rock.

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I'm glad I went to the game tonight. Not only did I see an A's win, but I saw Trevor Cahill be the very best he can be; he gave the 43,000+ in attendance more than a glimpse of the future pitcher many predicted that he'd be. Facing an Angels lineup that checked in tonight from 1-8 at .307, .303, .317, .303, .302, .299, .295, and .310--almost unbelievable numbers in succession--Cahill shut them down like they were...well...the A's. Cahill finished his night at 97 pitches, 7 IP, 2 H, 2 BB, 2 K, and zero runs. Considering his opponent, that's having a night.

It all started so innocently. Cahill had two walks in his seven innings, and they came on the first and second batters of his night. But he turned things around in a hurry with a strikeout, a pickoff and a ground out to end the inning, and he put it in cruise control the rest of the game. Cahill allowed a two-out single to Vlad in the fourth, and a leadoff double (that didn't score) in the sixth.

Had his performance been any less impressive, Ervin Santana would have had a night of his own. At the very least, he probably wished Ryan Sweeney had stayed home. Sweeney put in a bid for the cycle tonight with a single, triple and a homerun, and was responsible for the A's two runs; enough to win the game. Sweeney homered in the second to give the A's the early 1-0 lead, and he tripled and scored on a Barton single in the sixth. Wuertz (eighth) and Bailey (ninth) wouldn't need the insurance run. Bailey allowed a perfectly-timed bunt single to Torii (Bailey fielded the ball, but did not throw, and something about this motion sent the trainer out), but got Vlad out to end the game, and to give the A's a well-earned win.

Worth noting was a web gem that can only be described as awesome; as it sent A's and Angels' fans alike to their feet. Suzuki hit a ball up the middle that the second baseman Izturis fielded from a prone position and flipped to the shortstop Morales, who threw to first for the out. It was incredible in person.

But the defensive momentum and the rally monkey were not enough to get the Angels off the deck in this one, as the A's rookie pitcher just dominated the likely playoff-bound Angels in every way possible. From the third batter of the game on, Cahill was in control, and if this is a preview of 2010, I like what I see.

Tomorrow's game will be slightly earlier at 7:05; will feature Tomko vs. Bell, and will be hosted by the talented 67marquez. See you then!

Could it be...? No, it can't be... OMG it really is! It's a Minor League Update!!!

grover — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 13:00:25 -0000

Hello again.

Work called me away for a while and it’s been tough getting back into the groove of things. For those who don’t know, I’m a wildland fire fighter and August got a little busy for those in my career field. So when I disappear again for a couple weeks just remember… I envy your access to in-door plumbing.

Anyways, I want to focus this week’s minor league update on the 40 man roster and the options that are going to have to be decided upon in the coming months. Why do this now instead of waiting until September 1st? The topic tickles my fancy, that’s why. As I seem to have (once again) misplaced my Cap o’ Omnipotence I’m forced to resort to basic logic and common sense reckoning to try and deduce the future roster.

That’s right… none of what I’m about to tell you is guaranteed!

The way I see it, there are 28-29 spots on the future 40 man roster all but guaranteed. On the pitching side, Brett Anderson, Andrew Bailey, Jerry Blevins, Dallas Braden, Craig Breslow, Trevor Cahill, Joey Devine, Gio Gonzalez, Jeff Gray, Jay Marshall, Vin Mazzaro, Clayton Mortensen, Josh Outman, Henry Rodriguez, Michael Wuertz and Brad Ziegler all seem certain to have jobs in the Oakland organization next year. That’s 16 pitchers of varying combinations of success/cheapness/options that aren’t going to be released just to make room on the roster. (There’s a pretty good chance that Outman will open next season on the 60-day DL, opening up an additional spot on the 40 man.) Santiago Casilla and Edgar Gonzalez are both arbitration eligible next season but neither pitched so well that the A’s are going to be eager to give them big pay raises, which could mean either or both players could end up as trade fodder or possibly even released. Dana Eveland is still on the 40 man roster as well, but his poor performance led to a demotion that will keep him from seeing any arby money next season. Unfortunately, Mr. Eveland’s suckitude forced the A’s to use his last option this season; meaning he can’t be stashed on Sacramento’s roster next season without first passing through waivers. Chances are Eveland isn’t going to be one of the 5 best SP candidates for the A’s come Opening Day 2010 and as a lefty with a pulse he’d probably get snapped up by some other team desperate for pitching. Therefore, I think this is good-bye to Mr. Eveland.

