Inside the Oakland Athletics

Andrew Bailey, Craig Breslow shut down temporarily with elbow pain; other A’s reliever updates

Joe Stiglich — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 17:47:11 +0000

Lots of news today regarding A’s relievers, so I’ll get right to it …

–Andrew Bailey and Craig Breslow both had tender elbows and were sent to Phoenix-area specialist Dr. Doug Freedberg for MRIs. Bailey was found to have lateral epicondylitis. You might know it better as “tennis elbow,” basically inflammation and pain in the outer elbow. He’ll be shut down for approximately 5-7 days, according to manager Bob Geren.

Breslow has medial tendinitis, or pain and inflammation of the inner elbow. He won’t throw for 3-4 days. Geren said he expects both relievers to still be ready for the start of the season barring any more setbacks.

I haven’t had a chance to talk to either guy yet, so can’t say how long this has been an issue for them.

–You might have noticed Michael Wuertz has yet to appear in a spring game. He was scheduled to appear in a minor league game today but was scratched, according to Geren, because “his shoulder wasn’t bouncing back.” As with Bailey and Breslow, Geren isn’t worried about Wuertz’s readiness for Opening Day. But it will be interesting to hear what Wuertz has to say.

–Still don’t have your fill of A’s reliever updates? Joey Devine was supposed to resume throwing today, but that’s also been pushed back.

No, this isn’t the most encouraging news for the A’s bullpen with 19 days left before Opening Day. At this point, I’m not sure how much of a setback these injuries are for Bailey, Breslow and Wuertz. I don’t think the A’s are banking on Devine being ready for the start of the season anyway. But if all of these guys are delayed in getting back to the mound, the depth of the A’s bullpen (which is a strength) will definitely be tested …

–On to today’s lineup against the Giants. A sellout crowd is expected at Phoenix Muni …

Rajai CF
Ellis 2B
Suzuki C
Kouzmanoff 3B
Chavez 1B
Cust DH
Sweeney RF
Buck LF
Pennington SS

Anderson P

Updated w/quotes: Sheets roughed up for 9 ER without getting an out

Joe Stiglich — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 20:57:13 +0000

It was a short — and disastrous — outing for Ben Sheets against the Reds in Goodyear. He faced 10 hitters and left without recording an out: 10 runs (9 earned) on 8 hits with one walk. Every hitter he faced crossed the plate.

You can’t put a ton of stock into spring numbers, particularly after just three starts, but the stats aren’t pretty for Sheets so far — 4 1/3 IP, 17 H, 18 R, 15 ER, 2 BB, 1 K … Yikes.

Addressing the media afterward, Sheets said his arm actually felt better today than it did in his previous two starts. He threw mostly fastballs but said his mechanics are still “a work in progress,” and thus his command is suffering.

“When you can’t even get out of the first inning, it’s ridiculous,” he said. “I don’t mind giving up 10 runs in the spring if I go four innings. But to not get an out is embarrassing.”

He seemed pretty level-headed about everything, saying he’s got three starts left to pull it together for Opening Night. A scout’s radar gun had Sheets hitting 91 mph, and the right-hander thinks that’s about right for him at this point in spring training.

He was hardly sugar-coating his outing, giving reporters this gem: “People have had bad springs before, but this is taking it to a whole new level.”

Reds lead 11-4 in the sixth. … Fernando Hernandez relieved Sheets and threw two scoreless innings w/two strikeouts, and Jason Jennings went 2 2/3 innings, allowing one run on four hits. Kurt Suzuki doubled in two runs in the third.

Update: Angels take back Bobby Cassevah

Joe Stiglich — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 17:53:50 +0000

Just passing along that the Angels have taken back Rule 5 pitcher Bobby Cassevah. They’ll pay the A’s $25,000 for his rights …

A’s send Mortensen, De Los Santos, Figueroa to minors; Rule 5 pitcher Cassevah offered back to Angels

Joe Stiglich — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 17:31:27 +0000

I’m still getting back in the groove after returning from the Bay Area, but it’s hard not to notice the A’s clubhouse is less crowded these days. Ten players were sent to the minors yesterday, and three more got sent down this morning — pitchers Clayton Mortensen, Fautino De Los Santos and Pedro Figueroa. Mortensen was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento while De Los Santos and Figueroa were optioned to Double-A Midland. The A’s can still change their minds about what minor league club each starts the season with, but this setup sounds right for all three considering their development.

Geren had good things to say about all three. De Los Santos is starting his first full season after recovering from Tommy John surgery, and he had a couple of rough outings in Cactus League games. Figueroa, a lefty, pitched at Single-A last season and earned Organizational Pitcher of the Year honors.

“They both have a mid-90’s fastball with movement and seem to be mentally tough individuals,” Geren said.

As for Mortensen, Geren wants him to improve in holding runners on base.

