Moneyball II

[Hendu Style]

David Forst Diary
December 25th, 2019

Part of me really wanted to work out a long-term contract for Jurickson Profar. We gave up so much to get him, namely pitching prospect Alberto Lopez. Now Texas has itself an ace-in-waiting, and we have... a one-year rental?

Profar has just one more year on his contract, and his initial asking price is $20 million a year, for 9 years. Not that I don't think he's worth it, but we simply don't have the room in our current budget to work out that kind of extension. We'd have to trade at least just two of our bigger stars just to make room for his salary. I briefly considered trading Taijuan Walker and Travis d'Arnaud, which would've given us enough money (barely) to sign Profar to a deal of roughly $16-18 mil a year. But there are too many negatives to even explore that route. And the upside isn't high in the kind of talent we would get in return for these two.

Instead, I've chosen a different road. Trade Profar and get what little value I can get. Plus, pair him up with one of the two suddenly arbitration eligible players I have on the roster. Cliff Jensen and Sancho Fajardo are both "Super 2" players, and are eating up more than $12 million in payroll this season. If I can trade one along with Profar, maybe I can sign the other to an extension... if not this year, maybe next. In a best case scenario, I can keep our team very competitive in 2020, and improve our farm system at the same time.

One of my early targets was Boston's Junior Estrella. He's been toiling in the Red Sox farm system, patiently waiting for a spot to open up in the Majors. But Xander Bogaerts is firmly entrenched at shortstop and Wendell Rijo has second base locked up. Now 26, Estrella is well overdue for his big break.

But as I had Erik Kubota scour the Red Sox minor leagues, he unearthed a gem in Manuel Colon. The Dominican 17 year old rates the second baseman off the charts in contact, and he's got phenomenal speed to boot. The BoSox also just happen to have one of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball in Julian Riverva, who boast four "plus" pitches, including a 97 mph cutter. The wheels were turning. How do I pry these two away from Boston?

The answer wasn't simple... nor was it cheap. Putting Profar up for trade was a given. I reluctantly added Jensen to the deal, knowing full well the Red Sox will get an ace to add to the top of their rotation. But the biggest kick to the gut was having to part with John Ellison. We haven't even had him in our system for six months, and letting him go would mean we have no viable options at catcher in the minors for the foreseeable future. I added two other minor leaguers to the deal, while the Red Sox kicked in $4.8 million in cash.

2B/SS Jurickson Profar (.278, 12 HR, 68 RBI) - $9.5 million salary
RHP Cliff Jensen (14-10, 3.23 ERA, 214.1 IP, 168 K) - $6.875 million
C John Ellison (.255, 4 HR, 22 RBI in AA Midland)
CF Zhuo-cheng Chan (.242 in A Stockton)
LHP Sergio Suarez (2 relief appearances in AZL)

for...

RHP Julian Riverva (15-5, 2.67 ERA, 192.1 IP, 226 K in Class A)
2B Manuel Colon (.252, 25 SB in Short Season and Class A)
CL Jaime Martinez (22 saves, 2.21 ERA in Class A)

It's a trade I didn't want to make. It leaves us with two holes to fill... one in our rotation, and one in the infield. But I have to believe we're getting two future big league stars in return. God help me if we don't get a new TV deal in the next few years. I don't know how many more of these flips I can take. All it takes is just one bad flip to set our organization back a decade or two.

To make matters worse, on the same day we pulled the trade, Jose Fernandez signed a 6-year deal that will pay him $32 million per in Colorado, and the Tigers doled out a $25 mil a year contract to John Neise. While we're gutting our pitching staff, everyone else is stocking up on mega million dollar arms. It's not a good message to be sending to our new fans in San Jose.

The good news in all of this is we have a ton of payroll flexibility for this season, so I can start looking for some veteran free agents and hope to sign them to one-year deals.

[Hendu Style]

2020 Season Preview: San Jose A's

The A's may be in a new city and a new stadium, bankrolled by a billionaire playboy, but in many ways, it's business as usual in the Bay Area. A look at this year's iteration of the team is eerily similar to the old Moneyball days in Oakland.


Aside from landing free agent Starlin Castro (whose 2-year, $34.9 million contract is misleading considering there's a team option on the second year), the A's made very few notable additions to their roster in the offseason, signing broken down and past-their-prime pitchers Max Scherzer and Yovani Gallardo.


Four-time AL Manager of the Year Bob Melvin will be asked to do what he does best: platoon his players. Of the eight positions in the field, five will likely be occupied by more than one player.


First base will be the most prominent platoon, with Chauncey Jordan (.343 avg, 9 HR vs. righties) and Wilmer Flores (.274, 3 HR vs. lefties) splitting time there. Same goes in left field, where unproven Carlos Mendoza and rookie Ty Decker should share reps, unless one eventually wins the job outright. Even the middle infield positions will be a rotation, with Michael Pryor floating between shortstop and second base. Luis Alejandro Basabe, a Rule 5 draft pick from the Houston Astros, will play at second base against lefties. Castro, a shortstop by trade, will occasionally play third base and even DH.


Luckily for Melvin, he has an MVP bat in Bryce Harper to build around in the order, along with an All-Star caliber backstop in Travis d'Arnaud. The same goes for the pitching rotation, which returns the best 1-2 punch in baseball with Stephen Strasburg and Dylan Bundy. Taijuan Walker gives the A's a strong #3 starter, but beyond that, things are suddenly shaky in San Jose.


Scherzer and Gallardo are expected to win the last two spots in the rotation in Spring Training, but that's not exactly a given. Scherzer hasn't had a season with a winning record since 2015, and has gone 27-39 over his last three seasons in Detroit. Compared to Gallardo, though, Scherzer looks like a Cy Young contender. The 33-year old Gallardo hasn't pitched in the Majors the past two years, and hasn't posted an ERA south of 5.16 since 2013.


"Are these guys going to anchor our rotation?" A's general manager David Forst asks rhetorically. "Of course not. But they're going to give us innings and give us a chance to be competitive. That's all we're asking."


