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Archive for February, 2012
One is large. One is small.While not twins, both are 46 and both underwent major makeovers in 1996; unlike the small one, the large one's new look left plenty to be desired.Any and all compliments directed toward the large one's beauty ceased post-makeover. The small one isn't necessarily a knockout, but easily compensates for any physical imperfections by being a regular source of excitement, attracting people from throughout the area looking for fun times.The large one doesn't have much of a future; the combination of age, money issues, and of younger, prettier competitors sprouting up left and right have pushed ...
Somehow the Oakland Athletics have managed to confound its already thin fan base yet again. True to form, the A’s surprisingly won a free agent sweepstakes—that nobody knew they were in—after frugally offloading a multitude of their own players earlier this winter. Trading pitchers Trevor Cahill and Craig Breslow for scraps? Boo. Re-signing fan favorite left-handed starter Dallas Braden? Hooray! Trading All-Star pitcher Gio Gonzalez for prospects? Boo. Re-signing free agent center fielder Coco Crisp? Yay! Trading away closer Andrew Bailey and outfielder Ryan Sweeney for utility players? Boo. Signing the red-hot free agent Cuban outfielder Yoenis Cespedes? Hooray? It’s ...
Manny Ramirez has spent the last two months trying to find a team that is willing to take a chance on signing him.The Oakland A's are making big changes to their roster late in the offseason, so it is no surprise that they would jump in on the disgraced slugger. According to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, the A's are going hard after Ramirez and expect to strike a deal with him soon: "Crisp might find himself welcoming another new teammate soon, a man he knows well. The A's are likely to sign former Boston star Manny Ramirez just before ...
Over the years, the Oakland A's have parted ways with some serious talent. Sometimes this was just trading a prospect they underestimated for a veteran they ultimately overvalued; but generally it was due to budgetary reasons. If the A's had the payroll of, say, the New York Yankees or Boston Red Sox, it's possible that their currently weak lineup could've been filled with multiple All-Stars.I obviously have hindsight on my side, but just to play devil's advocate, I thought it would be interesting to see just what the A's might've looked come 2012 Opening Day if payroll wasn't an issue. ...
The Oakland Athletics did with Yoenis Cespedes what the Los Angeles Angels did with Albert Pujols and the Detroit Tigers did with Prince Fielder. They swooped in out of left field and stole him.As it was first reported by Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports, the A's signed Cespedes to a four-year contract worth $36 million on Monday. It's not the kind of deal any of us expect Billy Beane to make given his track record, and it goes without saying that he's rolling the dice in a big way.But what the heck? As Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports argued, the ...
The Oakland A's shocked the baseball world on Monday by agreeing to a contract with Cuban outfielder Yoenis Cespedes that will pay him $36 million over four years. Considering all the money that he is going to make, there will be a lot of pressure on the team to start him right away. Unfortunately for the fans that are anxious to watch him play, that should not be the way that the A's handle Cespedes. As of right now, we don't know how the team plans to handle him coming into spring training because his contract can't be finalized until he takes ...
Yoenis Cespedes agreed to a four year deal to play for the Oakland Athletics, making the once destitute A's lineup look somewhat threatening again. General Manager Billy Beane swooped in at the eleventh hour to sign the Cuban star before he was to return to the Dominican Republic after the Miami Marlins offered their pitch. What was once a team that was projected to finish dead last in the AL West, no, make that Major League Baseball, has just possibly boosted their potential wins total by signing the slugger. No one expected the team, whose offseason philosophy looked like a fire ...
That's funny, I was under the impression the Oakland Athletics had neither the cash nor the motivation to sign a big-name slugger with a bright future.The A's proved me wrong by agreeing to terms with Cuban outfielder Yoenis Cespedes on Monday. The deal, which was first reported by Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports, is for four years and $36 million. It is believed the A's outbid the Miami Marlins for Cespedes' services.You have to hand it to the A's for making this signing. By trading away Trevor Cahill, Gio Gonzalez and Andrew Bailey this offseason, the consensus among baseball fans (and more ...
The Oakland Athletics are led by a man who has become the face of Moneyball, the idea that winning baseball teams can be built by valuing baseball statistics like on-base percentage more rather than batting average and home runs.Billy Beane, the general manager in Oakland, has been known to build up the Athletics primarily through the farm system, then trade away for draft picks and rebuild once again.This year was no exception, as Oakland parted ways with its top two starting pitchers, Trevor Cahill and Gio Gonzalez, and closer Andrew Bailey.Oakland restocked with future prospects like pitcher Brad Peacock and catcher Derek Norris from Washington ...
In an astonishing and shrewd move, the Oakland Athletics snuck out of nowhere and snagged the coveted Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes, signing him to a four-year, $36 million deal, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Interestingly, the 26-year-old center fielder was offered longer-term contracts (reportedly $40 million over six years by the Miami Marlins), but he actually wanted fewer years so as not to be locked into one place for too long. Good thing he selected Oakland. For one, he won’t be in the city of Oakland for very long, if the Athletics have their way—because the team won’t be ...