Results tagged ‘ Major League Baseball ’
A’s Farm in Top 5 MLB Blogs for Second Straight Month in March!
Just like Josh Reddick’s beard, there’s no stopping A’s Farm!
A’s Farm finally cracked into the top 5 MLB blogs last month, and it looks like we managed to hang on to our top 5 spot again in March. Thanks to all you A’s fans out there who’ve made A’s Farm a regular stop to stay up to date on all the A’s top prospects!
In the past month, we’ve brought you our 2-part interview with A’s director of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi, our spring training video updates, as well as our spring training tour diary, and our Prospect Watch featuring commentary from Farhan, Grady Fuson and A’s manager Bob Melvin.
Make sure you stay tuned for daily updates on all the A’s minor league affiliates now that the season’s underway. And if you haven’t already, be sure to like our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter @AthleticsFarm to keep up to date on all the latest down on the farm!
Spring Training Update – 3/18/13
Spring Training Update – 3/4/13
A’s Farm in Top 10 MLB Blogs in 2012!
Josh Reddick gave A’s Farm a taste of things to come in spring training!
Well, the results are in – and in our first year out of the box, A’s Farm was ranked in the Top 10 MLB blogs for 2012! At our peak late in the season, we were averaging almost 5,000 hits per week and almost 20,000 hits per month. And we want to be sure to thank all you devoted A’s fans who are obviously committed to learning as much as possible about the organization from top to bottom.
We also want to thank MLB Trade Rumors for repeatedly featuring A’s Farm as one of their top blog picks of the week, Baseball Reference for regularly featuring us in their player news section, and A’s Nation who asked us to provide a weekly minor league update during the season for the hordes of A’s fans who get their A’s news from the biggest and best A’s blog on the web.
In 2012, A’s Farm profiled the A’s new players and top prospects, offered progress reports on the team’s top draft picks, named the A’s organizational all-stars, and featured interviews with GM Billy Beane, along with players like Josh Reddick, Derek Norris and Sean Doolittle, and front office personnel like assistant GM David Forst, scouting director Eric Kubota and director of player personnel Billy Owens. And in one of our most popular pieces of the year, A’s Farm profiled A’s super-scout and Moneyball bad guy Grady Fuson. All that in addition to our daily updates on all the A’s minor league affiliates – the Sacramento River Cats, Midland RockHounds, Stockton Ports, Burlington Bees, Vermont Lake Monsters and the Arizona League A’s.
Stay tuned for much more right here in 2013, and be sure to like our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter @AthleticsFarm to keep up to date on all the A’s minor league teams and top prospects down on the farm!
A’s Major & Minor League Off-Season Transactions – Dec. 18 Update: A’s Find A Hiro To Play SS
Hiro: Better than Godzilla?
Well, the biggest story to break for A’s fans in the weeks before the holidays was the news that A’s free agent shortstop Stephen Drew had agreed to a $9.5 million/1-year deal with the Red Sox, followed quickly by the news that Japanese shortstop Hiroyuki Nakajima had agreed to a $6.5 million/2-year deal (plus incentives and a $5.5 million 1-year option) with the A’s. The 30-year-old right-handed hitter has a career .310/.381/.474 slash line plus 104 home runs and 97 stolen bases over the last 6 seasons in Japan. His signing seems to settle the A’s starting shortstop question and makes arbitration-eligible Adam Rosales the likely backup at the position.
A’s free agent pitcher Brandon McCarthy also decided to leave the team for a $15.5 million/2-year deal with Arizona. It doesn’t look like the A’s are planning on signing a major league pitcher to replace McCarthy, but will instead count on a full season of availability from major-league ready RHP Dan Straily to make up for McCarthy’s loss.
On the minor league front, since our last update, the A’s traded RHP Graham Godfrey to the Red Sox as the player to be named in the deal to acquire RHP Sandy Rosario, who was later designated for assignment by the A’s and re-claimed by the Red Sox who then designated him for assignment again. So the A’s basically gave Godfrey to the Red Sox for the privilege of having Rosario on the roster for a few days. Minor league outfielder Jermaine Mitchell, who cleared waivers and elected free agency, ended up signing a minor league deal with the Phillies.
The most significant minor league addition the A’s made since our last update was the acquisition of 27-year-old minor league free agent catcher/first baseman Steven Hill, who’s played in 10 major league games for the Cardinals and spent most of last season at Triple-A Memphis, where he had a .266/.326/.488 slash line. The right-handed hitter figures to share the catching duties at Sacramento in 2013 with fellow minor league free agent signee Luke Montz.