This is an A's team that is clearly built for the postseason. Strasburg, Bundy, and Walker give San Jose a lethal trio in a best-of-five series, or even a best-of-seven. A stellar bullpen should provide Melvin some options in the mid to late innings should Scherzer and/or Gallardo break down. Lou Barnes, who allowed just six earned runs in 57.2 innings as a rookie last season, will be given every opportunity to beat out incumbent closer Mark Montgomery, who's still managed to save 77 games over the last two seasons.


"As far as I'm concerned, every position and spot on the roster is up for grabs," says Forst. "We may have won 104 games last season, and we may have gone to the playoffs eight years in a row, but there's going to be no sense of complacency here. The mission is to win the World Series. To get there, every position and every inning is going to the best man for the job."


Projected lineup/rotation/bullpen for 2020 San Jose Athletics:

[Hendu Style]

David Forst Diary
November 3rd, 2020

Another season, another disappointing finish. This time, though, it took us all the way to the World Series. We held off Toronto in the ALDS, 3-2. We battled back to beat Minnesota in the ALCS. Then we rallied to force a Game 7 in the World Series, only to have Stephen Strasburg get outdueled in a winner-take-all finale.

We squeezed everything we could out of our lineup in the regular season. Chauncey Jordan was a masher in our first base platoon, hitting .341 for the season with 35 homers and 116 RBI in just 487 at-bats. Sancho Fajardo (.327) and Michael Pryor (.336) gave us speed and average at the top of the order. Strasburg was the definition of the word "ace," winning the pitcher's version of a Triple Crown (23-3, 1.99 ERA, 265 K), and Lou Barnes transitioned perfectly from set-up man to closer (42 saves, 2.04 ERA).

So where did things go wrong? It's hard to point fingers when your team wins 97 games and comes one victory away from winning the World Series. But there are a couple of noticeable weaknesses in our roster.

First and foremost, Dylan Bundy was thoroughly disappointing as our so-called "second ace." An 8-13 mark with a 5.18 ERA is simply inexcusable for a #2 starter in a rotation, especially for someone making $9.5 million per year. Also, Mark Montgomery was absolutely abysmal as a reliever after losing his closer's role, posting a career-worst 5.57 ERA.

As far as our lineup, it's clear we have to find an everyday centerfielder. Jhonny Rodriguez finally seized the starting job, hitting .256 in 97 games before tearing the meniscus in his left knee. I won't pretend that he's the long-term solution in center, but we need him to hold down the fort until one of our two Dominican studs, Octavio Hernandez (18 years old, .257 average in AAA Sacramento) or Jesus Madrid (18 years old, .220 in Class-A Beloit), breaks through to the Bigs.

Starlin Castro (.287, 42 2B, 11 3B, 12 HR) was a great stopgap at shortstop, but his $17.5 million salary is prohibitive. I would say we are at least $13 million over budget for the 2021 season, and Castro will be the first casualty in the offseason. So will Max Scherzer and Yovani Gallardo, two veteran pitchers who performed pitifully for us this season. Voiding their contracts will save us nearly $20 million this offseason.

Luckily, help is on the way from our burgeoning farm system. Julian Riverva was brilliant in 3 starts for us (2-0, 3.00 ERA, 21.0 IP, 4 BB, 19 K) before going down with a torn rotator cuff. If he's able to make a full recovery, he's a lock to join the rotation next season.

My top priorities for the upcoming offseason are simple, yet clear.

#1, sign Fajardo to a long-term extension. We are still a good 5 years away from a possible new TV deal, so money won't be easy to come by. Clearing money for the 2021 season won't be difficult, but 2022 is another story, so we may have to trim some fat to make sure we have enough money to extend our speedy outfielder.

#2, find a capable middle infielder to platoon second base with Luis Alejandro Basabe until our 5-star prospect, Manuel Colon, becomes Big League-ready. We'll shop around for someone who can capably hit righties well, since Basabe more than proved his worth in 2020 by hitting .378 in 98 at-bats against southpaws.

#3, strengthen our bullpen. As mentioned before, Montgomery was terrible. Jeurys Familia was fantastic as a reliever, but desperately wants to be a starter. If we can somehow package both of these relievers (scheduled to earn a combined $2.1 million next season) for a stellar arm, we'll be ahead of the curve.

A big signing in free agency really isn't an option. If we're going to improve our team, it's going to have to be done creatively, with significant fiscal responsibility. Though I'd love to sign Jurickson Profar or Adalberto Mondesi, that's going to take somewhere north of $20 million. We don't have the luxury of fixing our problems with money. But if we play our cards right, we just might be even better in 2021 than we were in 2020. And that's all you can really ask for.

[Hendu Style]

David Forst Diary
December 8th, 2020

We're still far apart on an extension for Sancho Fajardo. We may not get this deal done for another year or more. In the meantime, I was able to solidify our pitching rotation and bullpen. By acquiring young fireballer Dedgar Jimenez (armed with a 100 mph fastball) from the Padres, we slid Manny Luna from a projected spot in our rotation to the bottom of our bullpen. We're still not nearly as strong as I'd like in our 'pen, but I'm hoping to find a strong reliever in free agency like Al Albuquerque or Jonathan Broxton. Both are still at least three months away from rehabbing from major arm injuries, which would be enough to scare off most suitors. That's the hope... just like when we got Carlos Marmol back in 2014.

Dedgar, on the other hand, is coming off a rookie season in which he struck out a whopping 108 batters in 76 innings, mostly in relief. He's also a lefthander, which we've sorely been missing in our rotation in recent years. I see him battling for, and ultimately winning, the fifth spot in our starting rotation next season.

We also landed a crucially important everyday centerfielder in Mallex Smith. He was a "can't miss" prospect in the San Diego farm system, but has never really put together the kind of season the Padres expected from him. All we're looking for is a .270 average, 20 steals, and a guy who can cover some serious ground in centerfield. Mallex should give us that, and allow us to finally keep Bryce Harper in left, and Fajardo in right. The downside is that Mallex is two years away from free agency. But that's absolutely fine. He's a perfect short-term solution while we wait for one of our young centerfielders to break through from the minors.

