Oakland Athletics: Seven Things Fans Have Learned in 2015
Jul 24, 2015; San Francisco, CA, USA; Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Jesse Chavez (30) reacts after being removed from the game during the fourth inning of the game against the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park. The San Francisco Giants defeated the Oakland Athletics 9-3. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports
Lesson Seven: The Days of Blindly Trusting Billy Beane Are Over
Trusting in Beane to make the right moves has long been a staple of Oakland fandom. While there have certainly been questionable deals, or trades that just didn’t work out the way the team had hoped due to injury or poor performance, there was never a time where the decisions themselves looked poorly planned or as though he failed to do his homework
Lately, the Oakland Athletics’ have seemed to make endlessly bad decisions. Beginning with the contract for Coco Crisp, it’s seemed as though Beane can’t quite decide what direction his team is headed in.
Related: Oakland Athletics Should Give Up on Jesse Chavez as a Starter
Trading away Josh Donaldson, Moss, Samardzija and other All-Stars over the winter was a strange move when combined with a huge contract for designated hitter Billy Butler, as well as the acquisition of Clippard. Was the team buying or selling? Did they want to deal their young players, or simply acquire a few missing pieces?
The returns on the trades, like Wendle or the pair of prospects the A’s received for Kazmir, don’t make as much sense as Beane trades used to make. There isn’t a hidden value to having Wendle. He’s a depth signing made to clear up salary space for Butler and Clippard, which actually doesn’t make any sense at all.
Perhaps there just isn’t enough perspective yet to show what surprisingly great deals those moves were, but it seems like it will be a long time before Oakland Athletics’ fans can trust their general manager again.