You’ll find all new transactions since our last update noted below with italics and an asterisk. Any players who’ve recently been taking up space on the 40-man roster are listed below under Major League transactions, while all other players are listed under Minor League transactions. For all the minor league players, I’ve listed their primary positions as well as the level they spent the most time at in 2012. Just click on any player’s name to see their Baseball-Reference stats page…
MAJOR LEAGUE CHANGES
-Jonny Gomes OF / +Chris Young OF
-Pennington/Drew SS / +Hiroyuki Nakajima SS *
-Brandon Hicks IF / +Andy Parrino IF
-Brandon McCarthy RHP / +NONE *
-Jim Miller RHP / +Chris Resop RHP
-Tyson Ross RHP / +Andrew Werner LHP
Hiroyuki Nakajima
+ MAJOR LEAGUE ADDITIONS
Chris Young OF (traded from AZ)
Hiroyuki Nakajima SS (signed from Japan) *
Andy Parrino IF (traded from SD)
Chris Resop RHP (traded from PITT)
Andrew Werner LHP (traded from SD)
- MAJOR LEAGUE SUBTRACTIONS
Jonny Gomes OF (FA signed with BOS)
Stephen Drew SS (FA signed with BOS) *
Cliff Pennington SS (traded to AZ)
Brandon Hicks IF (traded to NYM)
Brandon McCarthy RHP (FA signed with AZ) *
Jim Miller RHP (claimed by NYY)
Tyson Ross RHP (traded to SD)
Steven Hill
+ MINOR LEAGUE ADDITIONS
Scott Moore 3B-1B AAA (minor league FA)
Luke Montz C-1B AAA (minor league FA)
Steven Hill C-1B AAA (minor league Rule 5 draftee) *
Tom Mendonca 3B AA (minor league rule 5 draftee) *
Darwin Perez SS-2B AA (minor league FA)
D’Arby Myers OF AA (minor league FA) *
Garrett Olson LHP AAA (minor league FA)
Justin Thomas LHP AAA (minor league FA)
Mike Ekstrom RHP AAA (minor league FA)
Kyler Newby RHP AA (minor league FA)
Yeiper Castillo RHP A (minor league FA) *
Jermaine Mitchell
- MINOR LEAGUE SUBTRACTIONS
Kila Ka’aihue 1B AAA (minor league FA signed with AZ)
Jermaine Mitchell OF AAA (minor league FA signed with PHI) *
Blake Lalli C AAA (minor league FA signed with MIL)
Jason Jaramillo C AAA (minor league FA)
Wes Timmons IF AAA (minor league FA)
Matt Rizzotti 1B AA (minor league FA)
Leonardo Gil 3B AA (minor league FA)
A.J. Kirby-Jones 1B A (traded to SD)
Yordy Cabrera SS A (traded to MIA)
Michael Gilmartin SS-2B A (minor league Rule 5 draftee by CIN) *
Eliezer Mesa OF A (minor league Rule 5 draftee by DET) *
Graham Godfrey RHP AAA (traded to BOS) *
Rich Thompson RHP AAA (minor league FA signed with TOR) *
Jeremy Accardo RHP AAA (minor league FA)
Merkin Valdez RHP AAA (minor league FA)
Justin Souza RHP AAA (minor league FA)
Fabio Castro LHP AA (minor league FA)
Beau Jones LHP AA (minor league FA)
Matt McSwain RHP AA (minor league FA)
Jonathan Ortiz RHP AA (minor league FA)
Jose Guzman RHP AA (minor league FA)
Zach Thornton RHP A (traded to PITT)
Adam Rosales
RETURNING FREE AGENTS/ARB ELIGIBLES/OPTIONS
Daric Barton 1B (Arb Eligible Re-Signed)
Adam Rosales IF (Arb Eligible Re-Signed)
Pat Neshek RHP (Arb Eligible Re-Signed)
Bartolo Colon RHP (Free Agent Re-Signed)
Grant Balfour RHP (Option Renewed)
RETURNING ARB ELIGIBLES
Seth Smith OF (Arb Eligible)
Brandon Moss 1B (Arb Eligible)
George Kottaras C (Arb Eligible)
Jerry Blevins LHP (Arb Eligible)
Chris Resop RHP (Arb Eligible)
UNSIGNED MLB FREE AGENTS
Brandon Inge 3B (MLB Free Agent)
Dallas Braden LHP (MLB Free Agent)
Joey Devine RHP (MLB Free Agent)
COMING & GOING
Sandy Rosario RHP (traded from BOS – designated for assignment)
Be sure to like A’s Farm’s page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @AthleticsFarm to keep up with all the news down on the farm!
A’s Major & Minor League Off-Season Transactions – Dec. 1 Update
Jonny Gomes: All dressed up, with somewhere to go.
