Analyzing the Oakland Athletics’ Prospect Haul from Deadline Deals

Jul 18, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Athletics catcher Stephen Vogt (21) celebrates with team after he drove in the walk off run during the tenth inning against the Minnesota Twins at O.co Coliseum. Oakland Athletics won 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Bob Stanton-USA TODAY Sports

Billy Beane has done it again. After the Oakland Athletics stumbled to a 44-56 record going into the July 31st trade deadline, the wizard of trades himself has decided to become a seller. By offering up Oakland’s biggest pieces on the open market, Beane has thrown in the towel on this season, but has tried to jumpstart the future.

One main reason for this, not just because of the team’s failures, is due to the fact that the A’s have a poor farm system. The team only has one player in the top 100 prospects according to MLB.com’s Prospect Watch. That prospect is shortstop Franklin Barretto, who sits at 23 on the list. Peaking at 23 is pretty impressive, but having no other players on the list is an extreme disappointment. The team has prospect Matt Olson, a first basemen, who was recently ranked number 58, but has since fallen off the list.

Oakland Athletics

Not only does a poor farm system mean a poor future, but when the Athletics are in a position to win, they will need assets to make bigger trades. By having a stacked farm system a team is able not only to prepare for the future, but has the ability to make a big deal around the deadline — just ask the Chicago Cubs.

So while the team selling does wave the white flag on this season, Athletics’ fans can at least look forward to the future.

During his latest purge, Beane traded away Scott Kazmir, Tyler Clippard, and Ben Zobrist. Kazmir and Clippard are free agents at the end of the year, while Zobrist is signed through 2016 but is 34.

All three pieces were extremely expendable and have been involved in trade talks for many months going into the deadline. Beane did a very good job in stockpiling prospects for the future with those separate deals.

The A’s may have thrown in the towel on this season, but the prospects they were able to pick up at the trade deadline will help for many years to come.

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