MLB Spring Training: Oakland Athletics Full Preview
2015 Oakland Athletics In-Review:
68-94, 5th in the AL West, last in the AL
Top three hitters: RF Josh Reddick (.272, .333 OBP, 20 HR ), C Stephen Vogt (.261, .341, 18 HR), CF Billy Burns (.294, .334, 5 HR)
Top three pitchers: SP Scott Kazmir (2.38 ERA, traded to Astros), SP Sonny Gray (2.73 ERA), SP Jesse Hahn (3.35 ERA)
Key Offseason Additions: Khris Davis, Ryan Madson, Brett Lawrie, Jed Lowrie, Yonder Alonso, Rich Hill, John Axford, Liam Hendricks, Henderson Alvarez
Key Offseason Losses: Brett Lawrie, Jesse Chavez, Fernando Abad, Drew Pomeranz, Jacob Nottingham (Prospect)
The Rotation:
- Sonny Gray
- Jesse Hahn
- Rich Hill
- Kendall Graveman
- Chris Bassitt
The Oakland rotation has taken a couple of blows over the past few months with the losses of Jon Lester, Scott Kazmir, Jeff Samardzija and Jesse Chavez. However, even with these pitchers gone, the Oakland Athletics’ general manager Billy Beane has still been able to get some solid starting pitching from surprising sources. Granted, pitchers are no doubt helped by the big confines of Oakland Coliseum too. The club is led by an outstanding right-hander in Sonny Gray. Since his major league debut in 2013, he has not finished a season with an ERA over than 3.08 and has proven himself to be an ace-type pitcher.
Behind Gray, there is a bunch of relatively unknown pitchers. Jesse Hahn made 16 starts last season and finished with a 3.35 ERA. Guys like Chris Bassitt and Kendall Graveman held their own in the starts that they had, even though it is tough to say that either of those pitchers are any more than back of the rotation guys.
The one real interesting move in the rotation for the A’s this winter was signing journeyman lefty Rich Hill to a one year, $6 million deal. Granted, the A’s don’t have the biggest free agent budget, but $6 million seemed like a lot for a pitcher that just had four good starts with the Red Sox and really has no track record of success in this league. People should expect Hill to come back to earth in 2016.
Behind Sonny Gray there is some talent, just not enough talent to make this rotation real dangerous for opposing teams.
The Lineup:
- CF Billy Burns
- 2B Jed Lowrie
- RF Josh Roddick
- DH Billy Butler
- C Stephen Vogt
- LF Khris Davis
- 3B Danny Valencia
- 1B Yonder Alonso
- SS Marcus Semien
The Oakland lineup, like it’s starting rotation, has some nice pieces, but the lack of depth does not make for anything more than an average batting order in MLB. The team’s best hitters are outfielder Josh Reddick and backstop Stephen Vogt. Vogt had a breakout year in 2015, appearing in his first ever All-Star Game after a monster first half of the season. Reddick has been a consistent power threat since he joined the A’s in 2012.
Danny Valencia and Billy Burns were both surprises for the club as well. After Valencia was traded to Oakland midseason he hit an impressive .284 with 11 home runs. As a rookie, Burns provided speed at the top of the order and should continue to be a good table-setter next season.
Oakland also acquired Khris Davis, Yonder Alonso and Jed Lowrie this offseason. While Alonso and Lowrie were disappointing for their respective clubs in 2015, the A’s hope that they can find their form in 2016. On the other hand, Khris Davis had somewhat of a breakout season, hitting 27 home runs. He should definitely add some increased power to a lineup needing a bump in home run production, even though his power numbers should drop playing in Oakland Coliseum.
Overall, Oakland shouldn’t be inept at scoring runs because there is talent on this team, but they shouldn’t be anything more than an average offense throughout next season.
The Bullpen:
The Athletics have drastically changed their bullpen by adding multiple quality relief options this offseason. The team will still enter the year with lefty Sean Doolittle being in the closing role. Doolittle has been spectacular for the A’s the past couple of seasons, but is coming off of an injury last year. If he is healthy, he should be a quality closer for the club.
The A’s added three good relievers in Ryan Madson, John Axford and Liam Hendricks. Madson had a nice bounce-back year for the Kansas City Royals, stabilizing the back end of their bullpen after Greg Holland went down with an injury. Three years, $22 million was a steep price to pay, but he should still be solid. Axford has proven to be a solid pitcher over his career, and he should benefit from moving from Colorado to Oakland. He should be in for a nice season. A’s fans should be excited about Liam Hendricks as he is a young and dynamic back of the bullpen option. He could surprise again after he broke out with the Toronto Blue Jays last season.
Guys like Mark Rzepczynski, Fernando Rodriguez and Henderson Alvarez are also good options for any team trying to fill out the rest of their bullpen. Oakland seems to be trying to ride its pen to success in 2016 and it should be one of the best pens in MLB.
2016 Outlook
The Oakland Athletics had a disappointing season in 2015 and did a lot to shake up the roster this offseason. But even with the talent they added this offseason, people shouldn’t expect this team to go from worst to first mostly due to their lack of depth in both their batting order and starting rotation. They have really good hitters in Reddick and Vogt, and one of the top pitchers in the league in Sonny Gray. However, those players won’t be enough for the team to truly contend in 2016.
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What do you think about the A’s chances in 2016? Let us know in the comment section below.