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Oakland Athletics: Who is RHP Andrew Triggs?

By Katrina Hamrick

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Oakland Athletics Claim Right-Hander Andrew Triggs Off Waivers

Over the weekend, the Oakland Athletics claimed right-hander Andrew Triggs off of waivers from the Baltimore Orioles. Triggs took the roster spot of Jarrod Parker, who landed on the club’s 60-day disabled list again last week with a fractured right medial epicondyle, after experiencing pain while throwing to live batters for the first time.

So who is this new right-hander?

The 26-year-old, who turns 27 on Wednesday, primarily throws a two-seam and a four-seam fastball, as well as a slider and a changeup. Watching videos of Triggs shows that he’s not a true side-armer, with a delivery that features more of a low three-quarters arm slot, but it’s certainly lower than the average pitcher. His fastball sits in the low-to-mid 90s, which makes him a pretty formidable opponent when combined with a deceptive delivery.

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Triggs spent last season with Baltimore’s Double-A Bowie Baysox club, where he posted a 1.03 ERA in 61 innings. He made 43 appearances and led the team with 17 saves, after taking over the closing duties following the call-up of Mychal Givens, another side-arming right-hander. Givens had amassed 15 saves, but no other Baysox pitcher had more than two, showing that Triggs had staying power in that role.

The right-hander also struck out 70 batters while allowing just 11 walks and 42 hits, making it a truly impressive 2015 season.

Triggs was drafted three times before finally signing with the Kansas City Royals in 2012, as a 19th round pick. He was a 24th round pick for the Cleveland Indians in 2010, and a 21st round pick for the San Francisco Giants in 2011. Both times, he returned to the University of Southern California to continue his college career and eventually enroll in the school’s MBA program, according to his USC bio. Since he also redshirted as a freshman, Triggs is considerably older than most players in Double-A, which may be part of why he’s been able to dominate opposing hitters. However, until he begins facing batters his own age, there’s no way to know how much that factor is contributing to his solid results.

After his signing, Triggs posted impressive numbers with the Royals’ minor league clubs. The highest ERA of his professional career happened in 2014, in 43 games at the Double-A level. It was 2.93. Overall, he’s stayed healthy and pitched in 43 or 44 games in each of his three full seasons as a minor leaguer, leading to the question:

How did he end up as a waiver claim for the Athletics if he’s so good?

To start with, Kansas City sent Triggs to the Orioles for cash last April, which probably made sense at the time given that the Royals were all in for 2015, farm system be damned. After he spent a year in the Baltimore organization, the Orioles added him to the 40-man roster during the off-season, fearing that they would lose him on a Rule 5 claim. But after Baltimore reached a deal with former Pirates slugger Pedro Alvarez earlier this month, the O’s needed that roster spot back. Unfortunately, a player cannot be outrighted to the minor leagues so soon into Spring Training after being added to the 40-man the previous winter. This rule exists in order to prevent teams from taking advantage of Rule 5 protection.

Triggs was placed on release waivers with the hopes that he would clear and be able to negotiate a minor league deal with Baltimore. However, the Athletics claimed him before that could happen. (See, there were some benefits to being last in the American League in 2015!)

What does his future with the Athletics look like?

Triggs is very close to being major-league ready, despite having almost no experience above Double-A. He’s shown that he can get batters out consistently, he’s exhibited good control, and his age makes him a good candidate to make the jump from a lower level straight to the majors. It’s impossible to say for certain if he’d succeed long-term, but his unique delivery should help him, at least initially, to get batters out at any level.

Of course, that all hinges on whether there will be a roster spot available for him, and at the start of the season, there certainly won’t be room for a rookie. The Oakland Athletics’ bullpen is surprisingly crowded, with right-handers Ryan Madson, Liam Hendriks, John Axford, and Fernando Rodriguez all guaranteed spots, and Ryan Dull fighting for a chance to make the team as well. Lefties Sean Doolittle and Marc Rzepczynski have also claimed spots, as the A’s closer and left-handed specialist, respectively. That doesn’t leave much room for Triggs, or any of the other relievers fighting for a bullpen job, and his competitors’ experience would likely outweigh his potential.

Add to that the fact that Triggs got shelled in his Spring Training outings with Baltimore, and he just hasn’t built a strong case for himself so far this year – even though Spring Training results are not predictive of a player’s performance. He should begin the season at Triple-A, where he’ll get time to face hitters closer to his own age. That experience should provide results that are more indicative of the numbers he would put up as a major leaguer.

The season is long, so don’t count Triggs out later in the year. If he continues to post a sub-3.00 ERA in Triple-A, it will be hard for the Athletics to ignore him. While it might not be the splashiest Spring Training move ever made, overall, this was a strong pickup for the A’s, and he gives the organization some quality right-handed depth to turn to if necessary.

Next: Fantasy Baseball 2016: Best A's Draft Picks

What did you think of the Athletics’ decision to pick up Andrew Triggs? Love it? Hate it? Indifferent to it? Don’t forget to share your thoughts in the comments.