Sports Radio Service


		Who is going to be here next year? By Jerry Feitelberg August 12, 2011

	Here we are in mid-August and we see that the A's aren't going anywhere this year. The front office will have to make a lot of decisions at the end of the year. Will they try to re-sign their veteran players or will they let them walk. Do they want to increase the payroll? Do they want to win? The A's are making money as they are the beneficiaries of MLB revenue sharing. Right now the A's have several journeymen players and some young good players but they do not have any great players on the roster. Is there anyone on this team that you would pay to see play. The pitching was supposed to be the A's strong point but Cahill and Gonzalez have been just average. Brandon McCarthy, Guillermo Moscoso and Rich Harden may or may not be back next year. The A's almost traded Harden but the deal fell through when the Red Sox medical staff said that Harden was to much of a gamble due to his fragility. The bullpen has been iffy too. Grant Balfour and Andrew Bailey have performed as expected but Brian Fuentes, Craig Breslow and Michael Wuertz have been so-so. The A's traded Brad Ziegler and Jerry Blevins has bounced up and down like a yo-yo. Josh Outman, Joey Devine and Tyson Ross are question marks. Can Dallas Braden and Brett Anderson bounce back from injuries. Anderson will be out a bit longer as he had Tommy John surgery. The Following position players are signed through the 2011 season and decisions will have to be made on whether or not to re-sign them or let them go as free agents. Center Fielder Coco Crisp will be a free agent at the end of the year. Crisp is an “ignitor”. He makes things happen so the smart money says that the A's will want him back. Another player the A's will want to keep is left fielder Josh Willingham. Willingham is hitting just .249 for the season but leads the club in Home runs and runs batted in. The A's will try to keep Willingham in the fold. After that, things get a bit dicey. Will Hideki Matsui return? Tough decision to make. Matsui had a terrible first half of the season hitting just .210 prior to the All-Star break. Since the break he has been on fire and raised his average to .268. Did the change in managers help Matsui? Possibly. Manager Bob Melvin installed him in the three hole and did not platoon him.Another factor in the decision will be Matsui's age. He will be 38 years old next year and his skills may be on the decline. David DeJesus,Rich Harden, Conor Jackson, Ryan Sweeney and Scott Sizemore may or may not be back with the club. DeJesus has had a terrible year hitting about fifty points below his career average. He is in his mid-thirties and the A's may be content not signing him for next year. Conor Jackson is a versatile player hitting .263 for the season and the A's may want to keep him if the can sign him for a reasonable amount. Same goes forRyan Sweeney. Sweeney hits for average but does not have any power. He is a fourth outfielder and The A's probably would like to keep him but Sweeney may want to find greener pastures. Scott Sizemore came over in a trade with Detroit earlier this year and has played fairly well. He is currently hitting .240 for the season and appears to be a valuable utility man. The A's will have players coming up from the minor leagues on September first and that will be the time to evaluate players such as Chris Carter, Michael Taylor and Brandon Allen. The A's need to improve at first and third base as well as the outfield. Catcher Kurt Suzuki has not had a good year but he is signed through 2013. Looks like it will be an interesting off season for the A's.