An inside perspective of the Oakland A’s
The Oakland Athletics are in a rebuilding frame of mind. 2021 was a bleak year for
the A’s. After starting the year off in April with a 9-18 record, it set the tone and it
was not a good one because the A’s management thought that April would be a
strong month and they were hoping to win 15 of their 27 games. May and June the
A’s went a combined 29-26 and were way out of it with a record of 38-44 at the
half way point. It was here that management decided to dismantle the team
including trading pitchers Lucas Giolito to Minnesota and Walke Buehler to
Atlanta.
This left the A’s to struggle the rest of the year going just 29- 51 for an overall
record of 67-95. But trading the major league team for prospects will hopefully
start paying off in 2023 and beyond. But today I want to focus on what the A’s
might look like on opening day 2022:
Starting Rotation:
This group is being overhauled and very well will probably change between now
and opening day as Zack Greinke is on the trade block and there will be an open
competition for all the spots except for James Tate who was injured and missed all
of 2021. Here is what the rotation looks as of today:
1. Zack Greinke
2. James Tate
3. Thomas Howard
4. Joe Austin
5. John Larson
There will be several of our AAA pitchers invited to camp and all of them will
have a chance to crack the starting rotation or the bullpen.
Bullpen:
The back end of the bullpen looks solid with Gary, Traver, and Serrano. Although
my manager wants Gary in the rotation. He might get a couple of ST starts just to
see how he does. The rest of the bullpen, which will have eight guys, are up for
grabs. Right now, I only have ten guys listed on the major league roster. Here is
how it looks today:
Closer- Ken Gary
Setup- Mitchell Traver
Setup- James Serrano
Long Relief- Jason Ramos
There will be an “open” competition for all the bullpen spots outside of Gary,
Traver, and Serrano.
Catcher:
Right now, we only have one catcher on the major league roster and that is Paul
Bailey. We are planning on drafting a veteran cost-controlled catcher. Bailey is the
clear-cut starter and will get most of the at bats from the catcher position.
Starter- Paul Bailey
Backup- ???
First Base:
Anthony Rizzo is the starter, but he is also on the trade block so things may change
before opening day. If Rizzo is still in Oakland, he will be the starter and be a
veteran pleader for the team.
Starter- Anthony Rizzo
Backup- Pablo Sandoval / Dan Bryant
Second Base:
The A’s just acquired Enrico DeLeon from the Dodgers but we still have Chad
Scott. There will be a battle for the starting job between the two if they break camp
with the A’s. Right now, Chad Scott is slated as the starter.
Starter- Chad Scott
Backup- Enrico DeLeon
Third Base:
The A’s just claimed Pablo Sandoval off waivers from the Cubs. At this time it is
an easy decision that Sandoval will start and play the majority of the games for
Oakland.
Starter- Pablo Sandoval
Backup- Jordan Howard (maybe)
Shortstop:
Brendan Rodgers will start at shortstop for the A’s in 2022. Having been acquired
from the Braves as part of the Walker Buehler trade the A’s are trying to see if
Rodgers will ever live up to his ratings. The A’s are hoping that 2022 is the
breakout year for Rodgers.
Starter- Brendan Rodgers
Backup- Chad Scott / Enrico DeLeon / Jordan Howard
Left Field:
There will be a spring training battle between Henry Powell and Dan Bryant. This
is probably the battle to watch out for because right now the odds are 50/50 who
starts. At this time, we are going to list Powell as the starter since he played in 142
games between the Marlins and A’s in 2021. But this will be a closely watched
battle by the A’s coaching staff in spring training.
Starter- Henry Powell / Dan Bryant
Backup- whichever one loses the battle in spring training
Center Field:
Centerfield is Gregg Faustini’s and no one else is close this year. There might be a
battle for CF in 2023, but Faustini also plays very good defense in left field.
Faustini might have gotten more votes for rookie of the year if he didn’t start the
first six weeks or so in AAA. As it was, he batted .274 with a .335 on base
percentage. He also stole 39 or 51 bases in 2021. We expect Faustini’s numbers to
increase in 2022.
Starter- Greg Faustini
Backup- Dan Bryant / Henry Powell
Right Field:
Right Field is all Dylan Carlson’s. Carlson played 56 games last year batting .237
with a .307 on base percentage. He did hit 10 home runs and batted in 34 runs. His
AA/ AAA numbers were impressive… he played in 97 games batted .320 about
a .401 on base percentage with 19 home runs, 74 runs batted in, and 65 runs
scored. The A’s are expecting BIG things from Carlson as he matures and gets
more big league at bats.
Designated Hitter:
The DH position is going to be shared by all the backups and sometimes to allow a
player to hit without playing defense. This is a wide-open position and we might
just go with the hot hand. Right now, I would give the advantage to whomever
losses out on the LF and 2b battles.
Starter- Powell/Bryant OR DeLeon/Scott
Backup- Everyone
Here is a look at the 22 prospects that the A’s have in the top 500 (I will put their
ranking in ()) and list where they will probably start in 2022:
Top 100 Guys-
1. Brandon Gill- 1b/3b (6)- Headed to AAA
2. Thomas Fidone- 3b (40)- Heading to A ball somewhere
3. Eric Pardino- RHP (79)- Headed to AAA
4. Jake Bentley- 3b (82)- AAA
100-200 Guys-
5. Jose Perez- LHP (103)- AA or AAA
6. Jordan Goshans- 3b (117)- AAA
7. Chris Schoeneborn- RHP (133) AA or AAA
8. Jonathan Drew- CF (143)- AA or AAA
9. Jalen Lofton- CF (148)- AAA
10. Nathan Mallandain- CF (170)- AA
11. Shane Baz- RHP (173)- AAA
200-499 Guys-
12. Richard Gallardo- RHP (215)- AA or AAA
13. Brody Matthews- RHP (227)- AAA or Majors
14. Chubba Purdy- RHP (237)- A or AA
15. Cam Randall- 1B (240)- AAA or Majors
16. Cole Winn- RHP (261)- AAA or Majors
17. Cadyn Grenier- SS (308)- AAA or Majors
18. Isaac Stephenson- C (335)- AAA
19. Jacob Morris- RHP (343)- AAA
20. Ty Harmon- RHP (426)- AA
21. Stan Brown- LHP (473)- A
22. Jeff Monken Jr.- C (494)- AA