Oakland Athletics’ Top Free Agent Targets for 2016

Jul 25, 2014; Arlington, TX, USA; Oakland Athletics center fielder Yoenis Cespedes (52) bats during the game against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Park in Arlington. The Rangers defeated the Athletics 4-1. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

There are plenty of free agents on the market heading into this off-season, and the Oakland Athletics are sure to inquire about many of them. It will be interesting to see if new General Manager David Forst wields any power of his own underneath Billy Beane, or if management of the team remains the same as it has since Beane’s tenure with the A’s began. Either way, the Athletics need help across the board if they want to become a contender again next year. With that in mind, the Swingin’ A’s staff took a look at available free agents and the team’s current needs, and each writer explained who they would try to sign if they were GM:

If you could pick one (realistic) free agent for the A’s to sign this off-season, who would it be and why?

After the bullpen posted a collective 4.63 ERA in 2015, allowing 74 home runs and 177 walks in just 509 innings, relief pitching is probably the biggest need heading into 2015. The A’s will likely bring back Sean Doolittle and Drew Pomeranz, but after that, the remaining spots are up in the air.

The offense is another area of need, especially in left field and the middle of the infield. The A’s consistently played below replacement-level in left field, and it doesn’t seem like Coco Crisp has the stamina needed to reclaim the job. Eric Sogard is a great role player, but having him as an everyday infielder is certainly not the best the team can do, given the caliber of today’s second basemen.

There’s also no such thing as too much starting pitching. Although the Athletics have plenty of starters lined up to compete for a rotation spot this spring, the rash of injuries at the end of 2015 just goes to show that depth is always a valuable asset. With nearly all of the team’s top pitchers returning from some kind of injury, there’s no guarantee that everyone will be fully healthy in time for Spring Training.

And now, without further adieu, here’s what the staff had to say:

Next: Free Agent Targets: Relief Pitching

Jun 13, 2015; Baltimore, MD, USA; Baltimore Orioles relief pitcher Darren O’Day (56) pitches during the ninth inning against the New York Yankees at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Baltimore Orioles defeated New York Yankees 9-4. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Scott Harris: The free agent I would go after would be Darren O’Day. My choice will likely be the least sexy of the bunch, so let me explain. The A’s are rarely big spenders when it comes to free agents. When it comes to signing a free agent bat or starting pitcher, you will be hard-pressed to find a player who falls in the realm that the A’s are comfortable spending unless there is a significant amount of risk involved. The most obvious example would be Billy Butler who received a 3-year $30 million contract which would have been a bargain for the 2012 version that hit .313 with 29 HR’s but overpriced for the .251 average and 15 HR’s that we received.

Oakland’s greatest need going into 2015 is to strengthen their bullpen that gave up the most runs in the American League and the 2nd most in all of the majors. Since I do not believe that either Sean Doolittle or Drew Pomeranz will be going anywhere, the A’s greatest bullpen need is a right-handed pitcher and the best of the bunch available is Darren O’Day. The submariner with a nasty slider has put up phenomenal numbers in Baltimore since being acquired by them in 2012; sporting an ERA under 2.00 in each of the last 2 seasons and striking out 11.3 per 9 innings while being named to the All-Star team last year.

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Katrina Putnam: The quickest way for the A’s to improve is to get bullpen help. That’s why they should go after Ryan Madson of the Royals, who will be a free agent after this season. Madson hadn’t pitched in three years before taking a minor league deal with Kansas City this season, but he made the most of it. In 63.1 innings, he struck out 58 batters and finished the year with a 2.13 ERA.

That’s nothing new for Madson. Before his Tommy John surgery in Spring Training of 2012, he was consistently outstanding for the Philadelphia Phillies. In 2011, he replaced Brad Lidge as the closer and saved 32 games, all while maintaining a 2.37 ERA. The A’s would be smart to take advantage of any discount that remains on Madson, because he could be the shutdown setup man that Oakland needs. With all of those one-run games and extra-inning losses, the bullpen should definitely be the priority.

Next: Free Agent Targets: More Bullpen Arms

Oct 9, 2015; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher John Lackey reacts after inducing a double play to end the top of the 7th inning in game one of the NLDS against the Chicago Cubs at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Rovak-USA TODAY Sports

Samantha Riley: The Oakland Athletics need to sign a veteran starter this offseason and there will be a ton of starting pitcher free agents on the market. That being said, the Athletics are not going to go after pitchers like David Price, Zack Greinke or Johnny Cueto. However, John Lackey could be a good fit for the team and he may come at a more reasonable price. Lackey has 12 years of MLB experience and would provide great leadership and support for the younger members of the Athletics’ starting rotation. He had an extremely impressive 2015 season posting a 2.77 ERA with a 13-10 record over 33 starts, but his success has largely flown under the radar.

Additionally, this two-time World Series champion’s price tag could be within Oakland’s budget. Due to a clause in his contract with Boston, this veteran pitched for the St. Louis Cardinals at the league minimum this season – just $507,500. His salary will definitely get a huge bump in 2016, but, since he will be 37 years old and he has already undergone elbow surgery, it may not be as high as some of the other older veteran starters and any contract he is offered is expected to be kept to three years at most.

