2009 Oakland Athletics Predictions

Written by Jason Lowry

as-baseball For so many years it seemed like the Oakland A’s could just dump away some of its best players and still compete in the AL West every single year, but the A’s are coming off their first consecutive losing seasons since the 1997 and 1998 seasons. While the offense should should better in 2009 with the additions of former Athletic Jason Giambi, OF Matt Holliday and SS Orlando Cabrera, but the real question lies in the starting rotation where they will count on the young arms of 4 players who are 25 years old or younger. It’s hard telling just where this A’s team is headed in 2009, but here is a closer look at the 2009 Oakland Athletics and my prediction on where I see them finishing in the AL West.

Offense: The offense looks good with the 3 new pieces added to the lineup. Holliday will become the focal point of this offense, and the A’s would love to see this guy return to the form of 2007 where he helped take the Rockies to the World Series. Giambi may be getting old, but this guy can still hit a baseball, as he hit 32 home runs with 96 RBI in 2008. Giambi will likely spend most of his time at 1B or DH. The A’s have even more power coming back from their lineup from last year, as DH/OF Jack Cust hit 33 home runs and had a team best 111 walks in 2008. Cabrerea won’t bring much power to the lineup, but can hit for average, and should be a great No.2 hitter in this lineup. The team also has some young talent in RF Travis Buck and CF Ryan Sweeney, and both should only get better as time rolls on. The team hopes to get a little more out of veterans 2B Mark Ellis and 3B Eric Chavez, as both were bothered by injuries in 2008. Chavez played in just 23 games, and if this guy can just stay healthy, he could possibly put up 30 home runs and 100 RBI. The A’s will stick with Kurt Suzuki behind the plate, but an improvement here could really help this team. The A’s should also have a pretty good bench with the addition of Nomar Garciaparra and backup first baseman Daric Barton.

Pitching: The A’s pitching staff might raise some questions marks this season, as only 3 players started more than 20 games last season, and the oldest player expected in the rotation is ace Justin Duchscherer, who went 10-8 with an outstanding 2.54 ERA, but only pitched in 141 innings because of an injury. Behind Duchscherer its all young arms led by Dana Eveland and Sean Gallagher. Eveland was acquired in the trade that sent Dan Haren to the Diamondbacks, and it looks like it might pay off, as Eveland went 9-9 with a 4.34 ERA in his first full season as a starter. Gallagher didn’t have quite the first year as a starter as Eveland did, going 5-7 with a 5.15 ERA, but this is a guy who could develop into a double digit winner any season now. The final 2 spots in the rotation will likely go to Dallas Braden and Josh Outman, neither of which started more than 10 games in 2008. The rotation could get even better when Gio Gonzalez returns from injury, and keep a close eye on two very good prospects in Trevor Cahill and Brett Anderson, as both could work their way into the rotation by midseason. The bullpen looks strong at the tail end with Joey Devine likely stepping into the closers role after a 6-1record with a 0.59 ERA in 42 appearances last season, and Brad Ziegler being the main set-up man, as Ziegler started his career with 39 scoreless innings and could easily step into the closers role if Devine has any troubles. Overall the potential is huge for this staff, but it’s unlikely that all these young arms mature and develop in the same season.

Prediction: 2nd in AL West. If the pitching develops faster than expected this team could be right there with the Angles for the division crown, but I just don’t think that will happen in 2009. Its hard to go against the A’s as they are so well known for turning teams around in no time, but its hard for me to pick them ahead of the Angels.

Archived Season Previews:

2010
2008

Individual MLB Team Previews:

American League
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