Billy Butler is one of several new faces on the A's team. (Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports)
A’s manager Bob Melvin has had an unusually long to-do list during spring training this year while handling a team that was overhauled during a trade-filled offseason.
Incorporate five newcomers into the starting lineup? Check. Third baseman Brett Lawrie, shortstop Marcus Semien, second baseman Ben Zobrist, first baseman Ike Davis and designated hitter Billy Butler are all expected to be in the Opening Night lineup on April 6 when the A’s host Texas. Zobrist, however, will likely be in right field the first few games, filling in for the injured Josh Reddick.
Fill three openings in the rotation? Check. Although the official announcement hasn’t come, right-handers Jesse Hahn and Kendall Graveman — a pair of offseason trade acquisitions — and lefty Drew Pomeranz will likely join
Sonny Gray and Scott Kazmir in the rotation.
Choose a closer to fill in until left-hander Sean Doolittle recovers from an injury to his pitching shoulder? Check. Right-hander Tyler Clippard, another offseason addition, will fill that role.
Establish some chemistry and confidence going into the season? Check. With Opening Night less than a week away, the A’s owned baseball’s best record in spring training at 19-9 after beating Colorado 11-2 on March 30.
“It’s always nice to win some games,” Melvin said. “I think with a new group, on what we’ve accomplished the last three years, we want them to know that winning is important.”
The A’s made the playoffs each of the past three seasons, averaging 92.7 wins per year.
“Winning puts us in a good spot and gives us some confidence going into the season,” Kazmir said.
ROSTER REPORT
ROTATION:
1. RHP Sonny Gray
2. RHP Jesse Hahn
3. LHP Scott Kazmir
4. RHP Kendall Graveman
5. LHP Drew Pomeranz
The A’s ended last season with a starting rotation of Jon Lester, Jeff Samardzija, Gray, Kazmir and Jason Hammel. Lester and Hammel signed with the Cubs as free agents. The A’s traded Samardzija to the Chicago White Sox. That left Gray and Kazmir as the only returning members of the rotation when spring training began.
Gray, who was named the A’s Opening Night starter, and Kazmir, a 2014 All-Star, will anchor a young but promising rotation that will likely include Hahn, Graveman and Pomeranz.
Hahn went 7-4 with a 3.07 ERA last year as a rookie for San Diego, but he made just 12 starts. Graveman, a rookie, is 3-0 with a 0.42 ERA this spring, but he has never started a regular-season major-league game. He made five relief appearances last season for Toronto.
Pomeranz went 5-4 with a 2.35 ERA in 20 appearances, including 10 starts, last season, and he lowered his spring training ERA to 2.04 on March 30, blanking Colorado on two hits for six innings. But he has only 40 career
regular-season starts in the big leagues and is 9-18 with a 4.24 ERA overall.
Hahn, Graveman and Pomeranz need to prove they can be solid major-league starters over the course of an entire season. For that matter, Kazmir has some questions to answer after fading down the stretch last season.
Right-handers Jarrod Parker and A.J. Griffin, both recovering from Tommy John surgery, could be ready by June to reclaim spots in the rotation. Jesse Chavez, expected to be Oakland’s long reliever, had success in the rotation last year.
It doesn’t appear as if left-hander Barry Zito will make the A’s roster, but he posted a 2.30 ERA in his first five appearances, including one start, and could wind up starting for another major-league team. If he isn’t traded and
agrees to pitch for Triple-A Nashville, Zito could be first in line for a call-up if another A’s starter falters.
BULLPEN:
RHP Tyler Clippard (closer)
RHP Dan Otero
LHP Eric O’Flaherty
LHP Fernando Abad
RHP R.J. Alvarez
RHP Evan Scribner
RHP Jesse Chavez
The A’s pride themselves on having one of baseball’s deepest bullpens, but that depth will be tested severely early in the season and possibly longer. Closer Sean Doolittle spent spring training recovering from a slight tear in his left rotator cuff and will open the season on the disabled list. The A’s bullpen took another blow when right-handed setup man Ryan Cook was optioned to Triple-A Nashville on March 24 after his spring training ERA soared to 16.88.
Clippard, acquired from Washington in an offseason trade, will fill in for Doolittle. A two-time National League All-Star, Clippard went 7-4 with a 2.18 ERA in 75 relief appearances last year as a setup man for the Nationals. Dan Otero, one of manager Bob Melvin’s most versatile and trusted relievers, will take over Cook’s role as Oakland’s right-handed setup man, at least until Cook fixes some glaring problems with his control and mechanics and earns a promotion from Nashville. Otero went 8-2 with a 2.35 ERA in 72 appearances last year, striking out 45 and walking 15. Left-hander Eric O’Flaherty, who’s tough against both left- and right-handed batters, will see more late-innings work, too.
