White Cleat Beat
Fansided

Oakland A’s: 3 biggest disappointments of first half

By David Hill

Jun 12, 2021; Oakland, California, USA; Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Jesus Luzardo (44) throws a pitch during the seventh inning against the Kansas City Royals at RingCentral Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 12, 2021; Oakland, California, USA; Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Jesus Luzardo (44) throws a pitch during the seventh inning against the Kansas City Royals at RingCentral Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 3
Next
(Photo by Michael Zagaris/Oakland Athletics/Getty Images)
(Photo by Michael Zagaris/Oakland Athletics/Getty Images) /

The Oakland A’s may not be exactly where they had hoped for, but they are still in a decent place heading into the All Star Break. The A’s are within striking distance of the Astros for the AL West title and hold one of the two Wild Card berths. This is still a playoff caliber team at this point.

Of course, this does not mean that the season has gone smoothly. Oakland’s front office had to navigate a myriad of free agent departures, a shortfall in regards to available finances, and a farm system that did not have the types of prospects needed to bring in those pieces via trade. Nonetheless, they managed to do what they could to cobble the roster together, finding success in the first half of the season.

Three biggest disappointments for Oakland A’s in first half

Even with that success, some of these moves did not pan out. In some cases, injury has left those players unable to perform to expectations. In other cases, those players just have not performed well, unable to find success in 2021. Fortunately, the A’s have been able to withstand those struggles thus far.

Let us take a look at the three biggest disappointments for the Oakland A’s in the 2021 season.

Trevor Rosenthal

One of the biggest surprises of the offseason was that the Oakland A’s were the landing spot for Trevor Rosenthal. Although his contract included a great deal of deferred money, he was still expected to be far beyond their price range.

With Rosenthal in the fold, the A’s felt that they had their replacement for Liam Hendriks. He had been dominant in 2020, although he had struggled in the previous year in his return from Tommy John surgery. There was a bit of risk, but given his excellent performance during the pandemic shortened season, it was a risk the A’s felt they had to take.

In the end, Rosenthal has been a disaster. He may never throw a pitch for the organization, having undergone surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome just after Opening Day, and then hip surgery at the beginning of July. Maybe Oakland can bring him back on a minor league deal, but for this year, the A’s may as well have lit his salary on fire.

The Oakland A’s felt that Trevor Rosenthal would be their answer in the ninth inning. Instead, he has been a tremendous disappointment.