A’s send down 15 in first spring cuts, but many still there
MESA, Ariz. — Starting pitchers James Kaprielian and Grant Holmes were among 15 players the A’s reassigned to the minors Monday in the first wave of moves to pare down their roster.
For now, those moves are largely procedural. Minorleague camp opens in April, so the players sent down Monday will still work out at the A’s complex and could still appear in Cactus League games.
“I tell them, ‘Take one step back, now you’re sent down,’ ” manager Bob Melvin said. “Because we’re all here in the same place, there’s nowhere to go. I tell them basically it’s a paper move. We’re splitting them up a little bit as far as (practice) fields go at this point. But it’s the first time I’ve ever made a round of cuts and then been looking them in the eyes the next day.
“I wouldn’t say it’s awkward, but it’s different.”
Seven players on the 40man roster were reassigned to minorleague teams. With Kaprielian and Holmes, reliever Miguel Romero and outfielders Luis Barrera, Skye Bolt and Greg Deichmann were optioned to TripleA Las Vegas. Reliever Wandisson Charles was optioned to DoubleA Midland.
Pitchers Cristian Alvarado, Paul Blackburn, Parker Dunshee, Montana DuRapau, Brian Howard, Brian Schlitter and Trey Supak, and catcher Kyle McCann, nonroster invitees, were technically reassigned to minorleague camp.
None of the pitching cuts were too surprising. The A’s could need a fifth starter if Mike Fiers can’t open the season in the rotation, but A.J. Puk, Daulton Jefferies and Cole Irvin are still in camp. Melvin said that Kaprielian and Holmes, who started in early spring games, “both impressed.”
“And just because they’ve been reassigned or sent down doesn’t mean they’re still not on our radar,” Melvin said. “When we have starting pitchers and now our relievers are pitching in bigleague games, too, there’s just not enough innings for these guys to get their pitch counts up to where they’re ready for a season. It’s just as much about that as it is cutting down numbers.”
Cutting Barrera, Bolt and Deichmann pares down competition for a potential backup outfielder job. Notably not among the first wave of cuts: Buddy Reed, the nonroster invite who has stood out in Cactus League games and made a leaping catch at the wall Sunday. Ka’ai Tom, Seth Brown and Cody Thomas are the other backup outfielder candidates still in majorleague camp.
Reed is “definitely on our radar,” Melvin said. “You look at the playing time he’s getting right now and that has a lot to do with the fact that he’s performing well. That’s what it’s all about — you perform well, you get reps. I didn’t expect him to be getting as many atbats” as he is.
Other nonroster players still in bigleague camp include infielders Jed Lowrie, Nick Allen, Pete Kozma, Frank Schwindel and Jacob Wilson, and catchers Francisco Peña, Carlos Pérez and 2020 firstround draft pick Tyler Soderstrom. The A’s have 50 players still in camp, including 33 on the 40man roster.