We obviously made some sacrifices to land these players. We breake up highly effective platoons at first base and second base by trading Wilmer Flores. The hope is that Chauncey Jordan flourishes as our everyday first baseman, but second base will still be a big question mark. We also had to surrender a promising backup catcher in Mike Stewart, but at least we pried Reese McGuire away from the Padres. McGuire is mediocre at the plate, but without peer behind the plate. He'll be the perfect complement to Travis d'Arnaud at catcher, taking some pressure off of our slugging battery.

We're still far from reaching my main 3 goals this offseason, but I think we've managed to bolster our roster and build up our farm system for the foreseeable future.

[Hendu Style]

Sunday, April 4th, 2021
David Forst Diary

We're ready for 2021 Opening Day with a relatively quiet offseason in our rearview. We made a couple of trades, and we made a few signings that I think will improve our depth.

By dollar amount, our biggest deal was for Jonathan Broxton. He's nearly recovered from a torn flexor tendon in his elbow that cost him part of last season. He's a big fella (330 pounds!) who wanted a fat contract. We obliged with a $10 million deal that will run one season. That gives us a big (literally and figuratively) upgrade in our bullpen for 2021.

We also decided to give Michael Pineda another go. With Julian Riverva nursing a hamstring injury in Spring Training, we were forced to go after a veteran starter to give us some depth in the rotation. Pineda comes at a bargain rate of $1.6 million per season for three years, with a club option on the final year.

Those acquisitions, couple with the early offseason signings of infielders Jedd Gyorko (2 years, $2.2 million) and Jose Altuve (3 years, $3 million) put us in great shape going into the season. We're close to one more signing as well. Jonathan Singleton (.298, 19 HR, 64 RBI in 137 games for Houston last season) will give us a stellar platoon at first base with Chauncey Jordan.

If we play our cards right with these signings, we might just get back to the World Series. Stay tuned...

[Carlton]

Great writing style

Although I disgree with your ideals on how baseball should be. Wish they'd stop trying to emulate other sports and cut back on Free Agency (never will happen) to have a slightly better reserve clause. Maybe 12 years total tied with a team, keep minor league FA and Rule V

Hmmmm, maybe that's a Dynasty? Starting after the Strike? Eureka!

[Hendu Style]

Originally Posted by Carlton

Great writing style

Although I disgree with your ideals on how baseball should be. Wish they'd stop trying to emulate other sports and cut back on Free Agency (never will happen) to have a slightly better reserve clause. Maybe 12 years total tied with a team, keep minor league FA and Rule V

Hmmmm, maybe that's a Dynasty? Starting after the Strike? Eureka!

I actually agree with your ideals. But the whole point of this dynasty is, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. Though, I really have yet to really "join 'em." Though I have the 7th highest gate revenue and 6th highest merchandise revenue, our pitiful $41 million a year total in media revenue gives us a budget that can only carry the 18th highest payroll in baseball at the moment.


Great idea on the Dynasty. A post-Strike era with limited free agency and a better reserve clause. Might I suggest a hard salary cap too, while we're at it?

[Hendu Style]

Chapter 38
Reality Bites

The harsh reality of baseball in the 21st century sinks in the moment the 2021 season comes to an end. A team that was picked to win over 100 games this season has just finished 82-80, two games out of the AL Wildcard. For the first time since 2011, the Athletics will not be playing in the postseason.

There are many culprits. Bad luck. Injuries. Stephen Strasburg, coming off a dominant Cy Young season, was relegated to just four starts after rupturing a finger tendon in his first start of the year, and then had bone chips removed from his elbow after just three more late season starts. Bryce Harper managed to make it onto the field for just 82 games before being shelved with a torn back muscle. Chauncey Jordan, arguably the team's MVP the year prior, played in only 127 games while battling a sports hernia.

Maybe with a healthy Strasburg, Harper, and Jordan, the A's would've won the West. But the billionaire playboy owner isn't going to accept any excuses, valid as they may be. Just hours after a season-ending 2-1 victory against the Houston Astros, A's General Manager David Forst is summoned into David Ellison's office.

"Tell me why I shouldn't fire you," the 38 year-old Ellison says with a smug look on his face. "Why shouldn't I can your ass right now and bring in someone who knows what the f--- they're doing?"

Forsty is dead silent. Part of him wants to slink in his chair and into the floor. The other wants to jump across Ellison's mahogany executive desk and punch him in the throat. He does neither.

"Because I can fix it, and get us back to the World Series," Forsty says defiantly. "We have a World Series caliber roster. We're just one player away."

And what kind of player is that? The offseason is sure to bring in a bumper crop of marquee free agents. Cleveland shortstop Corey Seager. Angels ace Masahiro Tanaka. But how on Earth would the A's sign a player like that without going grossly over their $100 million payroll?

For this, Forsty doesn't have an answer. He needs more time to put a plan in place. Ellison doesn't have time to wait. He wants a championship now.

"Give me $40 million more to spend, and we'll be right there," Forst promises. "We can get one, two players even, and be the World Series team I believe we can be."

Solving problems by throwing money at the situation. That's never been a very A's way of doing things. Even Ellison sees the fatal flaw in Forsty's plea. Without a billion dollar TV deal, the A's can't turn a profit with a payroll north of $100 million a year.

"In the movie business," Ellison begins, referring to his successful stint as a producer, "we didn't make great films just by hiring the most expensive actor or priciest director. It was all about finding the right script for the right talent, and putting it all together."

Forsty rolls his eyes. This is baseball, you entitled little prick, not Hollywood.

"I don't think you're the guy that's going to bring it all together."

Forsty takes a moment to let the statement sink in, but is forced to ask the unavoidable question.

"Does this mean I'm fired?"

Ellison simply nods, and then pretends to peruse some suddenly important documents on his desk. He waves Forsty away. Just like that, one of baseball's most successful executives, the one-time prodigy who built a championship team in 2017, is out the door. David Forst has been fired.

