The Oakland A’s finally made a move that made fans, current A’s players, and critics happy. The Athletics traded catcher John Jaso, number one prospect Daniel Robertson, and minor league outfielder Boog Powell to the Tampa Bay Rays in return for Ben Zobrist and Yunel Escobar. The A’s have been making some less than ideal moves for the majority of this offseason, but this trade is definitely a positive.
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The Oakland A’s have been trying to acquire Zobrist since July of 2014. It was rumored that the Athletics tried to make a deal with the Rays’ before the trade deadline last season, but Tampa Bay was not ready to give up their utility man. So, after 5 months of pining after Zobrist, the Athletics finally have him.
Zobrist is a two-time All-Star who will bring some much needed defense in the middle infield. He is a true utility man and played five field positions last season alone, including a couple of games as the DH. Additionally, he is great defensively and had a .990 fielding percentage for 2014.
When it comes to the offense, Zobrist hit .272 last season with 52 RBI. Additionally, he led his team with a 5.0 WAR last season. Lastly, he is a switch hitter – a quality that the A’s like in a player since they tend to construct their daily lineup based on the opposing pitcher. Zobrist is a well rounded player who will make a difference both on the field and at the plate for the Oakland A’s.
The Oakland A’s did not stop with just Zobrist though. They were also able to acquire Escobar from the Rays. The shortstop batted .258 last season with only 7 homers and 39 RBI. Even though he is an average in terms of offensive power, Escobar’s does have seven years of experience playing as a shortstop. With 950 total starts at shortstop since 2008, Escobar leads the MLB with the most starts at that position over the past 8 seasons. Many were worried that Marcus Semien did not have enough experience to be the Athletics’ starting shortstop, but now with Escobar, Semien will most likely become a backup infielder in 2015.
Now that the trade is official, it most likely that Zobrist will become the Oakland A’s starting second baseman and Escobar will be the starting shortstop in 2015. Let’s hope that Zobrist is not thrown off by the change of ballpark scenery since he has only played with Tampa Bay for his entire MLB career. Since Zobrist and Escobar played together in 2013 and 2014, one would hope that playing with Escobar will provide some familiarity for Zobrist and that they will play well together in Oakland.
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This also means that Eric Sogard will become a backup middle infielder. However, there is also a chance that he could even be bumped down to Triple-A if the Oakland A’s feel as though they have enough depth in the infield. However, I think it would make more sense to keep Sogard as a back up to Zobrist and Semien would cover shortstop and third base when needed.
It cannot be denied that the Athletics have significantly upgraded their middle infield. This was a huge trade that the Oakland A’s desperately needed. This acquisition definitely makes the Athletics contenders in the 2015 season. Even though this was a blockbuster trade, it will be interesting to see if the Oakland A’s make any more moves this offseason. They still have a little wiggle room in their payroll and could surprise us all again with another acquisition. With pitchers and catchers reporting to spring training in a little more than a month, there is still time to upgrade the roster.
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