As it just so happens, it looks as if the A’s are going to need maybe 3 openings on the 40 man roster just to protect some arms that should attract a lot of interest in the Rule 5 draft. Pedro Figueroa hasn’t advanced past High-A ball but he’s a lefty with a low-90’s fastball. Brad Kilby is another lefty who’s put up back-to-back quality campaigns in Sacramento’s bullpen. Fautino De Los Santos is still trying to bounce back from 2008 TJ surgery but he wouldn’t last long if the A’s made him available for the Rule 5 draft. Jason Ray is in the same boat but I don’t think there’s much risk of someone grabbing him and keeping him on a 25 man roster all season.

There’s also a chance the A’s might be interested in bringing back Brett Tomko or Justin Duchscherer next season. Dan Giese should be fully recovered in time for next season; maybe the A’s are still interested in him as a swing man type. Plus, guys like Sam Demel and James Simmons could be knocking on the door next season and they’d need a spot on the 40 man to do so. Like I said, I could see 3-4 spots going to the guys I just listed and we haven’t even looked outside the organization to find help.

The hitting side of things is even more in flux.

Kurt Suzuki, Landon Powell, Eric Chavez (who?) Mark Ellis, Daric Barton, Travis Buck, Aaron Cunningham, Rajai Davis, Scott Hairston, Ryan Sweeney, Jack Cust, Tommy Everidge, Cliff Pennington and Gregorio Petit have spots on the 40 man roster. (Although I’m not sure if Petit has another minor league option available to him in 2010… if someone has a conclusive answer I’d appreciate hearing it.) C Anthony Recker is the most prominent bat in the A’s system that would be eligible for the Rule 5 draft this winter and I’m not sure if the A’s would consider his departure to be a great loss. So any Recker fans out there can protect him on their 40 man lists, but I’m thinking the A’s leave him off the protected roster. Chris Denorfia and Eric Patterson are both out of options, so if they aren’t in Oakland come Opening Day there’s a good chance they’ll be playing for another organization in 2010. I can maybe see Patterson as a back-up at 2B and in the outfield but I’ve got to squint and angle my head to one side to see it. I think it’s more likely that the A’s will try to bring back Adam Kennedy to serve as a deluxe back-up option/veteran mentor type.

The real twist comes when you consider the minor league bats that the A’s have in AA or higher that aren’t yet on the 40 man roster. Sean Doolittle, Adrian Cardenas, Josh Donaldson, Corey Brown, Chris Carter and Brett Wallace highlight the next wave of Oakland offense… which could be much more refreshing than the current ripple in the still waters we’ve experienced as of late. Yet again we haven’t looked outside the current organization to determine if maybe there’s another bat to be had.

So bring back Kennedy, add the newbies and you’re looking at 38-39 players on the 40 man roster before the Rule 5 draft. Does anyone see any glaring omissions?

Until the next time...

Terrible Roster Management Catches Up To A's In 3-2 Loss

Nico — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 05:11:02 -0000

More photos » by Kevin Rivoli - AP

Defensive replacement? Pinch runner?

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The A's bench tonight was Bobby Crosby (bad calf), Scott Hairston (bad quad), and Nomar Garciaparra (bad body). That's it. Two guys who can't run or play the field due to injury, and one who can't run or play the field due to the fact that he retired two years ago but nobody can find the paperwork.

Now it didn't help matters that in the top of the 1st inning, with a runner at 3rd and one out, Mark Teixeira hit a one-hopper to third and got an RBI thanks only to the worst Kennedy decision since Chappaquiddick. Yet a 6th inning Cust HR and 7th inning "tremendous AB" RBI single by Mark Ellis would get the A's to within 3-2 in the 7th, and that's when a 3-man bench called "Cripples Row" caught up to the A's.

Two on, two out in the 7th, Phil Coke in the game to face Ryan Sweeney, and the A's couldn't pinch-hit because they didn't have a single player available to play the OF. Sweeney bounced weakly to 2nd.

Two on, nobody out in the 8th, and Nomar pinch-ran for Landon Powell. That's right, Nomar Garciaparra, pinch runner. After Everidge bounced into a 5-3 DP, the A's couldn't pinch-hit for Cliff Pennington because they didn't have a player available to play SS. Pennington popped out to LF.

That's right: The A's played a game in which they literally only had defensive replacements possible at 1B and C (and that meant giving up the DH, which the A's ended up doing), in which they couldn't pinch-hit for anyone, and in which they had to put a gimpy player with chronically bad hamstrings in as a pinch runner because he was the most mobile of the three players on the bench.

I'm thinking maybe Cunningham or Buck or Patterson might have been ever so slightly useful tonight, but apparently Bobby Crosby is far too valuable to lose for 15 days and Nomar needs a roster spot because perfect pinch runners are hard to find.

I've volunteered at assisted living centers where there was more mobility than you could find on the A's bench tonight.

