Oakland Athletics: What’s on their post-lockout to-do list
Over the past decade, the Oakland Athletics have quietly been one of the better teams in the American League, making the postseason in 2012-’14 and 2018-’20.
In 2021, the club finished the season with an 86-76 record, finishing third in the AL West. With sluggers Matt Olson and Matt Chapman paired up with starting pitchers Chris Bassitt, Sean Manaea, and Frankie Montas, not to mention surprise performances from Cole Irvin and James Kaprielian, it’s fair to say that the Oakland A’s were capable of finishing higher than third place.
With new leadership in the form of Mark Kotsay at manager and looking to cut payroll heading into the upcoming campaign, the Oakland Athletics’ front office has made it clear that there’s a possibility of changes coming. Olson, Chapman, Stephen Piscotty, Elvis Andrus, Bassitt, Manaea, and catcher Sean Murphy are all expected to be available to varying degrees once the lockout is lifted. Whether the moves will be made prior to Opening Day or closer to the trade deadline remains to be seen.
In a chat with John Shea of The San Francisco Chronicle, A’s general manager David Forst had this to say about the potential of cutting payroll. Certainly an ominous step in the wrong direction for the Oakland Athletics-faithful.
“I think right now we’re in the middle of those conversations with [ownership],” said Forst. “We don’t have exact direction yet. But you look at our history, and we have three- or four-year runs and recognize where we are makes it necessary to step back. But we have not gotten to that point yet with ownership.”
This will be an interesting season for the Oakland A’s as they look to cut payroll. Let’s take a look at a few items that should be on their to-do list once the MLB lockout is lifted.
The Oakland Athletics should trade both Matt Olson and Matt Chapman
In a few moves that will surely break the hearts of Oakland A’s fans, the club should look to move their two star-level Matts and gather as many prospects as they can.
Matt Olson, 28 in March, has become one of the most prolific power MLB bats over the past few seasons. One of the more durable players in the bigs, Olson has led the league twice in games played (162 in 2018 and all 60 in 2020) while putting up well-above-average slugging numbers, most recently a .540 SLG%, with 39 home runs and 111 RBI last year.
Olson is to be viewed as one of the most valuable players on the trade market, as he is a stud both on offense and defense. A winner of two Gold Gloves and a three-time Fielding Bible Award winner, Matt Olson is ranked near the top of the league in all defensive stats at the first base position. As highlighted in MLB Trade Rumors’ profile of Olson, he ranks at the very top amongst first basemen in DRS (Defensive Runs Saved), with 34 and a 22.8 UZR (Ultimate Zone Rating) since the 2017 season.
Per FanGraphs, Matt Olson was worth 5.0 WAR in 2021 alongside his 146 wRC+. Olson still has two seasons of club-control remaining which will only ramp up his value. The first base market is dry once you get past the Freddie Freemans and Anthony Rizzos of the world, so the Oakland A’s should be able to get a massive haul back for Olson should they look to move him, an idea that they should really consider heading into 2022.
Matt Chapman, 28, is viewed as one of the best defensive players in the major leagues. Alongside Nolan Arenado, he is one of the most elite defensive talents the game has seen in years. The slick-fielding Chapman has 78 career DRS and a 47.3 UZR, both ranked #1 amongst third basemen since he came onto the scene in 2017.
Like Olson, Chapman’s value does not only come in the form of defense. In 2021, Matt Chapman had somewhat of a regression offensively, hitting 27 home runs and driving in 72 while seeing a dramatic spike in strikeouts and a lowered batting average, SLG% and OPS when compared to previous years. The California-born Chapman still managed to put up 2.6 oWAR per Baseball Reference and a 101 wRC+, both solid numbers despite the downtick in some of the other offensive categories.
When it comes to Chapman’s contract, he also is still under control for two more seasons. His value is still very high despite the fact that he had something of a down season at the plate in 2021. Any club looking to acquire Matt Chapman’s services is mainly looking at his glove with his offensive output an added bonus. Hell, the Yankees were said to even be considering Chapman to fill their void at shortstop. Chapman, like Olson, should bring the Oakland Athletics a huge return in prospects. The time to pull the trigger is now for David Forst and company.
