A’S BREAKDOWN

Another A’s roster blow up looms

Closer Trevor Rosenthal, one of the final pieces added to the A’s offseason puzzle, alluded to a fact about puzzles: It’s the preexisting structure that creates the fit.

“Even before I was part of the equation, I think this team was built to win,” said Rosenthal, who signed his $11 million deal in the first week of spring training. “They had pretty much at that point replaced anything they had lost — or maybe even upgraded in some areas.

“I think that’s very exciting. And feeling this team already had the talent, already had the depth, then to add a couple more pieces on top of that like myself, is really exciting.”

For much of a slow winter in baseball, it was unclear how the A’s would respond to significant departures from a roster that won the AL West in the pandemicshortened 2020 season. Then came February’s flurry of activity: the trade for shortstop Elvis Andrus, the acquisitions of four veteran relievers — including the flamethrower Rosenthal — to bolster the bullpen and the lefthandedhitting Mitch Moreland to balance the lineup. When manager Bob Melvin addressed his team on Day 1 of fullsquad workouts this spring, his message was clear: For the A’s, who have won the equivalent of 97 games each of the past three seasons, there will be no lowering of expectations for 2021.

“I don’t think there should be any surprise,” A’s general manager David Forst said early in camp. “There’s a group of position players who we have every reason to believe are going to continue to get better. … And we return a very good rotation and we’ve now added stability at shortstop and made improvements to the bullpen. So I hope it’s not a surprise that we expect to compete and defend the division title.”

Oakland’s winning percentage of .599 over the past three seasons is third best among AL teams after the Astros (.622) and Yankees (.615). Yet, to observers, it can seem like their hourglass is perpetually low.

Part of the A’s way, of course, has been to trade stars before they reach free agency and resist longterm deals, narrowing the window to win with specific cores. The A’s were widely panned this winter, albeit after 2020 sapped revenues, for not making a greater effort to resign Marcus Semien, a Bay Area native and 2019 MVP finalist who ended up in Toronto on a oneyear deal. The subsequent trade of Khris Davis for Andrus also provided the A’s payroll flexibility and led to the signings of Rosenthal and others. Still, Oakland owns a projected Opening Day payroll of $82.4 million, per Cot’s Baseball Contracts, that ranks 23rd in the majors.

Meanwhile, decisions hover over the horizon. Cornerstone infielders Matt Chapman and Matt Olson reached their first year of arbitration eligibility this offseason. Starters Chris Bassitt and Sean Manaea have one arbitration year left, as does Chad Pinder, and Mark Canha is set to hit free agency next winter. The A’s stuck to oneyear deals this offseason and so have just two players, Andrus and Stephen Piscotty, under contract past 2021 (reliever Jake Diekman has a club option for 2022).

Melvin, who has guided the A’s to six postseason appearances in 10 seasons, also is tied to them beyond this season only by a club option for 2022. And vice president of baseball operations Billy Beane, the “Moneyball” architect whose A’s teams have made the playoffs 11 times in the past 21 seasons, was reportedly prepared to depart this offseason before a merger between his investment group and Red Sox parent company Fenway Sports Group fell through.

All of which leads to the question: If the A’s are going to make a deep playoff run with this core, is it this year or not at all?

The A’s ran away with the AL West in last year’s 60game sprint even with key players struggling or absent. Chapman, the Platinum Glove third baseman, missed the final month and playoffs after hip surgery. Olson’s numbers dipped, and he wasn’t alone as Oakland ranked 17th in the majors in OPS after two years in the top 10. This spring has hinted at a resurgence: Chapman looks fully recovered from surgery, while Olson was the A’s hottest hitter in Cactus League games. “We were lucky enough to still make a good run at it (in 2020), and that’s a testament to the team we had,” Olson said. “But with the talent we have, there’s still a lot of room for improvement. We weren’t necessarily tearing the cover off the ball last year as a unit, so I think we’re going to take a lot of pride in that and try to go out there and be one of the best offensive teams in the league.”

After leading MLB in 2020 bullpen ERA, the A’s lost anchors Liam Hendriks and Joakim Soria and replaced them with Rosenthal and Sergio Romo, also resigning the valuable Yusmeiro Petit and acquiring Adam Kolarek as a second lefthander to pair with Diekman. The rotation was less consistent but returns intact, with Bassitt coming off a breakout season, Jesús Luzardo eyeing his first 162game slate and top prospect A.J. Puk poised to contribute if at last healthy.

“I think if we all stay healthy and pitch to our potential, we’re definitely one of the best rotations in Major League Baseball,” Manaea said. “Having that camaraderie with each other, it’s being critical of each other and talking between starts and saying ‘You could’ve done this,’ or ‘What happened in this situation?’ ... With this group I think that’s what we need to do is be vocal with each other and continue to grow as a unit.”

The A’s achieved goals in 2020 of unseating the Astros atop the division and winning a playoff series (for the first time since 2006), but they fell to Houston in a neutralsite ALDS. The Astros again appear an obstacle. Baseball Prospectus’ PECOTA projections have Houston winning the AL West, with the A’s finishing third also behind the improved Angels.

Many of Oakland’s additions have deep playoff experience. Andrus played in two World Series with the Rangers. Rosenthal reached one with the Cardinals. Romo pitched in three with the Giants. Kolarek won one last year with the Dodgers. For the A’s, who endured early playoff exits the past three years, it’s a stage they aspire to reach.

“I think everyone has the same mentality, everyone wants to get back there and show that we can all do it, we can get to the World Series,” Luzardo said. “Me, personally, I stand along those lines as well. I’m extremely eager to get back to the postseason, show what I can do. Hopefully we do that this year and get a lot of wins in the postseason as well.”