Holliday Trade Brings Oakland Fans Hope
Deal May Help Turn Athletics Into One of Baseball's Best Teams
Oakland Athletics fans are hopeful their team can return to prominence with the trade for Colorado’s Matt Holliday, but unless it is followed by more deals it will only be an unfair tease.
Once one of baseball’s best teams
The A’s were one of Major League Baseball’s model franchises, winning 87 or more games each season from 1999-2006. But general manager Billy Beane’s cost-conscious trades robbed the franchise of a number of up-and-coming stars and sent the team into a tailspin that produced back-to-back sub-.500 records and double-digit deficits in the American League West the past two seasons.
Things may have begun changing Monday, when the A’s sent closer Huston Street, left-handed starter Greg Smith and young outfielder Carlos Gonzalez to the Rockies for Holliday. But if Beane really wants Oakland to contend with the Los Angeles Angels for the AL West title in the coming season, he can’t stop there.
Free agent Teixeira should be the next piece
Beane would be wise to use some of the money he has saved the past two seasons and put it toward free agent Angels first baseman Mark Teixeira, who is only 29 years old. That move, combined with resigning Holliday, who turns 29 in January and can be a free agent after the upcoming season, would give the A’s an unparalleled pair of hitters in their prime.
In the past three seasons, Teixeira has 96 home runs, 336 RBI and a .298 batting average. During that same time span, Holliday has 95 homers, 339 RBI and a .329 average. The duo could revitalize an offense that was baseball’s worst in 2008. Oakland ranked dead last in the majors in team batting average at .242, were 27th in runs with 646 (only nine more than last-place San Diego), and 25th in home runs with 125.
Holliday could be traded
An alternate and perhaps more likely scenario is the A’s holding onto Holliday until this season’s trading deadline. If they are out of contention, they would trade Holliday to a contender for a package of top prospects, prolonging Oakland’s rebuilding process farther into the future. Since Scott Boras is Holliday’s agent, the chances of him resigning with Oakland before testing the free agent market are practically nonexistent.
One thing is certain, Holliday will not lead the A’s to the top of the AL by himself. The deal on its own won’t even enable them to threaten the Angels, who despite being stung by a playoff implosion are still a powerhouse. If Beane stays quiet after this big trade, expect Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum to stay quiet for another season and probably many more.
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