Baseball Musings
Baseball Musings
April 21, 2008
Power Platoon

With the Athletics tied for first place in the AL West, Scott Ostler thinks the A's should sign both Frank Thomas and Barry Bonds:

What if Beane & Co. decide to switch gears and make a run at the playoffs?

That would be gutsy. And that's where Thomas and perhaps Bonds might enter the picture.

The A's lead the major leagues in not hitting home runs. They've hit seven, and going 12-8 with seven taters is kind of smoke and mirror-ish. If the A's decide to go legit, they need someone who can hit 20 home runs.

The home run is nice, but it's possible the Athletics can win by flooding the base paths. I do like the idea of signing at least one of them. Thomas may not be happy with limited playing time against lefties, but signing both gives the Athletics insurance if one gets hurt. It's something the team should seriously consider.


Posted by David Pinto at 08:07 AM | Free Agents | TrackBack (0)
Comments

Signing Bonds would be a great idea for fans of federal perjury trials. Seriously, forget Barry. Nobody's gonna sign him until the legal troubles are over, and by then he'll be 88.

OTOH, Thomas makes all the sense in the world for the Athletics. The OBP organization will take anybody who can still get on, even if they can barely crawl around the bases. And "crawl" may be a kind word for Thomas' baserunning.

His bat speed appears to have left the station, but he still has a decent batting eye. It would be a cheap pickup and Oakland gave him a chance once before. So I wouldn't be surprised to see Beane take a flier.

Posted by: Casey Abell at April 21, 2008 08:49 AM

Funny Casey, since I remember it being established that even if they bring Bonds's case to court, the trial would not be seen this year.

Posted by: Adam B. at April 21, 2008 09:48 AM

No kidding. As I said, by the time Bonds gets free of the legal problems, he'll be 88.

Posted by: Casey Abell at April 21, 2008 10:45 AM

By the way, Oakland's current offense is hardly terrible. Despite a severe pitcher's park (current Baseball Reference rating 93/93) the team is scoring 4.5 runs per game, about average for the AL. They're leading the league in staff ERA, after a respectable sixth-place finish last year.

If Oakland can keep up that offense and pitch towards the top of the rankings, they could make a run at the AL West.

Posted by: Casey Abell at April 21, 2008 10:51 AM

Bonds is a perfect pickup for a 1-year contract. No legal problems will get in the way during the season, so where's the problem?

He's one of the best hitters in the game even at his (advanced) age, and not giving him a contract stinks of collusion.

Posted by: Sal Paradise at April 21, 2008 11:48 PM
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