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Daniel Martnez: The Oakland A’s need a veteran starting pitcher in their rotation and should sign a pitcher who has put up big strike out numbers in 30 year old righty, Ian Kennedy. For the 2015 season, he complied a 4.28 ERA but played for a underachieving team, the Padres. Kennedy will get a lot of attention on the free agent market for his ability to strike out batters along with his ability to stay healthy. Kennedy has been a work horse over his career, where he has made over 30 starts over the past 6 seasons. His biggest strengths are his strike out ratio of 9.30 per 9 innings pitched in ’15.

His biggest weakness this past year was giving up the long ball in which he gave up 31 home runs in 168.1 innings. Also, his agent is Scott Boras, who is known for getting his players big money contracts. If the A’s can sign Kennedy, to pair him with pitching coach Curt Young who can bring out his full potential, you could be looking at Oakland’s number two starter for the 2016 season.

Next: Free Agent Targets

Aug 27, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Mark Reynolds against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Rich Paloma: The A’s, if they stay healthy, are pretty set especially contractually with all their position players. The outfield is set with Cahna, Burns, and Reddick with Coco as a back up and the infield with a rotation of Davis/Vogt/Cahna at first (Phegley and Vogt rotating plate duties as well) and Lawrie, Semien, and Valencia with Sogard as a back-up there. Butler, despite his poor 2015 stats, is also signed as a DH and can provide vet leadership.

Pitching, especially the bullpen, is where any off-season money should go. With 25 blown saves and a save percentage in just over half their appearances (52.8 %), as well as 35 losses in one-run games, to be able to compete for 2016, several names are out there.

As stated last week, Matt Albers of the White Sox is currently riding a 22 1/3 inning scoreless streak and had a 1.21 ERA. He’s available and would be good for a pen that couldn’t hold a lead even if it had a handle.

Orioles reliever and All-Star Darren O’Day is also available and would be an excellent fit with his ability to fill in as a closer, but his 1.52 ERA and 82Ks in 65 innings could come at a hefty price.

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Steven Luke: There are a lot of free agents in the offseason that could end up affordable enough for the Oakland Athletics and they will have a lot of need. They have a large need for left handed hitting and right handed relief pitching but the one player I think they should focus on is neither, right handed corner infielder Mark Reynolds.

It may not seem to make a ton of sense because of all the right handed bats the A’s have right now, but Reynolds fits a lot of needs.

He is versatile with the ability to play the corner infield positions and versatility is something the A’s have valued since Bob Melvin took over as manager. He has plenty of power and has experience using it off of the bench or in a part-time position. What he has that the team is going to need most as they go on, though, is leadership. The A’s are getting younger and younger each year and although they have players like Billy Butler and Josh Reddick who have been around the block, but neither have been around like Reynolds has. He’s been the team leader, he’s been the guy that gets designated for assignment, and he’s been a bench player – and that experience will be valuable for the younger players to learn from because many of them will have to go through the same thing some day.

There may be bigger needs, but the history of this front office shows they will fill those needs through trades. Reynolds fills needs that aren’t obvious and fills them for cheap.

Next: Free Agent Targets: The Closer

Aug 21, 2015; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Tigers relief pitcher Neftali Feliz (39) pitches in the ninth inning against the Texas Rangers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Casey Witt: #39 P Neftali Feliz, Detroit Tigers

The Athletics finished with a dreadful 19-35 record in one-run games during the 2015 campaign and will look to shore up the relief corps – whether it be internally, free agency or via trade. One particular name that stands out to me is free agent pitcher Neftali Feliz of the Detroit Tigers.

Feliz made his major league debut for the Texas Rangers on August 3, 2009 and posted promising numbers – which translated into a remarkable World Series run and Rookie of the Year award in 2010, recording 40 of 43 save opportunities (third most in the American League) with a 2.73 earned run average and a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 71:18.

The Dominican Republic native replicated these numbers in 2011 and notched 32 saves – as the Rangers made their second consecutive appearance in October’s fall classic. Despite his success, Feliz has had his share of injury struggles. During the 2011 campaign, he had a brief stint on the 15-day disabled list with right shoulder inflammation; and by May 21, 2012 it had transpired into right elbow inflammation – ultimately forcing him to undergo Tommy John surgery in August 2012.

Since then, the 27-year-old has appeared in 54 games, but looked stronger than ever in 2014 with 13 saves in 14 opportunities – along with a respectable .183 opponents’ batting average.

The 2015 season wasn’t very kind to Feliz or the Athletics. Albeit, the right-hander appears to be the perfect reclamation project for Oakland – who made the league minimum for the Tigers. If the A’s take a flyer on Feliz, a one or two year contract is not out of the question – for an experienced fly ball pitcher, hoping to revive his career.

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Agree? Disagree? Think we forgot someone important? Let us know in the comment which (realistic) free agent you think the A’s should sign, and don’t forget to vote in our fan poll:

Next: Prospect Update: Jacob Nottingham