The Athletics acquired P Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel from the Chicago Cubs. In the process they gave up top prospect SS Addison Russell, Billy McKinney, and Dan Straily. The real loss is Addison Russell. Trading him signifies that Oakland is in win now mode. Russell is one of those special players that don't come along very often. I'd say the closet comparison is a slightly lesser version of Troy Tulowitzki. This a kid with huge power and he can actually hit for average. He is a decent baserunner, and he plays slightly above-average defense. Oakland usually builds their team around players like Russell. They like the superstars that they can keep under control for cheap for a couple years. Russell, when he arrived, would've improved the team a lot. He could've taken over for Lowrie at short, or moved Lowrie to 2B. It was a big move for Oakland. They also let go of a young pitcher. Straily is only 25 still, and he is still developing. He didn't do great in the bigs this year, but that is most likely due to the fact that the hitters adjusted and he didn't. So he is still learning. McKinney isn't great right now, but I believe at worst he would be a solid fourth outfielder. He is a young kid with some contact issues right now, but he is 19 in the minors. He has time to learn and grow. I know I am making this sound like Oakland made a bad deal, and they might have, but that can't be decided right now and we haven't gotten to what they have gained. I will preface this by saying Hammel was just plain awful in the AL last season. He did play in the high pressure AL East, but he wasn't a solid pitcher at all last year. This year he had reinvented himself and has become a respectable pitcher. I am currently attributing that to the switch to the NL, but we will wait and see. The huge gain is Samardzija. He has always been a good pitcher, but this year he has turned into a great pitcher. He essentially gives Oakland two aces with Sonny Gray already the ace of the staff. Oakland already had one scary pitching staff and it just got a whole lot scarier. The already ridiculous run differential Oakland owns can grow to hysterical proportions. Look at this project rotation.
- Sonny Gray
- Jeff Samardzija
- Scott Kazmir
- Jason Hammel
- Jesse Chavez
I wouldn't want to face any of these pitchers ever, but having to go up against three of them at a time is just downright not fair. This has the potential to be the best rotation in baseball. Obviously there are casualties, though. Tommy Milone and Brad Mills will be moved the the bullpen most likely, or they will be traded. It sucks for them, but Oakland didn't see them as the best fit for the rotation. In the end Oakland gave up a lot for a little less then they will likely receive. But if they win a World Series, I am sure it will be worth it.