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Oakland Athletics Bolster Bullpen, Sign Santiago Casilla

By Greg Goldstein

Jul 9, 2016; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants relief pitcher Santiago Casilla (46) points to catcher Buster Posey (not pictured) after the last out of the game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at AT&T Park. The Giants won 4-2. Mandatory Credit: Neville E. Guard-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 9, 2016; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants relief pitcher Santiago Casilla (46) points to catcher Buster Posey (not pictured) after the last out of the game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at AT&T Park. The Giants won 4-2. Mandatory Credit: Neville E. Guard-USA TODAY Sports /
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There is one less proven relief arm on the market. Longtime San Francisco Giants pitcher, Santiago Casilla, has stayed close to the bay and agreed to a two-year deal with the Oakland Athletics.

Bolstering the bullpen was a popular theme earlier in the offseason, however the market has since simmered down some. But with Santiago Casilla agreeing yesterday on a two-year, $11 million contract with the Oakland Athletics, more moves regarding the bullpen may soon follow.

Certainly a tier after the likes of Kenley Jansen, Aroldis Chapman and Mark Melancon, the 36 year-old right hander waited a couple of months for the secondary relief market to come to fruition.

It just did and now that other free agent relievers like Sergio Romo, Greg Holland, Trevor Cahill, Neftali Feliz and Boone Logan can see what Casilla could get, look for those pitchers to start to cash-in the next couple of weeks with many teams still looking to beef up their bullpens.

In terms of what Casilla brings to the Athletics, he is a veteran pitcher who is another proven arm that provides some depth for manager Bob Melvin in the late innings. After finishing with ERAs under 3.00 from 2010-2015, the longtime Giant took a step back this past season.

Appearing in 62 games, Casilla lost control of the closer’s role because of inconsistency during the regular season. He did finish with a respectable 3.57 ERA, while boasting his strongest strikeout rate of his career at 10.1 K/9 IP in 2016. His walk rate also decreased from 3.6 BB/9 IP in 2015 to 2.9 BB/9 IP this past regular season.

According to FanGraphs, his fastball velocity has maintained throughout his career as well, which bodes well for the Athletics over the next few years. Granted, he is in his upper 30’s and could significantly fall off as many pitchers have during the twilight of their careers. But pitching in Oakland will certainly help lessen the chances of this.

At this point, Casilla isn’t lined up to take hold of the ninth inning. That job looks like it either belongs to Ryan Madson, whom Billy Beane is paying more money, or Sean Doolittle, who has a pretty good track record with the organization. What Casilla does provide is a solid option to help bridge the gap to a closing situation. He has a track record for success and has remained durable even as he as gotten older. There were probably relief pitchers available that offered more upside such as Greg Holland, Trevor Cahill or Neftali Feliz, but the Athletics clearly thought that they got a good value for a pitcher who’s been above average at what he does for the past seven years.

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This will be Casilla’s second stint in Oakland having pitched for the organization from 2004-2009 under the name Jairo Garcia. He is a much more accomplished pitcher now and will help shield the Athletics unproven starting rotation led by Sonny Gray.

All in all, this was a solid move by an Athletics team looking to shore up a bullpen that features a number of talented, yet unspectacular hurlers. It remains to be seen whether this move makes the likes of Doolittle or Madson more expendable in the months to come. But for now, the Athletics boast a stronger bullpen with the addition of a proven relief pitcher like Casilla.

Next: Twins Talking With Joey Bats

What do you think of the Athletics addition of Casilla? Share your thoughts on the move in the comments below.

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