Oakland ships out two more players
Allen, Lemoine moved to reach new 26-man limit
The A's dizzying roster churn continued Monday when they optioned righthanded reliever Jake Lemoine to Triple-A and designated backup catcher Austin Allen for assignment in order to comply with Major League Baseball's edict requiring teams to trim their rosters from 28 to 26 by May 2.
The A's haven't been shy about shuffling players in and out of their revolvingdoor clubhouse — the season is less than a month old and they've already used 36 players, which is tied with Tampa Bay and Detroit for the most in the American League this season.
So this won't be the last time Lemoine, or perhaps even Allen, appears on the A's roster this season.
“I think the group knows it's going to take an army this year,” A's manager Mark Kotsay said Sunday. “We've already experienced that with COVID, dealing with some injury issues. We've given a lot of guys an
opportunity they may not have had in years past. But it's never easy to send someone out. It's their livelihood and they want to be here.
“It's never an easy message, but the message is to stay prepared, stay ready. Opportunity will exist here and it could be sooner rather than later and then you're back.”
Lemoine made the A's Opening Day roster and appeared in seven games with a 5.56 ERA through 11.1 innings. He was touched up in his last two outings, giving up six runs in four innings, including three runs in 3.1 innings in relief of starter James Kaprelian against Cleveland Sunday.
Allen, who was acquired from San Diego when the A's shipped Jurickson Profar out after the 2019 season, has had a rocky start this season. The left-handed hitting catcher, who spent three days on the COVID-19 injured list two weeks ago, went just 1-for-14 with a walk
and nine strikeouts in five games.
If Allen clears waivers, it's very possible he'll be back at Las Vegas and have an opportunity to return to Oakland at some point. Christian Bethancourt will be starter Sean Murphy's lone backup at catcher, at least until veteran Stephen Vogt returns from a knee injury.
The roster moves leave the A's with 13 pitchers, one below the 14-pitcher maximum limit installed by MLB that took effect Monday, when MLB ended its expanded roster size allowance. The two extra roster spots during the first month of the season were designed to lessen the workload and help pitchers
deal with shortened spring training caused by the league's lockout.
Kotsay will have to adjust a bit now that he has one fewer reliever and one less bench player to utilize.
“There are some variables that get eliminated in terms of moves that can be made throughout the course of a game, the timing of moves,” Kotsay said. “That's something I'll experience for the first time starting (Monday night). I do think we've got a well-rounded versatile roster and we can do some different things that we haven't been able to do in the past because guys play multiple positions.”
Seth Brown has already started games at five different positions and both Billy McKinney and Sheldon Neuse have been at four different spots, while three others (Bethancourt, Jed Lowrie, Tony Kemp and Vogt) have appeared in three different positions.
There's at least one more roster move coming this week for the A's. Outfielder Ramon Laureano's suspension for using performanceenhancing drugs will end Saturday and he'll be eligible to play beginning Sunday in Minnesota.
When he returns, the A's will have another decision — where will he play? The odds are overwhelming that flashy 23-year-old rookie Cristian Pache will remain in center field, where Laureano has spent most of his time with the A's. The speedy Pache represents the A's future and he's already looked comfortable out there while turning in some highlightreel plays.
Laureano will likely spend most of his time in right field, with regular right fielder Stephen Piscotty perhaps spending time in both left field and designated hitter.
Laureano, who served 53 games of his 80-game suspension last season, has been slow to hit his stride at Triple-A Las Vegas. He's hitting just .143 in 21 atbats through six games for the Aviators. He'd also been slowed by a stiff neck that sidelined him for two games late last week.
Laureano will continue his rehab assignment in Sacramento all this week against the Giants' TripleA affiliate before he's scheduled to rejoin the A's in Minnesota.
At some point soon, the A's are also expected to get closer Lou Trivino back from the COVID-19 injured list.
Here's a look at the A's current 26-man roster:
PITCHERS (13): Starters: Frankie Montas, Cole Irvin, Daulton Jefferies, Paul Blackburn, James Kaprelian. Right-handed relievers: Dany Jimenez, Domingo Acevedo, Zach Jackson, Justin Grimm. Left-handed relievers: A.J. Puk, Sam Moll, Kirby Snead, Adam Kolarek.
CATCHERS (2): Sean Murphy, Christian Bethancourt.
INFIELDERS (6): Jed Lowrie, Tony Kemp, Elvis Andrus, Sheldon Neuse, Kevin Smith, Nick Allen.
OUTFIELDER (5): Chad Pinder, Cristian Pache, Stephen Piscotty, Seth Brown, Billy McKinney.