–Rule 5 pitcher Bobby Cassevah was offered back to the Angels this morning. No word yet if the Angels will take him back. Quick refresher on this somewhat confusing topic: The A’s selected Cassevah from the Angels in the Rule 5 draft in December, paying $50,000 for his rights. He either had to stay on the A’s 25-man roster all season or be offered back to the Angels for $25,000. If the Angels don’t take him back, the A’s retain his rights and can send him to the minors.

–Jake Fox, who homered yesterday to halt a spring slump, gets a start in left field today against Cincinnati. This guy has bounced all over the diamond, no surprise since versatility is his calling card. But Geren said he’s most curious to see how Fox handles his catching duties. That’s the spot he’s played the least in the past three seasons.

–Ben Sheets, Jason Jennings and Henry Rodriguez are three notables who take the mound today. Here’s the rest of the A’s lineup:

Rajai CF
Ellis 2B
Suzuki C
Kouzmanoff 3B
Sweeney RF
Cust DH
Barton 1B
Fox LF
Rosales SS

Sheets

Sunday’s update

cpashelka — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 18:04:06 +0000

The A’s trimmed their major league camp roster down to 53 today as 10 players were reassigned to the minor league camp. Infielders Dallas McPherson, Corey Wimberly, Jemile Weeks, Grant Green and catcher Max Stassi are among the more notable names. The others were pitchers Sam Demel, Matt Wright, Cedrick Bowers, catcher Joel Galarraga, and infielder Matt Whitney.

A’s manager Bob Geren had good things to say about McPherson, Weeks and Stassi. Didn’t get a chance to talk to McPherson, but Weeks and Stassi were both professional about the team’s decision.

Eric Chavez is playing back-to-back days for the first time this spring as he starts at first base, Joey Devine (tendinitis) is still on schedule to throw Wednesday.

Trevor Cahill starts today’s game, with Vin Mazzaro coming in right after him. Both will pitch about three innings.

Justin Duchscherer is still going to throw two more innings on Wednesday, and Dallas Barton will throw Tuesday. Both will pitch at the A’s Papago Park facility.

The lineups for today’s game at Phoenix Muni.

A’s — Davis LF, Ellis 2B, Suzuki C, Kouzmanoff 3B, Chavez 1B, Cust DH, Sweeney RF, Patterson CF, Pennington SS, Cahill P.

Royals — Podsednik, Callaspo 3B, DeJesus RF, Butler DH, KaAihue 1B, Pena C, Aviles 2B, Betancourt SS, Dyson CF, Davies P.

Duchscherer to throw Tuesday, other tidbits

cpashelka — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 17:33:27 +0000

Pitcher Justin Duchscherer said his left hand, the one that caught a bit of the comebacker hit by Max Stassi during yesterday’s 30-pitch session, is fine. No pain. Manager Bob Geren said Duchscherer and Dallas Braden will each throw Tuesday against minor league hitters at the A’s Papago Park facility. The A’s have that day off, but minor league camp has started and it’s Braden’s turn in the rotation. Assuming things go well for Duchscherer, he’ll pitch in his first Cactus league game four or five days later.

Geren said outfielder Coco Crisp (left hamstring strain) won’t do anything on the field today, but will resume a throwing program Sunday. There’s no date for him to start running.

Eric Chavez said he’s feeling good, and he’ll start today’s split squad game at first base at Municipal Stadium against San Diego.

The A’s lineups –

Vs. San Francisco — Ellis 2B, Barton 1B, Sweeney DH, Kouzmanoff 3B, Gross RF, Taylor LF, Brown CF, Powell C, Pennington SS, G. Gonzalez P

Vs. San Diego — Davis CF, Patterson LF, Chavez 1B, Cust DH, Fox 3B, Buck RF, Rosales SS, Donaldson C, Petit 2B, Mortensen P.

Scary moment for Duchscherer

cpashelka — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:32:24 +0000

Justin Duchscherer’s return to the A’s almost came to an abrupt halt as the veteran right-hander was hit by a comebacker from Max Stassi midway through his session of throwing to live hitters at Municipal Park.

On the pitch, Stassi smoked a sinker back up the middle that was headed straight for Duchscherer’s head. He got his glove up just in time, and the ball ricocheted off the bottom part of his left hand and the top of his glove and hit his right shoulder. Duchscherer went down in a heap, but got up quickly and retreated to the dugout.

With several people looking on in dead silence, it became appearent that Duchscherer was more rattled than anything. He took a few sips of water and was soon smiling. The pitch happened to be the last of the first simulated inning (15 pitches). He returned five minutes later to throw 15 more pitches and didn’t feel pain in his back or elbow.

“He hits that rocket at me and I’m like, ‘Oh, my God’ and I fell down to get out of the way and then I knew done, so I just had to gather my thoughts and come sit down,” Duchscherer said. “And wipe the poop out of pants.”

It was the first time that Duchscherer had gone against live hitting. He had a procedure done late last month to relieve pain in his lower back and threw a side session earlier this week, and reported no problems.

