Oakland Athletics: Need for Speed
This off-season we’ve seen the Oakland Athletics rid themselves of basically all of their power-hitters. No need to name names, we’ve heard them regurgitated for more than a month now. But, when you look back at the roster the Athletics had prior to August of last season, you’ll notice about 70 home runs missing. What is the A’s main focus now? Speed.
The A’s outfield could potentially be a plethora of speed. Even with Coco Crisp, who stole 19 bases last year, aging, the Athletics still boast road runners in the likes of Sam Fuld and Craig Gentry, both of whom stole 20 bases last season. Gentry stole his 20 in only 93 games and Fuld stole 21 in 113, split between multiple teams.
But, that’s not where the speed ends; Billy Burns who was called up last season is known for being a speed demon. From the videos of him scoring from second on a sac fly to his countless stolen bases without a throw, Burns shows he has the potential to be a pivotal part of A’s late game offense, if nothing else.
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The A’s only stole a total of 83 bases last season, a number good enough for 21st in the league and a number that must go up with the A’s losing the majority of their power. Including last season’s trades, the A’s lost four of their top five home run hitters and their top-four RBI men. Josh Reddick is the only remaining Athletic that had more than nine home runs last season.
A new way of playing could be what the A’s need, since for the most part, A’s postseason struggles have been from lack of home run hitting anyway. The Athletics have seen seasons come to ends due to not getting the big hit when it matters most, but with speed on the base paths, you can move a runner up and score him in a variation of ways. That may be the best best for the A’s going forward.
A little power doesn’t hurt, but in the words of Mick from Rocky II: We need speed. Speed’s what we need. Greasy, fast speed.