[Carlton]

Originally Posted by Hendu Style

I actually agree with your ideals. But the whole point of this dynasty is, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. Though, I really have yet to really "join 'em." Though I have the 7th highest gate revenue and 6th highest merchandise revenue, our pitiful $41 million a year total in media revenue gives us a budget that can only carry the 18th highest payroll in baseball at the moment.


Great idea on the Dynasty. A post-Strike era with limited free agency and a better reserve clause. Might I suggest a hard salary cap too, while we're at it?

Ahh gotcha. In my dynasty, I will be the owner of the displaced Florida Marlins, now the Portland Beavers, I will do a version of Moneyball meaning Speed guys with good contact and defense, much like the 1980's Cardinals. I would think that is the new Moneyball, as those players are ranked low in the OBP era

As for Hard Salary Cap, no can do. Remember in 1994 the owners wanted that and the players were up in arms. I had to compromise...now it's 12 years until Free Agency, no arbitration, 100,000 slot bonus in the draft and no luxury tax. Feel free to answer my questions on my Dynasty Strike Three

Glad Forst got fired, your owner is a Hollywood elitist. Let's see how Forsty does with a decent budget

[Hendu Style]

November 4th, 2021

Forst Lands in Boston; A's Still Looking

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- While the San Jose A's continue their search for a new general manager, the man who formerly held that post has found a soft landing in Boston. David Forst was introduced as the Red Sox new general manager on Tuesday at Fenway Park, and wasted no time in firing manager Darren Balsley. It's the first move in what is sure to be a complete house cleaning in the organization. The future of the A's, though, is still murky at best.

"Everyone is in a holding pattern over there," one AL West executive told the Mercury News, on the condition of anonymity. "You would think people would be lining up for a job over there, but nobody seems to want to work for Ellison."

In his short time as the A's owner, David Ellison has earned an unsavory reputation for his short fuse and knee-jerk reactions. Firing the wildly successful Forst, who helped guide the A's to a World Championship in 2017, illustrates just how unpredictable Ellison can be.

There are also questions about the future of Billy Beane. The one-time general manager holds a sizeable stake in the A's, but has been curiously absent from team functions in recent months, spending much of his team overseas in Indonesia with his family.

"Billy's on a walkabout," an anonymous A's assistant told the Mercury. "Some people think he's figuring out his next move, if he wants to sell his stake or take on a different role with the team. Personally, I think he's just done with the business."

The A's could certainly use Beane's leadership now more than ever. The Los Angels have assumed control of the AL West, losing to the Arizona Diamondbacks in the World Series, while San Jose is looking for answers after an uncharacteristic 82-80 campaign. Stephen Strasburg is entering the final year of his contract, and the team is estimated to be almost $20 million over its projected $100 million target payroll for 2022. Whoever takes over the GM job in San Jose will have their hands full.

[Hendu Style]

November 9th, 2021

Beane Returns as A's GM

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Billy Beane hasn't served as a general manager in Major League Baseball in over six years, but he seemed right at home during an introductory press conference at Cisco Field on Tuesday. Determined to return the franchise to baseball royalty, he delivered an impassioned speech to writers and reporters.

"I'm ready to get back in the saddle and do what I do best," Beane proclaimed, wearing a pink tie and black pinstriped suit. "We're going to take a long, hard look at this roster and build it into something we can all be proud of."

Beane's return comes less than a week after his long-time assistant and eventual successor, David Forst, landed with the Boston Red Sox as their new GM. Though terms of Beane's stewardship as GM were not disclosed, sources within the A's front office tell the Chronicle that he will work for $1 per season for the next three years in exchange for an increased stake in ownership. It is believed that his ownership of the A's franchise would stand at 33%.

"We've gotten away from our core principles," Beane professed. "We've spent big market dollars and tried to become something we are not. Make no mistake, we will continue to spend money. But we will do it wisely. My mission will be to cultivate young players within our own farm system, and then keep them in A's uniforms for the entirety of their careers. Once an 'A', always an 'A.'"

The team recently inked Sancho "Bullet" Fajardo to a 7-year, $107 million extension. Shortstop Michael Pryor and first baseman Chauncey Jordan are among the young up and comers who Beane hopes will remain in the Bay Area for life.

"I want what the New York Yankees had in the 1990's," Beane said, referring to Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Jorge Posada, and Andy Pettitte. "We want to draft and teach guys how to play the A's way, and keep them in a San Jose uniform until the day they retire."

When asked about the prospect of signing a marquee free agent like Masahiro Tanaka or Corey Seager in the offseason, Beane maintained his stance on cultivating players in the farm system.

"We've been down the free agency road," Beane said. "With all due respect to Bryce Harper and Justin Upton, that doesn't really fit our model. We're going to be financially competitive with other teams, but we're not going to get into a bidding war to get those players."

Beane would not address questions about payroll, which is projected to be nearly $115 million for the upcoming season. Stephen Strasburg is in the final year of a contract that will pay him for than $16 million next season, while pitcher Dylan Bundy and catcher Travis d'Arnaud are set to become free agents the year after that.

"We have something very good going here, but there's room for improvement. There always is. We're going to continue to look for ways to augment our product and make it as good as it can be. Some people may not understand at certain point along the way, but we always have our eye on the big picture."

[Hendu Style]

Chapter 39
The King... Has Returned

No sooner did Billy Beane return as General Manager of the San Jose A's, had he unleashed a flurry of trades that left some fans scratching their heads, and scores of others screaming in agony and protest.

Three days after his introductory press conference, Billy was back at the podium on a Friday afternoon, answering questions about how he had traded away two top pitchers, a franchise catcher, and countless other players. In a span of 48 hours, Beane had made three separate trades with Boston, Milwaukee, and Colorado that had netted him a boatload of prospects, a Rookie of the Year, and a once promising pitcher.

