A look at the Oakland A’s upcoming arbitration class

The Oakland A’s are going to need to spend a bit of money if they are set to keep their roster intact for the 2023 season.

Chances are, Chad Pinder will not be back as he will generate plenty of interest in free agency. However, the A’s do have six players that are eligible for arbitration this offseason in Paul Blackburn, Deolis Guerra, Tony Kemp, Ramon Laureano, Sean Murphy, and Austin Pruitt.

Oakland A’s arbitration decisions mainly black and white

The A’s are not exactly looking at many difficult decisions. Of those six players, five should be easy to decide whether or not to offer a contract to. And then there is the sixth, where the stats do not do him justice.

Which players should the Oakland A’s tender a contract to in arbitration? Let’s look at their six players that are eligible this offseason.

Time to move on

The Oakland A’s are looking to save as much money as possible. That includes moving on from players that are essentially just another guy in the bullpen.

Such is the case with Austin Pruitt and Deolis Guerra. The latter did not even pitch this season as he underwent Tommy John surgery in April and would likely not be back until sometime around July 2023. As he would, at minimum, receive the same $815,000 he received for last year, Guerra is an easy choice to non-tender.

Pruitt was at least able to get on the mound. He posted a relatively non-descript 4.23 ERA and a 1.030 WHiP over his 55.1 innings, striking out 38 batters with nine walks. The A’s removed him from their 40 man roster recently, making the odds that he will be offered arbitration even longer.

The bullpen is also an area that is a relative strength. There were several players who showed that they could be part of a core next year, giving the A’s hope that they have a solid relief corps in place. Other pitchers are going to get chances to earn those final spots. It is an area where the A’s can cut costs.

The Oakland A’s are not about to throw money away on an area where they already have plenty of moving parts. It makes sense to let Austin Pruitt and Deolis Guerra walk.

Easy decisions to keep

There is no question that Paul Blackburn, Ramon Laureano, and Sean Murphy will be tendered contracts by the Oakland A’s, although for different reasons.

Murphy is going to be traded this offseason due to the presence of Shea Langeliers. The former Gold Glove winning catcher took a major step forward with his bat, posting a team leading 120 OPS+ while hitting 18 homers and 37 doubles. As he is projected to earn $3.5 million in arbitration, and will have another two years of team control left after this year, he is going to be one of the hottest names on the trade market.

Laureano could be traded as well. He is coming off of a down season in 2022, posting a .211/.287/.376 batting line with 13 homers and 18 doubles over his 383 plate appearances while chipping in 11 steals. In this case, it would be a matter of selling low as Laureano was unable to get going last season due to the the remaining games from his PED suspension and various injuries. However, the center field market is fairly barren and plenty of teams are looking for options in the middle of the outfield.

Blackburn is the one player that is seemingly a given to be on the Oakland A’s Opening Day roster in 2023. While his overall numbers may not be that impressive, as he posted a 4.28 ERA and a 1.257 WHiP over his 111.1 innings. Those numbers are also skewed by his final five outings as the first time All Star battled injuries before being sidelined for the rest of the season.

The Oakland A’s will offer these three players a contract via arbitration. The only question is how many will be a part of the roster in 2023.