It's the Christmas season for normal people, but baseball fans get more excited this time of year for the winter meetings. We put our general manager hats on, pretend we're Billy Beane and make a wish.
Of course, you have to distinguish between what Beane should, could and will do.
It seems obvious at this point Beane will do whatever he wants and could probably do anything; the man is that crafty.
But hey, let's put that Santa, er, Beane hat on and create a wish list for the Oakland A's GM.
Here are a few trades Beane should pitch at the winter meetings to keep the team competitive for ...
The Oakland Athletics are looking to deal slugger Brandon Moss as part of their rebuilding effort, and the outfielder has reportedly been traded to the Cleveland Indians.
Continue for updates.
Monday, Dec. 8
A's and Indians Reach Deal for Moss
Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reported that a deal between the A's and Indians is done:
On Dec. 4, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reported who the A's were targeting:
The A’s are in discussions that could net them a minor-league infielder from the Indians in exchange for outfielder Brandon Moss. Among the A’s targets, according to big league sources, is Double-A second baseman Joe Wendle, a strong ...
The Oakland Athletics might not be done selling off their most prized assets, as according to Jim Benson of The Pantagraph in Bloomington, Illinois, the A's could be on the verge of sending starting pitcher Jeff Samardzija to the Chicago White Sox.
However, other teams could be involved as well.
Continue for updates.
Sunday, Nov. 30
Samardzija Won't Be Heading to Atlanta, Red Sox Reportedly Interested
John Hickey of the Bay Area News Group reported Samardzija wouldn't be heading to the Braves, while Nick Cafardo of BostonGlobe.com reported the Red Sox are considering the star pitcher:
Numerous teams are trying to obtain the righthander, including the ...
The Oakland Athletics have dealt Josh Donaldson to the Toronto Blue Jays for Brett Lawrie and three players you've never heard of, per the team's Twitter account.
#Athletics trade Josh Donaldson to Toronto for Brett Lawrie, Sean Nolin, Kendall Graveman and Franklin Barreto
— Oakland Athletics (@Athletics) November 29, 2014
The central question here is not whether general manager Billy Beane got a fair return in the trade, but why the American League West club would trade Donaldson at all.
The third baseman is affordably priced and ridiculously productive.
MLBTradeRumors.com projects that the 28-year-old will make $4.5 million via arbitration in 2015, and he can't ...
There are some fantastic free agents on the market this offseason, but the chances of the Oakland A's being major players for any of them are pretty slim.
The signing of Billy Butler may be the biggest signing for Oakland over the winter.
Of course, there's always the option of making a big trade. But for this discussion, we'll take a look at free agents who have been speculated as possible candidates or linked to Oakland.
Also, I have to fully admit to you that I am not in fact a Las Vegas oddsmaker. A wise guy I am not (only in my ...
The Oakland A's sent seven prospects to participate in the Arizona Fall League—which just wrapped up—and one of them nearly missed finishing with the AFL batting title.
Of the bunch, shortstop Daniel Robertson and first baseman Matt Olson are top-five prospects. Outfielder Boog Powell is in the top 20. Pitchers Austin House, Ryan Doolittle, Tanner Peters and Drew Granier joined them in Arizona.
If you didn't watch it yourself, Athletics Farm and Oakland Clubhouse did a fantastic job providing coverage.
And if you didn't follow along with their coverage, here's a cumulative recap of how the seven prospects finished, with grades.Begin Slideshow
Year after year, the Oakland Athletics organization plucks players out of the bargain bin only to see them outperform expectations and contribute more than most expected. It's that funny concept called "moneyball."
This year they face an interesting dilemma: Make a stronger push toward the World Series this year or continue to do what they do (read: moneyball).
The latter is more likely, based on years worth of observation.
Oakland has plenty of pitching and plenty of catchers. They could continue to platoon at first base, and if they choose that route, Nate Freiman and Kyle Blanks could join with Brandon Moss to ...
Most expect the Oakland A's to either trade multiple marquee players and restock the minor league system or make a simple trade here and there for depth.
What if I told you the A's could potentially pull off a surprise trade or two that keeps them as contenders in 2015? Is that something you might be interested in?
First, an example of a "simple trade" from last season would be Alberto Callaspo for Grant Green. A "surprise trade" from 2014 would be more like Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel for Dan Straily, Addison Russell and Billy McKinney. It's one you never saw ...
Oakland's remarkable (and disheartening) second-half collapse in 2014 culminated with a heartbreaking loss to Kansas City in the AL Wild Card Game. In some ways, it was a fitting end to the season, one that saw the A's look unbeatable for a few months before the wheels fell off and it all came crashing down.
With a number of key players heading for free agency and even more due substantial raises through arbitration this winter, general manager Billy Beane may not have much free cash to spend on improvements through free agency.
Then again, Beane could surprise the baseball world as he's ...
If the Oakland A's decide to be sellers this offseason, they have quite a few assets who can help reload the farm. There's an asset or two who can help reel in a big name if they decide to be buyers, too.
First and foremost, listing any player on this list is not an endorsement by this writer to in fact trade them. Said another way, just because Player X is on the list doesn't mean I think or want him to be traded.
The list simply contains the Athletics' top 10 trade assets.
After reading, hit me up on Twitter to let ...