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Oakland A’s front office ranked in middle of MLB pack

By David Hill

OAKLAND, CA - SEPTMEBER 25: General Manager David Forst, President David Kaval and Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations Billy Beane of the Oakland Athletics honor Equipment Manager Steve Vucinich in the clubhouse as he retires after 54-years with the Athletics before the game against the Houston Astros at RingCentral Coliseum on September 25, 2021 in Oakland, California. The Athletics defeated the Astros 2-1. (Photo by Michael Zagaris/Oakland Athletics/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - SEPTMEBER 25: General Manager David Forst, President David Kaval and Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations Billy Beane of the Oakland Athletics honor Equipment Manager Steve Vucinich in the clubhouse as he retires after 54-years with the Athletics before the game against the Houston Astros at RingCentral Coliseum on September 25, 2021 in Oakland, California. The Athletics defeated the Astros 2-1. (Photo by Michael Zagaris/Oakland Athletics/Getty Images) /
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The Oakland A’s have typically been considered to have one of the best front offices in the majors.

A great deal of their success has been due to their front office. Billy Beane and company have been able to find bargains at the bottom of the free agency barrel to fill out their roster. Their ability to develop talent, then trade those pieces for more prospects due to ownership refusing to spend any money on the roster.

Oakland A’s front office difficult to rank these days

But times are different. Beane has moved into more of an advisory role these days. David Forst is in charge of the front office now, leaving the team without much of a track record to go by. As such, Bleacher Report ranked the A’s front office as being the 16th best in the majors, essentially slotting them exactly in the middle of the pack.

There are plenty of valid criticisms surrounding the A’s at this point. Even with the most recent influx of talent, the major league roster remains one of the worst in the game. The farm system is not much better as it is devoid of the types of top prospects that one would have envisioned after such a drastic firesale.

That is not to say that the A’s are completely barren. The bullpen has solid pieces and could be a strength once again. Shea Langeliers, Zack Gelof, and Ken Waldichuk could be building blocks for the next core. There are prospects in the system that have outperformed expectations and could be a factor going forward. But it could be a long time before the A’s come out of their rebuild.

In years past, the A’s were able to emerge from their rebuilds relatively quickly. There would be a two or three year gap before they would contend for the postseason again. That does not appear as though it will be the case this time; however, if that does happen, the A’s front office will rocket up those rankings as they found pieces that no one expected.

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The Oakland A’s front office is typically considered one of the best in the game. This year, they are ranking in the middle of the pack.