The Oakland Athletics should do what they can to keep Sean Murphy … for now
With no clear replacement to immediately replace Sean Murphy, the Oakland A’s should keep him around. At least until #1 prospect Tyler Soderstrom is ready to take over (should he stay at catcher). Austin Allen represents the only other catching option on the 40-man roster, with journeyman catcher-turned outfielder-turned pitcher-turned-catcher Christian Bethancourt available as depth at the club’s Triple-A affiliate.
While Sean Murphy may not be a superstar-level backstop, he should be used as a bridge to some of the prospects that Oakland has coming through their system. Overall, Murphy is not a bad catcher. On defense, he, like the previously mentioned Matt Olson and Matt Chapman, is ranked highly amongst fellow catchers, even earning his first career Gold Glove in 2021.
The 27-year-old’s offense is not quite there just yet. While he did hit 17 home runs last season, his .216 batting average and .306 OBP might not be able to cut it long-term. The right-handed-swinging Murphy was able to post just a .257 BABIP last season and a 99 wRC+, adding more statistics that he should look to improve on if he is to remain in Oakland.
As highlighted here, the Oakland A’s have dangled Sean Murphy in trade talks but are waiting on “the right offer”. Call to the Pen’s own Kevin Henry mentions that this may signal that Oakland is asking for more than is reasonable for a defensive-minded catcher like Murphy. The Oakland A’s would be best off holding on to Sean Murphy at least until top prospect Tyler Soderstrom is ready to take the reins.
The Oakland Athletics only additions to the club should be in the bullpen
There are two right-handed bullpen arms that jump out as perfect candidates to join the Oakland A’s bullpen and they are old friend Yusmeiro Petit and World Series champ Collin McHugh.
For the 37-year old Yusmeiro Petit, the fit is obvious. A member of the Oakland A’s from 2018-2021, Petit appeared in a whopping 258 games over four seasons, topping 70 appearances in each of the non-COVID-shortened-2020 campaigns. Functioning exclusively as a jack-of-all-trades type of reliever for Oakland, Petit has been an invaluable asset to the club over the years and should definitely be on their list once the lockout is over.
Last season saw Yusmeiro Petit put up an 8-3 record, a 3.92 ERA, 1.0 WHIP and above-average PLUS% on three of his four primary pitches. While the four-seam fastball was the pitch that didn’t quite hit average when talking PLUS%, Petit’s cutter was actually the pitch that was hit the hardest last year. Opponents put up a .313 batting average and a .300 BABIP on the pitch, one that Petit used around 25% of the time.
Not much of a strikeout pitcher, Yusmeiro Petit’s game relies heavily on inducing soft-contact and ground balls, something he did 37% of the time in 2021, his highest mark since 2016 in Washington. Fortunately for Petit, he also does not walk many batters at all — just 1.38 BB/9 last season, finishing in the top-2% of the league in that category. Yusmeiro Petit has found late-career success in Oakland and should be high on the list of low-cost relief pitching options heading into 2022.
Collin McHugh, 34, is similar to Yusmeiro Petit in that he is a former starting pitcher who has found significant late-career success as a relief pitcher. Spending this past season as a member of the Tampa Bay Rays after opting out of 2020 due to COVID-19, McHugh was the owner of a 6-1 record, 1.55 ERA, 0.4 HR/9, and career-best 1.7 BB/9 with a 10.4 SO/9, good for a 6.17 K/BB rate.
McHugh was utilized in a variety of roles for Tampa Bay, including opener, long relief option, and even earned his first career save. He is a former World Series champ and has extensive experience in the postseason, albeit to mixed results. McHugh has a 4.18 ERA in 10 career postseason appearances over 23.2 innings.
Collin McHugh’s repertoire features five pitches: a slider, cutter, four-seam fastball, curveball and changeup (listed in order of usage in 2021). He relied heavily on his slider last year, using it over 50% of the time, to some really solid results. Sitting at just under 80 mph on average, McHugh’s slider registered just a .177 batting average against and a .256 BABIP while inducing nearly a 50% ground ball rate.
Next. Oakland Athletics tab Mark Kotsay as new manager. dark
Yusmeiro Petit and Collin McHugh are very similar pitchers who would fit nicely on the Oakland A’s roster in 2022. Both are nearing the ends of their respective careers, but are still more than capable of posting above-average numbers and inducing plenty of ground balls and weak contact. Both Petit and McHugh were in the top 4% of the league last year in Hard Hit%-against and McHugh finished in the top 2% of the league in Barrel %.