TO BOSTON:
C Travis d'Arnaud (2-time All-Star, .258, 17 HR, 75 RBI in 2021)
1B Jonathan Singleton (2-time All-Star, .291, 27 HR)
MR Joe Ross (1-2, 3.55 ERA in relief)
MR Dorin Leonte (minor league reliever)

TO SAN JOSE FROM RED SOX:
SP Cliff Jensen (2018 All-Star Selection, 7-9, 4.71 ERA in 20 starts in 2021)


TO COLORADO:
SP Taijuan Walker (2-time All-Star, 15-10, 3.80 ERA, 218 IP, 183 K)
1B Arturo Baca (.262, 4 HR in 42 AB)
SS Jim Palmer (.213, 12 HR in 277 AB)
2B Jose Altuve (.252 in 90 games)

TO SAN JOSE FROM ROCKIES:
1B Josh Starling (NL Rookie of the Year, .309, 41 HR, 116 RBI)
OF Jason Dallimore (2019 #22 overall draft pick, #21 prospect in MLB)


TO MILWAUKEE:
SP Dylan Bundy (2017 Cy Young Winner, 12-10, 4.05 ERA, 208.2 IP, 219 K)
1B Raul Gonzalez (21 year-old minor league prospect out of Dominican)
SS Brian Brine (AAA prospect in Sacramento)
CF Merrill Bubser (Class-A proscpect in Stockton)

TO SAN JOSE FROM BREWERS:
C Terry Coleman (2019 #2 overall pick, #5 prospect in MLB)
SP Jorge Diaz (2019 2nd round pick, #16 prospect in MLB)


In one fell swoop (or in this case, three), Beane had shipped off two frontline pitchers and a starting catcher for... a lot of question marks. Aside from Starling, coming off a monster season in stat-inflated Coors Field, the A's got a bunch of "high ceiling guys" in return. In other words, the A's were going from "Win Now!" to "Rebuilding" mode.

"What you have to understand about Billy is that he's always playing way ahead of the curve," says A's head scout Eric Kubota. "You and me? Yeah, we don't get it. But he's thinking way outside our normal process. Sometimes I don't understand. Most other times, I'll never understand. But in the end, he's somehow beaten the system."

In this case, Billy spouts off about playing to the ballpark. He says that the A's were never adequately prepared for the move from the spacious Oakland Coliseum to the bandbox Cisco Field. Bundy and Walker were both flyball pitchers, perfectly suited for the Coliseum. But now he wants pitchers who will roll up ground balls for his infielders to take away potential homeruns to the opposition.

"The number one key to any business is to have a plan," says Beane. "Maybe it's not perfect. Maybe it's flawed. But you have to go with it. If you try to be all things to all people, you're going to sink. On our budget, you can't have a team full of five-tool guys. Instead, you have to look at playing to a particular strength. So right now, what I want is groundball pitchers and really good infielders. That's what we can afford, and that's what we're going to do."

While that sounds all well and good, the impression it leaves on A's fans in the Bay Area is something very different. The trades just happen to save San Jose roughly $22 million in payroll for the 2022 season. It's interpreted as a cost cutting measure for a GM who's interested only in making money and not winning World Series rings.

"They can believe what they want to believe," Beane says. "If this was a popularity contest, I would've been fired decades ago."

[Hendu Style]

January 16th, 2022

Throwing in the Towel? A's Trade Strasburg

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- If the San Jose A's have any hopes of reclaiming the AL West anytime soon, they have a funny way of showing it. The team confirmed on Sunday that it is trading 4-time Cy Young Award winner Stephen Strasburg and minor league catcher Gilberto Canales to the New York Yankees for top pitching prospect Thomas Alford and cash.

"When we came to the realization that we wouldn't be able to work out an extension (with Strasburg), we decided it was time to cut bait," said one A's executive with knowledge of the trade. "We were pretty far apart on a deal, so the jig was basically up."

Strasburg is coming off an injury plagued 2021 season in which he made just four starts, but seems to be fully recovered from elbow surgery. He is entering the final year of a contract that will pay him $16 million this upcoming season. The Yankees are reportedly focusing on inking Strasburg to a contract that would assure that he finish his career in New York, though he is believed to be asking for more than $20 million per season.

"(Strasburg) just priced himself out of San Jose with the kind of money he was looking for," said the A's executive. "When you're 33 years old and coming off major surgery on your arm, asking for top dollar seems sort of ridiculous."

In return, the A's get the coveted lefthander Alford, who was rated as a top-10 prospect last season in the Yankees farm system. He joins an A's minor league system that is teeming with top pitching prospects like Ken Taylor (#10 prospect in MiLB), Jorge Diaz (#16 in MiLB), and Ray Thrailkill (#53). Though he only has one career start above Class-A ball, the 21 year-old Alford is expected to compete for a spot on the A's pitching staff in Spring Training.

The A's are also reportedly close to striking a deal for Mets closer Mario Cantu, who is eligible for free agency at the end of the 2022 season. He has recorded 31 or more saves in each of the last five seasons, with an ERA that has never risen above 2.48. San Jose is believed to be sending infielder Jedd Gyorko to New York, as it moves closer to signing free agent third baseman Will Middlebrooks.

[Hendu Style]

2022 San Jose A's Preview

For the first time in recent memory, the expectations are relatively low for the A's, and that's just the way General Manager Billy Beane likes it.

"Everyone figured we would win 100 games and go to the World Series last year," Beane remarks. "But we wound up going 82-80. The only opinions I care about are the ones coming from our own team."

San Jose is used to seismic activity, and it felt shockwaves when Stephen Strasburg, Dylan Bundy, and Taijuan Walker were all dealt during the offseason. The only significant addition for the team comes in the form of NL Rookie of the Year Josh Sterling and B.A. Vollmuth, a former Athletic who rejoins the team after stints with the Mariners and Yankees.

"Nobody's giving us much a chance, but I couldn't care less," says Vollmuth, who will platoon at first base with Sterling and at third base with free agent acquisition Matt Dominguez, also an A's retread. "We've got a bunch of young guys who are hungry to prove themselves and win some games."

The offseason makeover is Beane's latest mad scientist creation, shedding payroll and strikeout pitchers for a group of groundball artists and defensive wizards. The theory is that A's pitchers will entice opposing batters to beat the ball into the ground, and will be backed up by a bunch of ball gobbling infielders.