Nice job by Brett Anderson tonight (7 IP, 3 ER, 1 BB, 6 K) and I hate the Yankees. That's all.

4 HRs + 4 SBs = Series Win For A's

Nico — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 21:22:16 -0000

Speed and power! Who knew the A's had both? (Who knew they had either?) Rajai Davis (2 SBs) and Adam Kennedy provided speed, Bobby Crosby (2 HRs) and Kurt Suzuki provided power, and Ryan Sweeney provided a little of both, with a 3-run HR to start the scoring in the top of the 2nd to go with a steal of second later.

Though he was charged with 3 ER in 6+ IP, Brett Anderson pitched far better than that, blanking the Royals on 3 hits through 6 innings, with 1 BB and 5 Ks. He allowed three singles to start the 7th, but the pivotal one was a chopper off the glove of the ~~leaping~~ ~~tiptoeing~~ earthquake safe Tommy Everidge. Anderson was, once again, outstanding.

What a joy to watch the A's trot, trot, run, run, run, run, trot, and trot, while getting an excellent start and solid bullpen work (Wuertz, Ziegler, and Bailey each with a scoreless inning) from their pitchers. Rajai Davis has energized this team, Tommy Everidge -- whose streak of reaching base in every game ended despite two line drives -- has made the middle of the lineup more stressful for opposing pitchers, and Kurt Suzuki continues to fly under the radar as an All-Star the eyes of all but Joe Maddon.

Did you know that they play baseball in Baltimore? Who knew? The A's will go there for the first time all year tomorrow night. (Extends middle finger): This, Bud's, for you. The A's shouldn't make as many trips to Dodger Stadium as they make to Camden Yard. Sorry, I'm in my italicky place today. We won two series in a row!!!

A’s use Five-Run Fourth to Flush Royals, Hold on for 9-4 Win

67MARQUEZ — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 03:19:25 -0000

More photos » by ED ZURGA - AP

4 months ago: Oakland Athletics' Cliff Pennington drives the ball into right for a two-run double in the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals Friday, Aug. 7, 2009, in Kansas City, Mo. Tommy Everidge and Mark Ellis scored on the double. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)

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Cliff Pennington made up for an early blunder with a pair of key doubles to lead the A's to a 9-4 victory over the league-worst Kansas City Royals.

After the A's took an early lead on a Tommy Everidge single, Pennington helped to give it back. With two Royals on base in the bottom of the second, the recently-promoted shortstop bobbled a double-play grounder just enough to prolong the inning (though he was not charged with an error). One batter later the game was squared at one on a base hit by Yuniesky Betancourt to score Mark Teahen.

Pennington partially repaid his debt with a double leading off the third, eventually scoring on a short sacrifice fly by Rajai Davis, to give the A's a 2-1 lead.

Kurt Suzuki preserved the slim advantage with some gorgeous glove work in the Royals' next turn at bat. Teahen's two-out single with two men on threatened to tie the game, but Suzuki reached high and wide to field Ryan Sweeney's throw to the plate, and tagged a surprised Billy Butler as he tried to score to end the inning.

The A's broke it open in the fourth. Brian Bannister bounced a wild pitch to bring in Jack Cust who had singled to start the frame, went to second on a passed ball, and took third on a groundball out by Suzuki. Everidge walked, and Mark Ellis followed a Sweeney out with a single.

Then Pennington took over.

His second two-bagger of the night went to nearly the same spot as the first, over the head of Teahen in right, as Everidge and Ellis scored easily. Kennedy walked, and Davis legged out an infield knock to load the bases, bringing up Scott Hairston, whose seeing-eye single plated Pennington and AK to make it 7-1.

Staked to a large lead, starter Vin Mazzaro hardly shut ‘em down, allowing an RBI-triple to David DeJesus, his league-leading seventh three-base hit of the season.

Kansas City crept closer with a run in the latter half of the fifth, but Everidge dove to spear a would-be hit to keep the score at 7-3, ending Mazarro's night. The young right-hander flirted with danger throughout the evening, but allowed only three of the dozen runners that reached base against him (four walks, eight hits) to score. Overall, there were 25 hits in the contest, eleven by the A's. The Royals left twelve men on base.

So enamored was Pennington with second base that he singled in the sixth, stole that sweet bag, and snuggled with it while Kennedy and Davis struck out.

Santiago Casilla took over for Mazzaro and promptly surrendered back-to-back two baggers, bringing the Royals to within 7-4.

They would draw no closer.

Ryan Sweeney's no-doubt-about-it homerun in the eighth and Hairston's RBI double in the ninth concluded the scoring while Craig Bleslow, Michael Wuertz, and Jeff Gray teamed to keep the Royals from making a game of it.

