Latest Round of Roster Cuts Will Help Athletics
By jbenitez
Feb 18, 2014; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Oakland Athletics pitcher
Philip Humber(47) throws during a workout at Papago Park. Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
The Oakland Athletics recently made some roster cuts to the Spring Training roster, which will result in the A’s winning more Cactus League games. While some of the players were actually doing good, most of the pitchers being sent only gave up runs. Here is a list of the cuts with a brief analysis for each player.
Addison Russel
The A’s top prospect, Addison Russel, managed to impress the club with his time in the big league camp. In his 25 at bats, he got 7 hits, 1 triple and 2 doubles. That’s good for a .280 average.
According to this article, Russel was going to stay with the team until Spring Training games were over. The only reason he isn’t is because he got a hamstring injury, nothing serious, but just as a precaution they sent him to the minor league camps. Russel did well in his time with the A’s in the big league camp, and he managed to impress the coaching staff. Expect to see him in the big leagues by the 2015 season.
Darwin Perez was not on time to camp, being delayed by the chaos in Venezuela. This resulted in him getting hardly any playing time. He played in 2 games, but only had 1 at bat in which he got a hit. It’s hard to evaluate him when he got such little amount of playing time. He seems like a good player, but we can’t really say much about him at this time. At least he will get more playing time in the minor league camps.
Deryk Hooker had a fewer decent innings, but for the most part he was one of the pitchers that would just give up runs. In his first start he allowed the Giants to score 4 times on him in the 9th. But let’s look at his numbers as a whole. He had a 9.53 ERA over 5.2 innings pitched. Not as bad as some of the other pitchers, but not someone to have full confidence in. He was very inconsistent. He would go up there on the mound and shut the other team down for an inning, and at other times he would help contribute to the A’s losing by giving up more than just one run. Overall, he has potential, but him going to the minor league camp gives more time to focus on the actual big league guys, so his leaving is probably for the better.
Matt Buschmann pitched in almost the same amount of innings as Deryk Hooker. He pitched 5 innings, but the difference is in how many runs were allowed. Buschmann’s ERA was at 5.40, significantly lower than that of Hooker. He was a decent pitcher that could escape the game usually undamaged, but with no chance of making the big league roster, his leaving is probably for the best.
Philip Humber
Ah Philip Humber. The man himself, the one who threw a perfect game in 2012. You wouldn’t have recognized him with how he was pitching for the club. Humber being sent to the minor league camps is probably the best thing for both the team and for Humber. He needs to work on his skills with a lower level of talent before making it to the big leagues again. His numbers are absolutely horrible with the A’s in the big league camp. He has an ERA of 16.20 over 5 innings pitched, and has blown a lot of games. Often times it is he who gets the other team going when they make comeback attempts. For example, when the A’s were up 13-6 against the Rangers, he gave up 3 runs and got that momentum for the Rangers going. Humber was a great pitcher at one point, but now he is at the bottom of the barrel, and it’ll take hard work for him to get back to where he once was.
Luke Montz was great for the Athletics this Spring Training, hitting for a .290 average and hitting 2 homeruns, one of which was a walk-off win homerun. He showed the A’s that he can be a good player in the big leagues, but he won’t be on the 25 man roster. Instead the A’s are keeping him in the minors for depth, which as we have recently noticed, is vital to any team surviving. Montz will get called up if there are any injuries and he will actually do well if he does.
Fernando Nieve was not bad in his time with the A’s, but he was also inconsistent. He had some really bad outings as well. They balance each other out, giving him a 3.60 ERA over 5 innings pitched. He won’t be missed too much, and he will probably do even better in the minor league camps.
Jose Martinez wasn’t anything special in Spring Training. He hit for a .240 average over 25 at bats. He was a minor league guy that would get put in closer to the end of the game. He won’t really be missed, and he will also strive better in the minor league camps where he can better develop his talent. Overall, having a regular player go longer instead of sticking Martinez in will help the team overall.