[Paulie123]

The Oakland Telegraph
6 April 2026
A reshaped squad - but you can never write them off
Surely they can't win a fourth consecutive World Series, can they? They only made the postseason through the wildcard game and now Paulie Beane has cut the payroll by $35m. Our baseball predictions correspondent, Minnie Sotawillwinnit, doubts Beane can work his magic yet again.

Rotation: Super-ace Jose Fernandez (33/R/4.5*, 16-9 WL, 4.30 ERA in 2025) had a poor first half of last season. He came back strongly at the end but the cracks of the ageing process are beginning to show - he's lost half a star. Karl Dickson (24/R/4.5*, 13-14, 3.14) is now signed at a highly competitive $14m for each of the next five years and looks set to take over Oakland's ace spot in due course. Crocked Ambrose Bailey (27/R/4*, 3-0, 3.22) already has his sick note from his mum at the ready just in case, but returns to the rotation. He and last season's disappointing Rodney Stewart (28/L/4*, 13-9, 3.39) should on paper be good quality third and fourth starters. The man with great control over his pitching but no control over colleagues chuckling at his name, Bill Williams (27/R/3.5*, 7-10, 3.63), steps up from the bullpen. Nathan Hamilton, Aaron Sanchez and Ramon Mendoza are waiting in the minors for a sniff of a chance.

Bullpen: Here things get interesting. Hyper-talented Eric Wright (25/L/4.5*, 6-2, 2.11, 29 SV) remains the closer. Erratic righty Franyel Casadilla (29/R/5*, 4-4, 4.38) and lefty wonder arm Roy Ellis (23/L/5*, 3-3, 2.18) are the setup men. All good so far. The middle relievers are in principle right up Oakland's street: decent but on minimum salary. Melvi Salazar (31/R/3.5*, 4-1, 2.57) is either brilliant or hopeless, apparently at random. The other three could all be either brilliant or hopeless too, but the fun comes because we've no real idea, having essentially not seen them before. Juan Gonzalez (26/R/3.5*, drafted 2017 rd 2 by Houston) briefly pitched 6.1 scoreless innings at the tail end of last season. Mega prospect Jose Duran (22/L/5*, drafted 2025 rd 1 by Oakland) and Jose Martinez (22L/4.5*, drafted 2025 supp rd 1 by Oakland) will soon make their major league debuts.

Catcher: Unquestioned number one is defensive leviathan and genuinely half-decent hitter Jakson Reetz (30/R/4.5*, .324 OBP, 10 HR, 71 RBI in 2025). Probably rarely getting a game will be new arrival and now professional bench warmer Junior Vincent (24/R/1*, drafted 2023 rd 1 by Cleveland).

Infield: They were still playing baseball in black and white when steady old first baseman Matt Olson (32/L/3*, .352, 17, 74) joined the A's active roster. Alejandro Gusman (23/L/4*, .354, 3, 41) is distinctly average defensively by Beane's usual standards and could cause frustration at second base. Josh Morgan (30/R/4.5*, .383, 9, 73), who is like a wall in the infield, moves to shortstop after Franklin Barreto's trade. Celebrity teddy bear enthusiast Patrick Snel (25/L/4.5*, .311, 8, 55) seems to be improving fast and starts at third. Rich Weaver (26/R/1.5*, .274, 1, 9) and Ketel Marte (32/S/1*, .329, 1, 34) are reasonable infield backups, and, most crucially when Ban-ki Rupt is your owner, cheap as chips.

Outfield: Centre field is the sole preserve of lead-off hitter, main man, and all-round good egg Eddie Holland (27/L/4.5*, .338, 22, 97). Young newcomer Dennis Hawkins (24/L/3.5*, .339, 7, 33) is a left fielder, but will play designated hitter because emerging mediocre talent Martin Wilson (24/R/1.5*, .320, 4, 23) is much better defensively in that position. Isael Soto (29/L/3.5*, .301, 17, 97) gives it plenty of welly and plays right field amazingly well. Fifth outfielder is again Jim Thompson (27/R/2.5*, .212, 1, 6), the man who takes the phrase "journeyman pro" to a new level.

Beane looks to have slashed his payroll over the winter while not blatantly weakening his starting team. But, the bullpen is mostly young and unproven, and the squad depth is questionable. Beane has built an impressive farm system but are the prospects ready to step in and perform if injuries or loss of form hit? If Oakland can contend again this year, it could be Paulie Beane's greatest triumph yet. If not, then you can bet your bottom dollar that this newspaper will be first on the bandwagon to start slagging him off.