A-Hill Beats Cahill In A Game Ending With a Sweeney Fahill

Nico — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 04:37:16 -0000

More photos » by Ben Margot - AP

Rickey Henderson holds up Ryan Sweeney in the 9th inning.

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All the action tonight happened in bunches. In the top of the 2nd, the Jays used five hits, including a Lyle Overbay HR, to put up a 3-spot on Trevor Cahill. That made 22 HRs off the sinkerballer who looks more and more each day like he could have used a chance to be AAAhill for a while.

The interesting thing about the post-Holliday A's is that when they get down, I actually feel hope that they can come back. Which is remarkable considering that their second best HR threat right now is arguably Tommy Everidge, who has nary a career HR. Indeed, the A's roared back immediately tonight, ending a 19 inning scoreless streak by Brett Cecil with 4 runs, capped by Adam Kennedy's bases clearing double.

But not content to give up just one 3-spot tonight, Cahill did it again in the 4th, serving up HR #23 -- a three-run bomb to Aaron Hill that gave the Jays a 6-4 lead. And so the score stood until the bottom of the 9th...

With one out, Cust singled off closer Scott Downs' glove and Downs hurt himself chasing after the ball. However, Downs tried to stay in and served up a double to Everidge, putting the tying runs in scoring position with Crosby, Ellis, and Pennington the next three scheduled hitters. Righty Jason Frasor took over for the Jays, and Bob Geren countered by first pinch-hitting with Nomar Garciaparra. Interesting. Nomar bounced out, both runners advancing, 6-5, tying run at 3B with two out. Geren then went to left-handed hitting Ryan Sweeney. I'm assuming that had Pennington come up, he would have hit for himself; either that or we might have seen the debut of Landon Powell, or Jack Cust, or perhaps Rickey Henderson, at SS.

Anyway, it didn't matter because Ryan Sweeney had one of the most pathetic at-bats in the history of major league baseball. After taking a strike on the inside corner, Sweeney got a very hittable pitch over the plate. He took that one too. Then Frasor threw another strike and Sweeney took that one too, but luckily for him it was called a ball. Then Frasor threw another very hittable strike and Sweeney took that one too. Tying run at 3B and Sweeney was what, intent on driving home the run with a walk on ball one or ball two? Possibly the worst "deer in the headlights" at bat of the season, and that's saying something on a team that puts Jack Cust out there on a daily basis.

I think the order of ceilings for MAC goes Anderson, Cahill, Mazzaro, but I continue to believe that the order in which they will turn the corner and become good major league pitchers goes Anderson, Mazzaro, Cahill. Trevor is every bit a "work in progress," and I'm not sure the current direction is "forward." He has a lot of work to do -- which is why it's great to be 21.

Davis and Sweeney Lead A's to 8-5 Victory.

baseballgirl — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 05:19:42 -0000

More photos » by Ben Margot - AP

Oakland Athletics center fielder Rajai Davis plays the role of Clark Kent on offense and defense as the A's prevail over their neighbors from the North.

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The A's offense didn't miss a beat with the absence of Orlando Cabrera, as Rajai Davis, playing the part of a great #2 hitter, and Ryan Sweeney's 3 RBI's led the A's to a win over the Toronto Blue Jays tonight, as Dallas Braden rebounded from 2 rough starts in his 3 three outings to notch his 8th win.

The A's scored two in the first on a two-run single by Ryan Sweeney which came after Davis walked and Suzuki reached on an two-base error by Alex Rios, doing his best Jack Cust impersonation.

They scored again in the second on an RBI single by Davis and again in the third on a single by Eric Patterson.

Their big inning was the fourth when they opened up the lead with four more runs on another RBI single for Davis, a bases-loaded walk, a groundout by Everidge and another Jays error (Cowboy Up!).

Meanwhile, Braden breezed through the first six innings allowing six hits and only two runs; getting a lot of fly balls, but most of them were outs. The 7th, however, got a little skecthy for Braden. After retiring the first 2 hitters, he hit Joe Inglett and that was followed by an Aaron Hill double and a prodigious homer to CF by Adam Lind.

The pen took over after the Lind bomb with Springer finishing the 7th and Ziegler throwing a scoreless 8th aided by Pennington showing us some range with a Web Gem on a chopper up the middle. Bailey closed the door with a perfect 9th to lock down his 14th save and sent everyone home happy.

We head into Rickey Henderson Weekend as winners of 3 of 4 against the powerful AL East. Tomorrow gives us a battle of two highly-touted young hurlers with Trevor Cahill facing Brett Cecil. See ya tomorrow with a game time of 6:05.