Oakland Athletics: Aaron Brooks Recharges Rotation

Billy Beane giveth, and Billy Beane taketh.

If you follow the Oakland Athletics, you don’t need me to tell you that Beane is quite ambitious when it comes to trades and player signings. Prior to 2015’s trade deadline, he certainly made a few roster moves that should cause some excitement (and maybe hope). These deals included the giveaway of players such as Ben Zobrist, Tyler Clippard, and Scott Kazmir.

I’ve asserted numerous times that I hate Ben Zobrist for how little he contributed to the A’s. Oakland acquired him to be a utility guy that can play multiple positions. Even more importantly, he was supposed to spark the team’s offensive attack.

Guess what. Zobrist did the opposite of help the offense. He was an utter nuisance who should not have batted as high in the order as the team allowed. I wanted to pull my hair out whenever I saw Zobrist placed in vital spots in the order. To me, vital spots means anything from one through five in the batting order.

Anybody could guess that Beane’s decision to sign the expensive Zobrist infuriated me. However, nothing will hurt me more than when the A’s dealt Josh Donaldson to the Toronto Blue Jays.

Basically, there were four bright spots on the A’s that kept me happy to be a fan. Billy Burns, Sonny Gray, Stephen Vogt, and Josh Reddick have all preformed consistently well this season. Neither of these four cost too terribly much, so there’s a good chance people won’t have to mourn the loss of these fan-favorite players. It would also be great for Sean Doolittle to make a healthy, energized return. Doolittle is a fantastic closing pitcher, and he could be a key to the A’s pitching for many years.

Also, considering the moves Beane made this past week, the A’s don’t plan on making a push for the postseason. Instead, the organization has their sights set on the future, and they couldn’t be in a better position to ensure success in the coming seasons.

More specifically, the A’s are rebuilding for a young and effective starting pitcher rotation. Aside from Sonny Gray, the starting pitching has been inconsistent all season. Considering the fact that Oakland wasn’t doing well even with their expensive veteran, Scott Kazmir, it made sense to seek younger talent.

It seems that Oakland plans to build their new rotation around the young, brilliant Sonny Gray. Through the Ben Zobrist deal, the A’s acquired a 25 year-old pitcher named Aaron Brooks from the Kansas City Royals.