Some of Billy Beane’s most recent trades have forced Oakland Athletics fans and beat writers to ask one simple question: does the A’s general manager still have it?
From trading away the team’s top two prospects in exchange for starter Jeff Samardzija to moving Yoenis Cespedes for a rental in Jon Lester, Beane was pretty busy during the July trade deadline.
In a vacuum, neither move seemed to make the A’s a worst team short term. Samardzija is under team control for the 2015 season. And while dealing top shortstop prospect Addison Russell in that trade hurt a lot, the A’s did still have another top young shortstop in Daniel Robertson to rely on moving forward.
However, it was the Cespedes trade that proved to be a head-scratcher. Still under team control for 2015 and the most feared hitter in the lineup, the A’s dealt the left fielder away when the team was among the best in baseball. It did so in order to take on a three-month rental in the form of former World Series hero Jon Lester.
It then became clear.
Oakland was going for the gauntlet in 2014. But as we already know, the team struggled a great deal down the stretch before backing into a Wild Card matchup with the Kansas City Royals, a game it would go on to lose in heartbreaking fashion.
Now nearly two months removed from that early postseason exit, the A’s made a trade that doesn’t necessarily mesh with their short-term plans or any of the previous deals that Beane and Co. have made.
Oakland sent All-Star third baseman and 2014 AL MVP candidate Josh Donaldson to the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for Brett Lawrie and three prospects. Moving a 28-year-old franchise cornerstone still years away from him becoming a free agent makes little sense. Doing so after three consecutive postseason appearances makes even less sense.
For his part, former Donaldson teammate and current (for now) A’s right fielder Josh Reddick seemed pretty confused by the move (via SF Gate).
It doesn’t make sense to me,” outfielder Josh Reddick said. “We traded our best player the past two years. It seems like we’re going into a rebuilding drive.
But is that what Beene is looking to do moving forward?
The signing of veteran power hitter Billy Butler to a three-year, $30 million contract earlier this offseason seems to suggest otherwise.
Then again, rumors are swirling around Jeff Samardzija being moved within the next couple days with both the Atlanta Braves and Chicago White Sox as potential trade partners.
This in and of itself makes the entire situation that much more confusing.
Justin Upton, who is set to become a free agent following the 2015 season, has been mentioned in the Samardzija talks. Meanwhile, the White Sox trade rumors surround veteran shortstop Alexei Ramirez as well as a couple young prospects.
Acquiring Upton would be seen as a move for 2015, especially considering the A’s wouldn’t be able to afford him in free agency following the season. If that’s the case, why not keep Cespedes in the first place? After all, one of the primary reasons Oakland moved Cespedes for Lester was the fact that Beane and Co. knew the team wouldn’t be able to afford him long term.
Beane did indicate following the Donaldson trade that the team as it was constructed did have three opportunities to advance in the playoffs but failed each time.
And that could very well be the bottom line here.
Beane isn’t looking to rebuild, he’s looking to retool. If so, there are going to be multiple moves made prior to Spring Training. This could very well include both Samardzija and Scott Kazmir calling new cities home next season. It could also include Reddick and Brandon Moss being shown the door.
In exchange for these veterans, the A’s could acquire a combination of prospects and proven Major League players in order to contend short term with an eye on the long term. We saw this with the Donaldson trade late last week when Oakland picked up the aforementioned Brett Lawrie.
The larger question here is whether the beautiful mind of one Billy Beane is still brilliance wrapped up in a box of crazy or if he is indeed off his rocker in search of some marbles.
I guess we will know soon enough.
Until then, just sit back and watch Beane do what he does best.
Photo: Huffington Post