Duchscherer will see how he feels tomorrow, but is optimistic that he’ll be able to throw in a game in three or four days.

Duchscherer still throwing to hitters Friday

cpashelka — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 17:17:19 +0000

Weather’s a bit warmer today than yesterday, as the temperature should get up to the mid-60s. I know, not quite Phoenix-like yet. But it’s getting there.

Not a ton of news today compared to Wednesday, but Justin Duchscherer is still scheduled to throw to hitters here tomorrow at Phoenix Muni as the team travels down to Tucson for a game against the Diamondbacks. We should have a report from Bob Geren on how things went either by the time the team arrives there or by after the game.

Gio Gonzalez will pitch Saturday’s split squad game at Scottsdale Stadium against the Giants, and Clayton Mortensen will pitch here in Phoenix against the Padres. No update from Geren on pitcher John Meloan (elbow soreness) or outfielder Coco Crisp (left hamstring).

Today’s A’s lineup — Patterson CF, Ellis 2B, Sweeney RF, Kouzmanoff 3B, Barton 1B, Rosales SS, Buck LF, Powell C, Braden P

Joey Devine to not pitch for 5-7 days

cpashelka — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 18:39:44 +0000

Hey everyone. This is Curtis Pashelka filling in for Joe Stiglich, whose taking some well-deserved days off. A few things to report from Phoenix Muni, where the sun is actually shining, before the start of today’s A’s game against the White Sox.

Right-hander Joey Devine will not pitch for the next 5-7 days after he reported elbow soreness after throwing a side session Tuesday. Geren didn’t want to say what that did to Devine’s chances of being ready for opening day in less than four weeks, but it’s not exactly a step in the right direction.

Outfielder Travis Buck, who was kept out of yesterday’s game against Kansas City because of dizziness, said he felt better and that he had his left ear flushed out this morning. He said he would be okay to play today, and A’s manager Bob Geren said if Buck goes through his morning workout without any problems, that he’s probably insert Buck in the later innings.

Buck said he felt fine in the morning but started to feel dizzy on the bus ride over to Surprise.

Coco Crisp has a strained left hamstring. Geren said the injury is not severe and that Crisp is day-to-day.

Righty John Meloan has elbow soreness and will be checked out this afternoon by a local doctor. Meloan pitched two-thirds of an inning against Kansas City and gave up two hits and two earned runs.

The commissioner’s office also announced today that the Mets’ waiver claim of former A’s reliever Jay Marshall has been voided. Marshall was returned to the A’s, who then released him. Marshall was 5-3 with seven saves and a 3.20 ERA in 50 games for Triple-A Sacramento. For the A’s, Marshall was 1-4 with a 7.66 ERA in 61 appearances over two seasons for the A’s.

I asked Mark Ellis about the retirement of Nomar Garciaparra, and it was news to him. But Ellis said he and other A’s learned a lot from the oft-injured Garciaparra, just about the way he prepared every day and persevered.

The lineups:

A’s — Davis CF, Pennington SS, Suzuki C, Chavez 1B, Cust DH, Taylor LF, Gross RF, Patterson 2B, Tolleson 3B, Sheets RHP.

White Sox — Danks RF, Vizquel 2B, Pierzynski C, Jones CF, Rios DH, Kroeger 1B, Morel 3B, De Aza LF, Ramirez SS, Hudson RHP.

Oakland A’s lineups for split-squad Tuesday

Joe Stiglich — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 17:55:40 +0000

It’s the first split-squad day for the A’s, with one team hosting Texas in Phoenix and another heading to Surprise to play Kansas City. Lots of baseball in store — if the rain holds off. We have clouds overhead and the forecasts say we’ll get some rain this afternoon, just a matter of how heavy it is. I can’t believe I’ve been here 2 1/2 weeks and I haven’t worn shorts yet. Who knew?

–Justin Duchscherer is throwing off the mound later today. The unknown with his situation is how many throwing sessions he would need before getting into his first game. That will tell us how many starts he might squeeze in during spring training, and whether there’s any chance of him being ready for the start of the season. Joey Devine is throwing too. He’s been coming along well, but the A’s aren’t indicating when he could make his first game appearance.

Here’s the lineup for today’s home game against Texas, with ex-Athletic Rich Harden on the mound for the Rangers. Mark Ellis and Ryan Sweeney are the only guys in the A’s lineup that Harden was teammates with in Oakland, although he played with Jake Fox last season w/the Cubs.

Crisp DH
Ellis 2B
Sweeney RF
Kouzmanoff 3B
Carter 1B
Taylor LF
Fox C
Rosales SS
Patterson CF

Cahill P

And the lineup vs. the Royals in Surprise:

Davis LF
Barton 1B
Gross CF
Cust DH
Powell C
Buck RF
Pennington SS
Cardenas 3B
Sogard 2B

Mazzaro P