Oakland Athletics: Re-Examining the Rotation in the Absence of Sonny Gray

Oakland Athletics ace Sonny Gray has yet another injury, his third in less than a year.

In 2016, he spent much of the season on the disabled list, first with a strained right trapezius and later with a sore right forearm. He only pitched one inning for the Oakland Athletics after August 6.

Gray returned to camp this year claiming to feel 100 percent healthy, which was likely the case. Unfortunately for Gray, this did not last.

In his first spring outing he appeared to be the Sonny Gray that everyone had seen since he was called up from the minors in July of 2013. The same Gray that finished third in the Cy Young Award voting just two seasons ago.

However, in his second outing he struggled, allowing five runs in the first inning alone. This was the Sonny Gray that the A’s saw last season. He would return from injury looking good but a start or perhaps two later, the now 27-year-old right-hander would begin to struggle again.

The A’s are quietly holding their breaths, hoping that Gray will return to the at the end of April looking like the pitcher he was in 2015.

Still, after having three separate injuries in one year some A’s fans (and likely the A’s brass) are beginning to have flashbacks of Rich Harden, a very talented pitcher who just couldn’t stay off of the disabled list.

So who are the Oakland Athletics’ options, at least until Gray returns and potentially after?

President of baseball operations Billy Beane has said that the team will not look outside the organization for a pitcher to replace Gray. Per CSN Bay Area:

"“I don’t think it’s necessarily a fertile market to be diving into right now anyway this time of year. I think we prefer to stay in-house and give maybe somebody an opportunity.”"

The Athletics do have pitching depth within the organization, so it’s time to take a realistic look at what the A’s starting rotation will look like in 2017 without Sonny Gray.