Ask the Experts: Oakland Athletics

Our friends over at RotoProfessor interviewed Athletics beat writer Joe Stiglich. He really gave some great, in depth answers, so let’s get right back to business and see what he had to say.

• Question 1: How do you see the A’s setting up the first five spots in their batting order?
  
• Joe Stiglich: Well, the order for Thursday’s exhibition opener provided a glimpse into manager Bob Geren’s thinking, though he cautioned not to read too much into things this early. If I had to predict now, I would say 1. Travis Buck, 2. Mark Ellis, 3. Daric Barton, 4. Jack Cust, 5. Eric Chavez … The A’s are big on the potential of Buck and Barton, which is why I think they’ll occupy two of the most important spots in the order. Buck is a smart hitter and has pretty decent speed on the bases. Geren is putting a lot of stock into Barton’s September performance, and Barton batted third in the exhibition opener. If Chavez is healthy to start the season, he could fit in at No. 3 also. Ellis has bounced all over the order in recent seasons, but I think he fits into the second spot to break up the glut of lefties. 
  

Question 2: How do you see Rich Harden performing this season if he can stay healthy? Do you see Joe Blanton or Harden being the ace of the staff?
Joe Stiglich: Pondering Harden’s health is always so dicey because of his injury history. Based on how good he’s looked when healthy, I’d say he’d put up really impressive numbers. With his stuff, he’d surely rack up a lot of strikeouts. Can he be a 200-inning guy? It’s just really tough to imagine because of his history. You have to consider Joe Blanton the ace. He’s remained healthy and become such a workhorse for them, and he’s getting the ball in the opener against Boston in Japan. He was a solid No. 2 guy before Haren was traded.

• Question 3: How do you think Daric Barton & Kurt Suzuki will adjust to a full season at the major league level? Are there any other young players you see contributing in ‘08?
  
• Joe Stiglich: It will be interesting to see how these two progress over the full season. From watching the early stages of camp, I can tell you Suzuki already seems more vocal and take-charge with the pitching staff. It seems natural his handling of the pitchers and his pitch-calling would improve simply because he’s so much more familiar with the staff now. His ability to call the game, block pitches and control the opponents’ running game will be much more important than the offense he contributes, but he showed some decent hitting ability last season. As I said above, the A’s are putting a lot of stock in Barton’s abbreviated performance last year. And he was very impressive. But that’s such a small sample size to go off of, there’s still some mystery to him right now. How will he handle his first prolonged slump? How will he adjust when pitchers get familar with him? I’ll say this: The kid flat-out looks like a confident hitter when he digs in at the plate, if that counts for anything. As for other youngsters? We’ll see a lot of them, because the A’s make no secret they’re playing for the future. Either Ryan Sweeney or Carlos Gonzalez figures to grab an outfield spot coming out of the spring. Gonzalez has looked terrific at the plate early on. Gio Gonzalez, a left-handed starter, figures to begin at Triple-A but it wouldn’t be a surprise if he’s called up this season. Joey Devine, a reliever obtained from Atlanta in the Mark Kotsay trade, has a strong chance to land in the bullpen. 
  

Question 4: Both Bobby Crosby and Eric Chavez have struggled with injuries in recent seasons. How do you see them performing this year?
Joe Stiglich: As with Harden, it’s so tough making predictions with these guys. Getting 18-20 homers from Crosby and 25-30 from Chavez would do wonders for this offense, which struggled for much of last season. Crosby is fully recovered from a broken hand that ended his ‘07 season in mid-July. Up until that injury, he had struggled both offensively and defensively. But he didn’t get a full spring training in last season because of a previous back injury, and that affected him as the regular season unfolded. He worked all offseason with some adjustments to his swing, so if he’s hit on something there, I could see him approaching that 18-20 homer total. Chavez, because of his three surgeries over the winter, is still a big question mark. He has yet to play in any exhibition games, and he may not be ready to start the regular season. Who knows? Like I said, 25-30 homers is needed for this offense, but that might be a reach.

• Question 5: If Huston Street is traded, who do you think will replace him as closer?
  
• Joe Stiglich: The smart money says lefty Alan Embree, because he did a pretty decent job as a short-term closer when Street and Justin Duchscherer were both hurt last season. Embree is the team’s oldest player, but he can still bring his fastball in the 93-95 mph range and he’s pretty crafty. Joey Devine is a wild card here, because the scouting reports say he has closer-type stuff. It’s just not a given that he’d be ready to assume that role this year. His walk totals are very high in the short time he’s served in the majors.