Breaking Down Oakland Athletics’ Possible Trade Suitors
Jul 18, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Scott Kazmir (26) comes out of the game during the ninth inning against the Minnesota Twins at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Bob Stanton-USA TODAY Sports
With the July 31st MLB Trade Deadline closing in, the Oakland Athletics’ trade clock is ticking. To sell or not to sell? That is the question. There’s a more than likely possibility that the decision to commit to either could be made more based off the incoming offers – which there will definitely be – more than the team’s current performance. If A’s general manager Billy Beane doesn’t feel like he is going to get a decent haul for whichever players contending teams are shopping for, then he won’t sell. Fortunately for him at least, with the amount of ‘buyers’ that seem to be on the market looking for pieces that Oakland possesses, it doesn’t seem like he will have to deal with that problem.
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Over the last month or so there have been plenty of rumors concerning teams interested in the most sought after A’s pieces: Scott Kazmir, Ben Zobrist, and Tyler Clippard. However two more impact players in the form of Josh Reddick and Jesse Chavez will both become free agents at the end of the 2016 season, so they also have the possibility of being dealt as well. The goal for any return from these players – along with whomever else could be thrown in a deal – should be starting pitching and the outfield. These are the two areas the A’s seem to be lacking the most talent throughout the entirety of their system.
There are many teams across both leagues involved in A’s trade rumors. Most of these suitors bring a lot to the table in terms of what they want and what they would be willing to give up. In the following slides, the teams are ranked based on their likeliness to actually enter trade talks with Oakland over these next eight days.
Next: The First Two Teams Out