"We're playing the percentages," Beane explains. "Each of our four top starting pitchers has at least a 65% groundball rate, and in a smaller ballpark like Cisco Field, that's going to have to be our strength. We made a concerted effort to improve our defense, and I think it will show this season."

Michael Pryor (.321 batting average in 377 career MLB games) is coming off his first-ever All-Star season and will make the switch from shortstop to second base to accommodate phenom Manny Colon (.255, 31 SB in 97 games as a rookie). They give the A's a formidable up-the-middle defense that should also set the table for the middle of the order.

Oft-injured outfielder Bryce Harper (.288, 12 HR in 82 games last season) will start the season on the DL with an intercostal strain. He will bat third in the order and will be protected by Sterling (.309, 41 HR, 116 RBI as a rookie for Colorado), Chauncey Jordan (.278, 29 HR in second full MLB season), and Vollmuth (.266, 31 HR, 95 RBI for Yankees in 2021).

Sancho Fajardo (.335, 32 2B, 51 SB last season) is the A's franchise player, inking a 7-year, $107 million extension in the offseason. A smooth swinging hitter without a lot of pop, he will hit anywhere from third to sixth in the order. Rookie Jason Dallimore, acquired in the Walker-Sterling trade with Colorado, earned a spot in the outfield out of Spring Training. Rule 5 pick Jorge Alfaro will be the team's starting catcher while the A's groom blue chipper Terry Coleman in the minors.

The pitching staff is anchored by Cliff Jensen, a once "can't miss" stud who faltered in two seasons with Boston, accruing a record of 19-26 with an ERA north of 4.60. That's a far cry from Jensen's final season with the A's in 2019, when he went 14-10 with a 3.23 ERA.

"Jensen's the same pitcher he was when we first had him a few years ago," claims A's manager Bob Melvin. "He just happened to have a mediocre defense playing behind him at Fenway. With our guys here, I wouldn't be surprised if his ERA was around 3.00 by the end of the season."

Rookies and youngsters Julian Riverva (8-12, 4.85 ERA, 182 IP, 158 K in first MLB season), Ken Taylor (2-0, 5.00 ERA in 4 late season starts), and Manny Luna (3-2, 4.31 ERA in 26 appearances) will give the A's a promising, yet unproven rotation behind Jensen. Lefthander Dedgar Jimenez (4-6, 5.90 ERA in 24 appearances last season) surprised everyone by claiming the final spot in the rotation, forcing Beane to deal veteran Michael Pineda to make room for Jimenez on the roster.

"Dedgar is the real deal," head scout Eric Kubota says of the 6'3, 270-pound Venezuelan, who yielded just 3 hits in 3 Cactus League starts, while striking out 12 batters in 12 shutout innings of work. "He throws right around 100 miles an hour and has a wicked changeup and a pretty solid forkball. He may have the most upside of anyone in the rotation."

San Jose's bullpen may end up being the X-factor for the 2022 season. Mike Harris and Andrew Brockett were discarded in a March deal for Indians minor leaguer Vincente Cortez. One-year rental Mario Cantu (44 saves, 2.28 ERA last season) comes to San Jose in an offseason deal with the Mets, and will supplant Lou Barnes, who will return to a setup role.

"I can't believe the lack of respect this team is getting," quips new slugger Josh Sterling. "We've got two .330+ hitters (Pryor, Fajardo), four guys capable of hitting 30 to 40 homeruns (Sterling, Harper, Jordan, Vollmuth), and some of the best young arms out there. I'd be scared if I was the Angels or Astros."

[Hendu Style]

July 5th, 2022

Amazing A's Defy Odds

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- The A's have scored 438 runs, more than any other team in baseball. They boast a rotation with two 10-game winners at the halfway point of the season. They have a comfortable 6.5 game lead on the defending American League champion Angels. Their 54-29 mark is the best in baseball.


Just like they drew it up.


Nobody, except for the A's, expected this sort of first half. When they dealt Stephen Strasburg, Dylan Bundy, and Taijuan Walker in separate trades, people figured the A's pitching rotation would be depleted. Instead, their starting pitchers rank third in AL in ERA (3.69) and have found a devastating 1-2 punch in Juan Riverva (10-5, 2.52 ERA) and Ken Taylor (10-3, 3.40 ERA). When Bryce Harper started the season on the DL, it was assumed the punchless A's offense would struggle to score runs. But third base coach Mike Gallego has been busier than an air traffic controller, calling for a league-leading 108 stolen bases, and waving in runners left and right.


"We've found a formula, and it seems to be working so far," A's manager Bob Melvin says in what must be the understatement of the year.


Sancho Fajardo is putting together an MVP caliber season, batting a MLB-best .356 through 82 games, while piecing together a 37-game hitting streak from last season into this year. New addition Josh Sterling rebounded from a .254, 2 homerun April and hit a blistering .338 with 9 homers and 24 RBI during the month of June. Mario Cantu, who is due for a big payday in free agency at the end of the season, has converted all 17 of his save opportunities while posting a microscopic 0.78 ERA.


But the A's have not been without their struggles. Manny Colon has committed 13 errors while making the switch from second base to shortstop, and has hit just .261 from the leadoff spot. Dedgar Jimenez has continued to disappoint as the team's fifth starter, with a bloated 5.18 ERA masked by a surprising 7-2 record. San Jose's overall defensive efficiency of .704 ranks 4th in the American League, but was expected to be even better given the team's commitment to fielding.


"We have our warts," says General Manager Billy Beane. "But no more than anyone else out there."


While the A's focus on the second half of the season, Beane faces a conundrum. Does he add one more piece to put the team over the top? He had reportedly pursued Chicago centerfielder Albert Almora until the Cubs locked him up to an extension before he could hit free agency this winter. Or does Beane look to move Harper's mammoth salary so he can start negotiating extensions for up-and-comers Michael Pryor and Chauncey Jordan? It's an interesting dilemma as the A's find themselves not in a rebuilding year, but a possible playoff year. It's a pleasant surprise that perhaps only Billy Beane saw coming.

