Oakland Athletics No Longer Need Ike Davis

This offseason, the Oakland Athletics completed a trade with the Pittsburg Pirates in order to acquire first baseman Ike Davis. Initially, many did not think that this pick up made sense. However, fans and critics alike soon began to realize that Davis was quite valuable. He was a true first baseman with Gold Glove worthy defensive skills.

But, as the season dragged on, Davis incurred an injury in early May and did not come back until mid-June. Upon his return, his production at the plate dwindled. Davis has only been batting .162 throughout July and August. Then, on Wednesday, Davis was placed back on the DL with a left hip strain.

Even though the Oakland Athletics greatly appreciate Davis’ defensive skills, his offensive production is just not up to par. Additionally, the A’s have a surplus of first baseman to take over for Davis at first. Their defensive ability does not match Davis’, but they are all more equally balanced when it comes to offense and defense.

On the current roster, Oakland has Mark Canha, Stephen Vogt, and Billy Butler who can all cover first. Additionally, it has been reported on Wednesday that Jake Smolinski will see some playing time at first as well, especially with Davis now on the DL. Not counting Butler, these other three players have power bats and their all out playing styles helps them to be adequate defensively at most positions. They are more well rounded than Davis.

Additionally, these three players are under club control until at least 2020. Davis will be a free agent in 2017, so the Athletics should try to trade Davis. If any team is looking for a plus defenseman at first base, Davis is the man for the job. As long as he will be healthy by 2016, it should not be an issue to try and market him to other teams.

Lastly, if the A’s are going to build their team around their future stars, they need to be giving these youngsters more playing time. When Canha was in the minor leagues, the majority of his time was spent at first base. If Oakland wants him to be an effective first baseman in the Majors, they need to start putting him in more games at that position, so he can hone his skills. This last month and a half of this season is the perfect time to do this since the A’s are out of postseason contention.

The same goes for Smolinski. Smolinski has very little experience fielding in this position, so he is going to work with infield specialist Ron Washington in order to prepare. If the A’s want him to be a quality first baseman, they are going to need to give him playing time there as well, so he can gain more experience and develop good defensive reactions at first.

Overall, it just does not make sense for the A’s to keep Davis around anymore. He will be a free agent soon, he has been injured for most of this season, and there are other younger ballplayers who need more MLB experience at first base. It is time to stop relying on Davis’ defense, and look toward Oakland’s new generation of first basemen.

Next: Oakland Athletics' Mark McGwire: Hall of Fame or Hall of Shame?