With a flurry of activity on Friday just ahead of Major League Baseball’s non-tender deadline and with the Winter Meetings starting on Monday in Nashville, it seems like a good time to recap all the A’s major and minor league transactions from the end of the season through the non-tender deadline of November 30th. The most significant changes to affect the major league roster so far this off-season have been Jonny Gomes signing with Boston, the Chris Young/Cliff Pennington trade with Arizona, as well as the Tyson Ross trade with San Diego. These deals, along with a few other minor moves, have basically resulted in Chris Young replacing Jonny Gomes in the lineup and Chris Resop replacing Jim Miller in the bullpen, with Andy Parrino replacing Brandon Hicks and Andrew Werner replacing Tyson Ross as guys who’ll probably end up spending most of their time at Sacramento while filling in in Oakland as needed.
The biggest remaining question mark for the A’s is who will replace Cliff Pennington and Stephen Drew as the team’s starting shortstop in 2013. The two combined to start 129 games at shortstop for the A’s in 2012. Right now, with Pennington having been traded to Arizona and Drew a free agent, the position’s a bit of a black hole. But the assumption is that the A’s will either make a deal for a shortstop (possibly at the Winter Meetings), sign one on the free agent market (Marco Scutaro, Ronny Cedeno, Cesar Izturis, Jason Bartlett, Alex Gonzalez), or possibly even re-sign Drew if the market for him doesn’t end up getting too hot.
Of course, the team has already picked up closer Grant Balfour’s option, re-signed free agent right-hander Bartolo Colon, and re-signed arbitration eligible players Pat Neshek, Adam Rosales and Daric Barton. For those about to panic, don’t worry, Barton’s contract is not guaranteed, so he can be cut anytime and the A’s won’t owe him another dime. As of Friday night, there was no official word as to whether or not the team had offered contracts to their five remaining arbitration eligible players – outfielder Seth Smith, first baseman Brandon Moss, catcher George Kottaras, left-hander Jerry Blevins and recently-acquired right-hander Chris Resop – but the assumption is that no news is good news and the fact that we didn’t hear anything probably means that the A’s made offers to all these players and thus will retain the rights to them all.
Brandon McCarthy: To leave or not to leave, that is the question.
Of the team’s five remaining major league free agents, two – third baseman Brandon Inge and right-hander Joey Devine – can be expected to move on, while the jury is still out on the remaining three. As mentioned, shortstop Stephen Drew could return if he doesn’t find too many other tempting offers out there. There seems to be some mutual interest in a return engagement for Brandon McCarthy, but other teams are said to be sniffing around the right-hander as well. Oft-injured left-hander Dallas Braden is also on the market, and it’s possible that the northern California boy could sign an incentive-laden deal to stick around the old neighborhood.
As for the A’s minor league transactions, the most significant loss has probably been the signing of minor league free agent first baseman Kila Ka’aihue by Arizona. The most significant minor league addition by the A’s so far has probably been the signing of third baseman/first baseman Scott Moore who signed a minor-league contract with an invitation to spring training. The left-handed hitter made it into 72 games with the Astros in 2012, playing mainly at third base and first base, but he also got in some time at second base and in the outfield. The A’s are likely to make many more minor league signings as the off-season unfolds, though re-signing any of their own remaining minor league free agents is probably unlikely.
Any players who’ve recently been taking up space on the 40-man roster are listed below under Major League transactions, while all other players are listed under Minor League transactions. For all the minor league players, I’ve listed their primary positions as well as the level they spent the most time at in 2012. Just click on any player’s name to see their Baseball-Reference stats page…
Cliff Pennington
MAJOR LEAGUE CHANGES
-Jonny Gomes OF / +Chris Young OF
-Cliff Pennington SS / +TBD SS
-Brandon Hicks IF / +Andy Parrino IF
-Jim Miller RHP / +Chris Resop RHP
-Tyson Ross RHP / +Andrew Werner LHP
Chris Young
+ MAJOR LEAGUE ADDITIONS
Chris Young OF (traded from AZ)
Andy Parrino IF (traded from SD)
Chris Resop RHP (traded from PITT)
Andrew Werner LHP (traded from SD)
- MAJOR LEAGUE SUBTRACTIONS
Jonny Gomes
Jonny Gomes OF (FA signed with BOS)
Cliff Pennington SS (traded to AZ)
Brandon Hicks IF (traded to NYM)
Jim Miller RHP (claimed by NYY)
Tyson Ross RHP (traded to SD)
