Fantasy Baseball 2013: Oakland A’s Hitting & Pitching Projections
Reddick and Cespedes will be fixtures for the A’s offense again.
Photo courtesy of Keith Allison
Oakland Athletics — Predicted Finish: Second Place, AL West
Well last season, the A’s out-performed anyone’s wildest expectations, even after bringing like Coco Crisp back, and bringing in the Cuban phenom Yoenis Cespedes! Billy Beane worked on under the radar trades Josh Reddick and in-season acquisitions such as Stephen Drew, as he normally does. This offseason is much of the same as he traded for Chris Young at a discount price and signed Japanese player Hiroyuki Nakajima to fill the void at shortstop. However, the trade for C.Y. has created a bit of a log jam in the Oakland outfield, even after trading away Collin Cowgill, a prize piece from of last season’s trades.
So what does that mean for guys like, Cespedes, Crisp, Young and Reddick? Well that will be of the utmost importance for us as fantasy owners. There are lots of rumors swirling around a Coco Crisp trade, however until that actually happens, we can assume that the odd man out is Chris Young and that Coco will lead off. So let’s take a look at what we might get from the A’s this season shall we?
Athletics Offense:
| Player Name | Pos. | Age | Hand | AB | R | HR | RBI | SB | AVG |
| Coco Crisp | CF | 33 | S | 425 | 63 | 9 | 46 | 36 | .266 |
| Hiroyuki Nakajima | SS | 31 | R | 492 | 71 | 10 | 53 | 11 | .279 |
| Yoenis Cespedes | LF | 27 | R | 537 | 81 | 28 | 88 | 16 | .291 |
| Josh Reddick | RF | 26 | L | 523 | 79 | 24 | 84 | 9 | .250 |
| Brandon Moss | 1B | 29 | L | 489 | 74 | 24 | 79 | 3 | .264 |
| Josh Donaldson | 3B | 27 | R | 475 | 64 | 17 | 67 | 9 | .247 |
| Seth Smith | DH | 30 | L | 458 | 58 | 15 | 56 | 4 | .259 |
| John Jaso | C | 29 | L | 350 | 48 | 15 | 58 | 4 | .266 |
| Scott Sizemore | 2B | 28 | R | 489 | 71 | 8 | 48 | 9 | .261 |
Crackerjack Fantasy Options: Crisp, Reddick, Cespedes
These three guys are solid or better fantasy contributors, a guy like Chris Young would be too if he appears to be getting regular at bats, depending on where he hits in the lineup. I also like drafting Moss at the end of drafts (late round or for a dollar) and seeing if he can build on last season.
Donaldson had built up a fair amount of ownership last season due in part to his solid hitting but mostly because of his catcher eligibility. Unfortunately, he no longer qualifies at catcher so unless you have your 3B hit the DL he should not be your third baseman. Also, Hiroyuki Nakajima is a real wild card. He has been a solid contributor his whole career in Japan, however, as we saw recently with Tsuyoshi Nishioka, Japanese players do not always translate well into the MLB.
Athletics Pitching:
| Role | Player | Age | Hand | IP | BB | W | K | SV | ERA | WHIP |
| 1 Starter | Brett Anderson | 25 | L | 180 | 44 | 11 | 140 | 0 | 3.65 | 1.25 |
| 2 Starter | Jarrod Parker | 24 | R | 200 | 72 | 12 | 164 | 0 | 3.33 | 1.32 |
| 3 Starter | Tommy Milone | 26 | L | 190 | 43 | 10 | 162 | 0 | 3.60 | 1.21 |
| Closer | Grant Balfour | 35 | R | 70 | 27 | 1 | 75 | 31 | 2.96 | 1.11 |
Crackerjack Fantasy Options: Everyone listed
More on Balfour shortly. But something to remember is that the A’s do have a very deep pitching rotation all the way through the minors. These are good guys to look at to roster, but if they struggle early, don’t be surprised to see them moved to the bullpen. Oakland has the depth to do it.
Fantasy Star: Cespedes
If you own Cespedes in a keeper league, congrats. If you are in a re-draft or start fresh league, then I would say draft this kid. Like always you don’t want to overpay or draft him exceedingly early, BUT, if this guy gets a full workload 575+ at bats, AND builds on last season, then he could become ELITE in just his second season. I am truly optimistic about him next year, so no warning about sophomore slump…ok…small warning. However, Cespedes showed the willingness to work on his flaws as a hitter as pitchers started to catch on to them. If he continues to work then he will have a very productive career!
Fantasy Bust: Balfour
Balfour held the title as “closer” at two different times last season, which means he lost it once. I would be wary of drafting him high, as he may not hold the position if he begins to stumble. The A’s have another option, as well.
Fantasy Sleeper: Ryan Cook
Which brings me to my sleeper pick, Cook. He is a flame throwing youngster that had a terrific season last year. He did fizzle a bit in the later months, but he was only a rookie, so he should be ready to come back strong. He had a K:9 of 9.82 last season, and though he may regress, I would still fully expect him to be above 9.0.
In closing, I fully think that what you see is what you get with the Oakland A’s, no big surprises in that lineup, and very solid pitching. The thing to watch for is of course Coco Crisp to be traded. His value would most likely be a little impacted depending on where he lands, and it would create an opening for everyday at bats for Chris Young. As well as it will create an opening at the top of the A’s order, most likely that opening could be filled by C.Y. as he has lead off for Bob Melvin before.
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