Alvarez, acquired along with RHP Jesse Hahn from San Diego in the Derek Norris trade, gives the A’s a power arm in their bullpen. Melvin should find a way to take advantage of Alvarez’s mid-to-high 90s fastball. Last year, he had a 1.13 ERA in 10 relief appearances for the Padres, striking out nine batters over eight innings. Chavez, still a long shot to earn a spot in the rotation, is expected to be the A’s long reliever.
LINEUP:
1. LF Coco Crisp
2. CF Sam Fuld or Craig Gentry
3. RF Ben Zobrist
4. DH Billy Butler
5. 1B Ike Davis
6. 3B Brett Lawrie
7. C Stephen Vogt
8. SS Marcus Semien
9. 2B Eric Sogard
The A’s lost a lot of offensive power during the offseason when they traded 3B Josh Donaldson to Toronto, 1B/OF Brandon Moss to Cleveland and C Derek Norris to San Diego, moves that came just months after they sent OF Yoenis Cespedes to Boston. But their revamped lineup has displayed some potential in Arizona.
Through games of March 29, the A’s led the major-leagues with 78 doubles, were tied for 10th in home runs with 25 and ranked seventh in batting average at .277.
Butler, who had just nine home runs last year for Kansas City, is trying to recapture his power stroke of 2012, when he hit 29 homers and drove in 111. Butler has four doubles and four home runs in spring training. He’s tied for the
team lead in home runs with 1B/OF Mark Canha, a Rule 5 pickup, and Lawrie, who hit two home runs March 30 against Colorado.
Zobrist raised his average to .347 with a 2-for-3 day against Colorado. He had his sixth double of spring training and three RBIs, giving him 14.
The A’s will be without RF Josh Reddick for at least the first five games of the season. Reddick (strained right oblique) will open the season on the disabled list. The versatile Zobrist, who spent most of spring training at
second base, is expected to start in right field on Opening Night against the Texas Rangers on April 6, with Eric Sogard starting at second.
There’s also still a chance that Crisp (sore right elbow) could be on the disabled list for Opening Night, which would force Melvin to juggle his lineup even more.
RESERVES:
INF/OF Mark Canha
C Josh Phegley
INF/OF Tyler Ladendorf
Canha, a powerful right-handed hitter, should see significant time at first base against left-handers. He hit .303 with 20 home runs and 82 RBIs last season for Triple-A New Orleans. Canha can also play the corner outfield spots and has experience playing third base.
Phegley is known most for his strong throwing arm and defense, but he has also shown some offensive pop during spring training. Phegley, a right-handed hitter, had seven doubles and two homers through games of March 30. Last year, he hit .274 with 23 home runs in 107 games for Triple-A Charlotte. He’s expected to start most of Oakland’s games against left-handed pitchers, sharing time with returning catcher Stephen Vogt.
Ladendorf is likely to be on the Opening Night roster, taking the spot that opened because of Reddick’s injury, although OF Billy Burns is another possibility. Ladendorf’s ability to play multiple positions in the infield and
outfield gives him the edge. He also opened some eyes by hitting .288 with 12 RBIs in his first with five doubles and a home run in his first 23 spring games. Burns countered with a .403 average and a team-high 27 hits in his first 23 games.
MEDICAL WATCH:
–RF Josh Reddick (strained right oblique) was injured March 6. He returned to action March 29 in a minor-league game but will open the season on the disabled list. He’s expected to play a rehab game April 6 for Class-A Stockton. He might miss only five games before being activated.
–CF Coco Crisp (sore right elbow) left the March 8 game. He returned to the lineup March 17 but was a late scratch from the lineup March 24 and had a cortisone injection that day. He’s scheduled play in a minor-league game March 31. It’s still unclear whether he’ll be on the roster for Opening Night.
–LHP Sean Doolittle (strained left shoulder) received a platelet-rich plasma injection in January. He passed a strength test on Feb. 28 and played catch March 27 for the first time since being shut down in January. Doolittle will
open the season on the disabled list.
–RHP Jarrod Parker (Tommy John surgery in March 2014) threw to hitters March 15 for the first time since his surgery. Barring a setback, he should be able to return at midseason.
–1B Nate Freiman (strained back) hopes to be ready for Opening Day.
–LHP Sean Nolin (sports hernia surgery in November 2014) threw his first bullpen session March 15. He is unlikely to be ready for the start of the season.
–RHP A.J. Griffin (Tommy John surgery in April 2014) went on the 60-day disabled list Feb. 28. Barring a setback, he could return as soon as June.
–RHP Taylor Thompson (strained right shoulder) went on the 60-day disabled list Feb. 26.
