Elephant Rumblings: Wood signing gives rotation extra stability
MLB news roundup
Good morning AN!
It’s been a couple days since the news broke that the A’s are signing left-handed veteran Alex Wood, and we still don’t have any official confirmation from the team, much less terms of the deal. It’s likely to be a 1-year major league deal.
Assuming the club has promised him a rotation job at least to start the season, that leaves four more spots left for the Opening Day rotation. Right-hander Paul Blackburn is likely going to get the Opening Day nod, and lefty JP Sears will be looking to build off a solid rookie campaign. That leaves two spots for four arms: left-handers Ken Waldichuk and Kyle Muller, and righties Luis Medina, Joe Boyle and Mitch Spence.
Right now you’d have to expect Waldichuk and Medina to be the early favorites, but neither of them had a great 2023 and both ended up making bullpen appearances as well. Spence has yet to make his big league debut but as a Rule 5 pick (2nd overall) he’s going to be on this team one way or another. Is it as a starter or reliever? And you can’t count out last year’s Opening Day starter in Muller. No matter how it shakes out, everyone of these arms are likely to be making starts for the Green & Gold in 2024.
The fight for the last two rotation spots is going to be a key thing to watch when pitcher and catchers begin reporting and spring games begin. Not much longer to wait now, folks. Just over two weeks until baseball gets rolling.
Enjoy the rest of your Tuesday, everyone!
MLB News & Interest:
- Mariners acquire Jorge Polanco from Twins for four-player package
- Angels sign Aaron Hicks to 1-year deal
- Dodgers finalize 1-year deal with James Paxton
- Blue Jays have “sincere interest” in Justin Turner, JD Martinez
- Rangers have “internal discussions” about Brandon Belt
- deGrom, Scherzer expected back mid-season
- Today in Baseball History
Best of X:
Looking good:
The 24-year-old righty, who was the Mets' 2nd-round pick in 2020 out of Mississippi State, is hoping for a healthy season on the mound after making 8 appearances last season... https://t.co/SUb2FZhXrA
— Athletics Farm (@AthleticsFarm) January 29, 2024
Love me some Ken Rosenthal:
The A's plans in Las Vegas are grandiose, and sound... almost too good to be true.
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) January 29, 2024
From their transformative payroll projections to the temporary home issue to the supposed return to contention, @Ken_Rosenthal isn't taking the cheese.https://t.co/sun3NROObo pic.twitter.com/wLdzKJZyCO
Excellent points:
It’s the same nonsense tale they’ve been telling for decades. Also: They are gonna ramp up spending, when also having to ramp up spending on their stadium-building costs? All with a far inferior TV deal? Right. https://t.co/teg8neyVXf
— Casey Pratt (@CaseyPrattABC7) January 29, 2024