+ MINOR LEAGUE ADDITIONS
Scott Moore
Scott Moore 3B-1B AAA (minor league FA)
Luke Montz C-1B AAA (minor league FA)
Darwin Perez SS-2B AA (minor league FA)
Garrett Olson LHP AAA (minor league FA)
Justin Thomas LHP AAA (minor league FA)
Mike Ekstrom RHP AAA (minor league FA)
Kyler Newby RHP AA (minor league FA)
- MINOR LEAGUE SUBTRACTIONS
Kila Ka’aihue
Kila Ka’aihue 1B AAA (minor league FA signed with AZ)
Jermaine Mitchell OF AAA (minor league FA)
Wes Timmons IF AAA (minor league FA)
Jason Jaramillo C AAA (minor league FA)
Blake Lalli C AAA (minor league FA signed with MIL)
Matt Rizzotti 1B AA (minor league FA)
Leonardo Gil 3B AA (minor league FA)
A.J. Kirby-Jones 1B A (traded to SD)
Yordy Cabrera SS A (traded to MIA)
Yordy Cabrera
Jeremy Accardo RHP AAA (minor league FA)
Rich Thompson RHP AAA (minor league FA)
Merkin Valdez RHP AAA (minor league FA)
Justin Souza RHP AAA (minor league FA)
Fabio Castro LHP AA (minor league FA)
Beau Jones LHP AA (minor league FA)
Matt McSwain RHP AA (minor league FA)
Jonathan Ortiz RHP AA (minor league FA)
Jose Guzman RHP AA (minor league FA)
Zach Thornton RHP A (traded to PITT)
Grant Balfour
RETURNING FREE AGENTS/ARB ELIGIBLES/OPTIONS
Daric Barton 1B (Arb Eligible Re-Signed)
Adam Rosales IF (Arb Eligible Re-Signed)
Pat Neshek RHP (Arb Eligible Re-Signed)
Bartolo Colon RHP (Free Agent Re-Signed)
Grant Balfour RHP (Option Renewed)
Seth Smith
LIKELY RETURNING ARB ELIGIBLES
Seth Smith OF (Arb Eligible)
Brandon Moss 1B (Arb Eligible)
George Kottaras C (Arb Eligible)
Jerry Blevins LHP (Arb Eligible)
Chris Resop RHP (Arb Eligible)
UNSIGNED MLB FREE AGENTS
Stephen Drew
Stephen Drew SS (MLB Free Agent)
Brandon Inge 3B (MLB Free Agent)
Brandon McCarthy RHP (MLB Free Agent)
Dallas Braden LHP (MLB Free Agent)
Joey Devine RHP (MLB Free Agent)
COMING & GOING
Sandy Rosario RHP (traded from BOS – designated for assignment)
Be sure to like A’s Farm’s page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @AthleticsFarm to keep up with all the news down on the farm!
A’s Farm 12th Ranked MLBlog in 2nd Month!
Scott Hatteberg is clearly pumped about A’s Farm (photo courtesy of Str / Reuters)
Thanks to everyone who’s stopped by for helping make A’s Farm the #12th ranked MLBlog in just its second month!
It’s clear that A’s fans are not just committed to supporting the team at the major league level but also to understanding the organization at every level.
Be sure to stay tuned for more great stuff on all the A’s up and coming young players in the coming weeks as A’s Farm heads to spring training!
A’s Farm in Top 50 MLBlogs in 1st Month!
Dallas Braden takes time out from his rehab to show how pumped he is about A's Farm (AP Photo/San Francisco Chronicle, Carlos Avila Gonzalez)
Thanks to everyone who’s stopped by for making A’s Farm one of the top 50 MLBlogs in its first month out of the box! It just shows the dedication of A’s fans not just to supporting the team at the major league level but to understanding the organization at every level. Stay tuned for more great stuff on all the A’s up and coming young players as the season, and spring training, get underway!
Landon Powell Back In The Fold: So Who’s The A’s Back-Up Catcher?
Landon Powell - go ahead, send me back to Sacramento, I dare ya! (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Catcher Landon Powell cleared waivers and has reportedly gotten over any hurt feelings and decided to accept his assignment to Triple-A Sacramento, with an invitation to spring training. That means that, besides starting catcher Kurt Suzuki, the A’s will have three catchers with some degree of major league experience in camp this spring, all fighting it out for the chance to be Suzuki’s seldom-used back-up.
The 29-year-old Powell has served as the A’s primary back-up catcher for the past three years, averaging just 121 at-bats per season, with a career slash line of .207/.284/.328. 28-year-old backstop Anthony Recker’s line was .176/.333/.235 in just 17 at-bats with the A’s last year. And 26-year-old catcher Josh Donaldson got 32 at-bats with the A’s in 2010, with a .156/.206/.281 line. Recker had an OPS of .889 at Sacramento in 2011, while Donaldson’s Sacramento OPS was .783.
One would think that, with his experience, Powell would have the edge to open the season on the major league roster. That would put Recker and Donaldson back at Sacramento once again, with new acquisition Derek Norris and Ryan Ortiz likely to be the catching duo at Double-A Midland.
What do you think? Should Powell be favored to reclaim the back-up catching job? Should Recker or Donaldson finally be given a real shot at backing up Suzuki? Or does it really even matter who rides the pine behind Suzuki? You can check out all the contestants’ major and minor league stats at the links below…
Landon Powell
Anthony Recker
Josh Donaldson
