Casilla gets his East Bay address
On the day reliever Santiago Casilla officially joined the A’s, he recited an old saying: “It’s always good to go home, and I’m happy to get this new opportunity with the Athletics.”
Another old saw goes, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” and that captures some of Oakland’s feelings in signing Casilla to a two-year, $11 million contract.
The Giants bade farewell to one of their bullpen stalwarts without making him an offer, instead signing Mark Melancon to close and choosing to hand the setup jobs to younger, cheaper relievers on staff.
Giants fans could not wait for Casilla to clear out his locker after he blew nine saves and pouted about the way
manager Bruce Bochy used him.
Across the bay, the A’s saw Casilla’s messy denouement in San Francisco as an opportunity to bolster their bullpen with a 36-year-old right-hander who started his career with the A’s and who still throws 94 mph.
“As we got through the offseason, we felt he was being overlooked a little because of some of the narratives surrounding his departure with the Giants,” Oakland general manager Dave Forst said Friday. “I wasn’t there. I don’t know what went on, but it seems like a few blown saves toward the end of the year marred what was otherwise a fantastic season for him.
“You look at his peripheral numbers, his command. There was no difference between his 2015 and 2016, and he was considered one of the better closers in the game after 2015.”
The real difference was Casilla’s propensity to give up the big hit last season. Perhaps that will improve with the scenery change. It surely will improve without having to pitch to Diamondbacks third baseman Jake Lamb, who faced Casilla three times and hit three home runs.
Casilla will pitch outside the spotlight of a team expected to compete for a title. Moreover, while Forst said the right things about the closer role being settled in spring training, Casilla almost certainly will set up Ryan Madson, who had 30 saves last year.
Casilla also said the right things about his willingness to pitch in any inning. One revelation supports that. He said he rejected an offer from the Brewers, who needed a closer and signed Neftali Feliz after Casilla chose the A’s.
“I’d like to say I’m very happy and thankful the Athletics let me have the opportunity to win in the Bay Area,” Casilla said through translator Manolo Hernandez Douen. “For me there’s a big part of my heart with the Athletics because I started my career with them. They believed in me when they signed me and they believed in me now when they’ve given me another contract.”
Casilla’s seven years with the Giants ended badly. He was upset he was not used in the ninth inning of the final playoff game against the Cubs, when other relievers melted down and the Giants blew a three-run lead.
Bochy was distressed afterward that he did not have a chance to talk to Casilla, whom he knew the Giants would not re-sign. According to a source, Bochy sent Casilla a heartfelt letter thanking him for his contributions.
Despite the hard feelings, Casilla was said to be heartbroken the Giants did not offer him a contract and said Friday, “I would have been happy to return to the Giants.”
The A’s also said they resigned pitcher Ross Detwiler and signed outfielder Alejandro De Aza to minor-league deals with spring-training invites.