[Hendu Style]

July 22nd, 2022

All-Star Swap: Harper for Seager!

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Leave it to Billy Beane to make a blockbuster trade that leaves everyone scratching their heads, while his team is thundering through along on a 15-game win streak. The San Jose A's traded 9-time All-Star and 2-time MVP Bryce Harper to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday for 2018 AL MVP Corey Seager. The A's also receive pitching prospect Al Townsend and cash in return for minor league outfielders Gonzalo Sanchez and Cecil Crum.


"I know, why mess up a perfectly good thing?" Beane conceded, referring to his team's MLB-best mark of 67-29 at the All-Star Break. "But if you have an opportunity to improve your team's situation, that's a chance you have to be willing to take."


The move leaves the A's thin at the outfield position, with light-hitting Jhonny Rodriguez (.241 career hitter) taking over everyday duties in centerfield. It is assumed that minor league prospect Octavio Hernandez will be promoted from AAA Sacramento once he recovers from a high ankle sprain. The trade also gives the A's a formidable infield, with Seager moving to third base.


"We don't need Corey to be an MVP player for us," said Beane. "We just need him to be the .300, 20 homerun guy we've all come to know and love. Anything beyond that is gravy."


Seager had signed a free agent contract with the Dodgers, and the swap of MVP's will save the A's almost $10 million next season, and $20 million in the two years following. Trading Seager so quickly after signing him came as a surprise for the Dodgers, but was necessitated by injuries to outfielder Jayson Heyward and first baseman Prince Fielder.


"They wanted a homerun hitter for the middle of their lineup," Beane explained. "When Heyward comes back this season, that's a batting order nobody's going to want to face."


In a pair of separate but related transactions, the A's shipped third baseman Matt Dominguez to Pittsburgh for relief pitchers Tony Blanford and Calvin Carter. They also traded former first-round draft choice Ray Thrailkill, reliever Phil Bickford, and cash for Reds prospect Juan Morales.


Seager is expected to join the team for its series opener with the Boston Red Sox in San Jose.

[Hendu Style]

2022 Regular Season Recap

by Jason Stark, ESPN.com


A franchise record for wins by the Athletics. A 37-game hitting streak for "The Bullet." And a 67 homerun season that was almost complemented by a Triple Crown. 2022 was a year for the ages, no doubt about it.


The A's were the toast of the town in San Jose, after a disappointing 82-80 campaign the year prior. The A's finished with a mark of 110-52, the most wins in team history, and was one of three teams in the AL West to qualify for the postseason (Los Angeles Angels: 93-69, Seattle Mariners: 91-71).


San Jose was led by its franchise star, Sancho "Bullet" Fajardo, who claimed his second career batting title at the age of 24, thanks to a hitting streak that spanned two seasons. His .347 batting average was a career best, as was his .399 on-base percentage and 85 RBI.


In the National League, Jose Medellin led the Milwaukee Brewers to their first postseason appearance since 2011, clubbing 67 homeruns while driving in 155 runs. His .310 batting average left him one point short of the elusive Triple Crown.


On the milestone front, Clayton Kershaw reached the 3,500 strikeout mark on the strength of another Cy Young caliber season. The LA Dodgers ace led the NL with 22 wins, while fanning 265 batters and posting a 2.71 ERA. It is his third straight season with a sub-3.00 ERA, and his fourth 20-win campaign.


It was an unforgettable season in Major League Baseball. And to think, this was just the regular season. Now we can look forward to the postseason. A one-game playoff between Minnesota and Kansas City to decide the AL Central. Three teams from the AL West! And, oh yeah, the Yankees and Dodgers are also in the postseason. Should be fun...

[Hendu Style]

November 1st, 2022

A's GM Already Looking Forward to 2023 After ALCS Exit

Though the A's failed to reach the World Series, Billy Beane is the first to acknowledge this season was a big step in the right direction.


"The prognosticators say that many of our players lacked playoff experience and that we don't quite have the kind of 1-2 punch you need in the postseason to be successful," Beane says in a postmortem session at team headquarters in San Jose. "I call BS on both."


Though this was the first taste of the playoffs for San Jose's #1 and #2 starters, both Julian Riverva and Ken Taylor played the part of big game performers. Riverva went 3-0 with a 2.81 ERA in 4 postseason stars. Ken Taylor was 2-1 with a 1.57 ERA his 3 starts. In fact, both of their other starters (Cliff Jensen: 1-1, 2.25 ERA in 2 starts; Manny Luna: 0-1, 2.92 ERA in 3 appearances) also performed very well.


When it comes right down to it, the A's ran into a Minnesota team that got hot at just the right time. The Twins beat Kansas City in a one-game playoff in the postseason, but then got a very favorable draw against a Yankees team that won 88 games to win the AL East. Meanwhile, the A;s got no favors with its #1 seeding, having to face the winner of an AL Wildcard between division rivals Los Angeles and Seattle. The A's were able to get past the Mariners, 3 games to 1, in the ALDS, but each one of those games took everything they had. After losing Game 1, 12-6, San Jose managed three wins in a row to take the series (4-2, 3-1, 4-1).


The rest, of course, is history. Minnesota overcame a 2-1 series deficit to eventually take a 3-2 series lead in the ALCS. The A's gutted out a 4-1 victory to force a winner-take-all Game 7, which was won unceremoniously by the Twins, 6-2. Minnesota went on to beat Milwaukee in an all-Midwestern World Series in 7 games, the franchise's first championship since 1991.


The coffee that Billy is drinking isn't even halfway cooled off when he starts talking about next season. He raves about AAA catching prospect Terry Coleman, who he believes will be big league ready next season at the ripe age of 22. Two more Sacramento farmhands -- pitchers Tommy Alford and Jorge Diaz -- could also be ready for primetime. And Billy can't wait to see a full season from Corey Seager, who hit .295 in 36 games with the A's after a midseason trade with the Dodgers, and Octavio Hernandez, who is set to become the team's everyday centerfielder after a late-season call-up.


