I think the A’s should try to sign Adam Kennedy, even if Chavvy comes back. Eric is fragile and may go down early in the season. I’d like to have Kennedy there in case. Cust, Casilla, Crosby–all should go. And re-sign Wuertz. That would give us a competitive team with the addition of a middle-of-the-order bat, the only aquisition that Billy should do during the off season, unless someone really tempting comes along.

ws

I would go with Pennington rather than re-sign Cabrera. I would resign Adam Kennedy as he is a great situational hitter. I really like Kennedy and Davis as the 1-2 punch.

What the A’s need hitting-wise is a consistent 3 or 4 hitter. Cust is either hot in the beginning of the season and fizzles, or he gets hot when it doesn’t count at the end of a losing season. We need someone who will be consistent at the plate, and who can field their position consistently. Jack made a great catch last night, but he could have gotten a much better jump on the ball, in which case, it might have been a more routine play. Then a few innings later, he completely misplayed a ball off the wall that should have been a double, but the runner wound up at third.

This is the lineup I’d like to see:

Adam Kennedy 3B
Raj Davis CF
Ryan Sweeney RF
New Power Hitter LF
Kurt Suziki C
Mark Ellis 2B
Cliff Pennington SS
Barton/Carter/Doolittle 1B (depends on who does well in
Spring Training)
Free Agent DH (NOT Garciaparra, Giambi, Holliday–MUST
be currently in the American League, no more
National Leaguers. They can’t hit AL pitching.)
On the bench: Powell, Hairston, plus one or two from
Minors or a free agent (Scutaro, anyone, though
he’s been an everyday player lately)

AND KEEP THE YOUNG PITCHERS, BILLY!!!

Next year should be exciting.

Just make sure to not go crazy and give him a Bobby Crosby-like extension.

A month ago I wouldn’t have included Barton in the mix, but has anyone noticed lately that he’s finally starting to show some signs of life? His average is up to nearly .250, he’s hit all his life, and he’s still only 23.

Then there’s Grant Green, who may project as a 3B instead of a shortstop.

If you want a veteran in the rotation next year to teach these kids, you already have a guy in Tomko who wants to come back. Is this a flash in the pan with him? His career stats suggest he’s a .500 pitcher, and if you’re truly building for 2011, that’s an innings eater on the cheap who showed a lot in the CG shutout last time out.

This team has turned a corner in the last 2 weeks, and is not only showing signs of life, but has become fun to watch for the first time since at least 2006.

But questions loom…is Raj now permanently a .280-.300 hitter? Will Sweeney finally develop the power everyone seems to think he has? Will Hairston show more next season after half a year of getting used to American League pitching? With power bats on the way that might be able to play the corner outfield spots, do those last two questions even matter?

Anderson is coming along nicely, Cahill slower, but it’s there – you can see it. To me, Mazzaro hasn’t looked right since his 5th start. Gio needs to learn how to pitch without his best stuff (and a 3rd pitch wouldn’t hurt either). Even before getting hurt, Outman seemed like a fringe guy, much as Braden does – a couple of ‘back of the rotation’ guys for next year. But in 2010, one of those three (Mazzaro, Outman, Braden) or someone from the minors (Simmons?) needs to take the next step, so the front three are ready to dominate in ’11.

Oh yeah, the question was about Pennington…lol. I’m not sold. I don’t like his range, and he is *not* going to hit .280 consistently at the big league level.

The flip side though, is that neither Green nor Cardenas project as MLB shortstops, even though they will both hit a ton.

The infield will be very unsettled next season while several kids scramble for jobs that they could settle into for the better part of the next decade.

That’s going to be fun to watch.

wes