"The crazy thing is, this is the best shape our roster has been since I can remember," Billy says. "We've got some great arms in our rotation and bullpen, some real burners on the basepaths, and a few big bats to bring 'em all in. What's not to like?"


But knowing Billy, you can see the wheels turning as he starts hatching a plan for the 2023 season. He's got two starters who are entering the final year of their contracts. He's still trying to hammer out an extension with middle infielder Michael Pryor. And he's got to figure out a way to hold off the Angels and their bottomless wallets in the AL West.


Billy Beane's work isn't done. It's just begun.

[Hendu Style]

Chapter 40
The Number You Have Called is Disconnected...

When Billy Beane calls, it's best you don't pick up the phone. Time and time again, Billy pulls off a deal that looks great at the time for the other team, but ends up being a windfall for his A's a year later. Sure, there are exceptions. Take last season's swap with the Cleveland Indians. San Jose gave Cleveland its new closer (Andrew Brockett: 2.36 ERA, 36 saves), a premiere setup man (Mike Harris: 1.92 ERA in 62 appearances), a great utility infielder (Luis Alejandro Basabe: .321 career average in 91 games), plus veteran third baseman Ronnie Gideon and minor league slugger Mike Benson (.293, 34 HR, 102 RBI in Class-A Carolina)... all for one prospect, pitcher Vicente Cortez. But by and large, opposing GM's have come up with pie in their eye.


Take Billy's most recent trade. Just days after the end of the season, and weeks before Salary Arbitration and Free Agency, he struck a deal that, on its face, looks like a steal for Arizona:


SAN JOSE GETS:
SP Gio Piontelli (9-13, 3.95 ERA, 168.2 IP, 194 K in Class-A ball)


ARIZONA GETS:
SP Cliff Jensen (13-6, 3.88 ERA, 213.2 IP, 154 K)
3B B.A. Vollmuth (.262, 27 HR, 83 RBI)
P Calvin Carter (2-0, 5.87 ERA in 17 appearances)
P Tony Blanford (3-6, 3.67 ERA in 29 appearances, 12 starts)
P Alex Meyer (0-0, 0.00 ERA in 3 appearances)


So the Diamondbacks get a starting pitcher with two years of arbitration left in Jensen. A #3 hitter in Vollmuth entering the last year of his contract. And three setup men in Carter, Blanford, and Meyer, all of whom could be used as starters if there's an opening in their rotation. All for a touted sinkerball pitcher in the low minors.


But look closer at what the A's had to give up in the first place, to make this trade possible:


CLIFF JENSEN:
Acquired last winter from Boston for Travis d'Arnaud, Jonathan Singleton, Joe Ross, and Dorin Leonte. D'Arnaud just finished the last year of a contract that paid him $8.75 million, and he underperformed by hitting .231 with 7 homeruns. The A's found a more than capable replacement for d'Arnaud in Rule 5 pick Jorge Alfaro, who was a big upgrade behind the dish and hit .260 with 21 homers in his first season as a regular. Singleton had a solid season for the BoSox, hitting .287 with 20 homers, but would've been a pinch-hitter at best for the A's, given their glut of first basemen and DH's. The A's never gave up anything for Singleton to begin with, signing him as a free agent and getting a stellar .291, 27 HR, 69 RBI season from him in 2020. Ross and Leonte spent most of the season in the minors and are both past their primes.


B.A. VOLLMUTH:
Acquired straight up for Michael Pineda from the Yankees last winter. Pineda put together a respectable 10-4, 4.22 ERA, 138.2 IP in 21 starts before being shelved with an oblique injury. Considering that Pineda was a free agent signing by the A's (with no compensatory pick), Vollmuth essentially came free to San Jose from New York.


CALVIN CARTER, TONY BLANFORD:
A pair of borderline starters, solid relievers acquired from Cleveland for third baseman Matt Dominguez. Like Pineda, Dominguez was another shrewd free agent signing, and when the A's landed Corey Seager, he became expendable. Again, two assets who came to San Jose for essentially nothing nothing but a free agent signing.


ALEX MEYER:
This is typical Billy right here. He signed Meyer to a 3-year contract (at a relatively cheap $2.8 million per season) while the pitcher was rehabbing from elbow surgery. He was an insurance policy in case any of the A's young pitchers faltered in the bullpen. They did not, so Meyer suddenly became expendable.


So you add all of that up... the actual cost for the A's to produce Jensen, Vollmuth, Carter, Blanford, and Meyer... in return for a coveted pitching prospect, they actually gave up close to nothing. Four guys signed in free agency to cheap contracts (Dominguez, Pineda, Meyer, Singleton), an aging and overpaid catcher (d'Arnaud), and two borderline big league relievers (Ross, Leonte). It's not the art of the deal. It's the art of the flip. Billy is a real estate speculator. He sees undervalued assets on the open market, and buys them up in bulk. Some pan out. Others do not. But he builds up a cadre of these strip mall assets, bundles them all together, and gets undeveloped oceanfront property in return.


In the process in the Piontelli trade, the A's also slashed an estimated $24.5 million in payroll. Yes, Arizona will be much better off for the 2023 season. They came up one win short of a second straight World Series appearance, and this move could very well put them over the top next year. But the A's have so much depth in their roster and farm system, none of the players traded away figures to be missed. Jensen will be replaced in the rotation by "Can't Miss" prospect Tommy Alford. Vollmuth will be replaced in the lineup by a combination of rotating players at 1B, 3B, and DH... a position of great strength for San Jose. The three other pitchers? All easily replaced by an incoming crop of studs from Sacramento.

And, who knows? Maybe Billy might just find another diamond in the rough during the offseason. While other teams are doling out $200 million contracts, the A's will be in the bargain bin, gobbling up its next batch of players to sell off to an unsuspecting team.


But still, people keep up picking up the phone when Billy calls. And that's why the A's keep winning year after year after year.

[Hendu Style]

Not a whole lot to say. The experts forecast us as the AL West champs with 105 wins. Pretty tall order. Notice the 850 predicted runs scored... most in MLB, despite having just one hitter listed in the top 10. Let's see what we can do...