The A’s will play their first Spring Training game today against the Mariners.

As expected the A’s will start RHP Graham Godfrey and he will be followed by LHP Tom Milone.

Today’s line up is expected to be similar to the one on opening day in Japan: Jemile Weeks 2B, Cliff Pennington SS, Coco Crisp CF, Manny Ramirez DH, Seth Smith LF, Josh Reddick RF, Kurt Suzuki C, Brandon Allen 1B and Josh Donaldson 3B.

Obviously Manny Ramirez will not be DH’ing on opening day and I expect Yoenis Cespedes to be some where in the lineup on March 28th as well.

There were a few things worth mentioning from yesterday’s intrasquad game:

• 2011 first round pick, Sonny Gray (RHP), pitched 1 shut out inning while allowing 1 hit and striking out 1 (Chris Carter)
• Ryan Cook (RHP), who was aquired in the Trevor Cahill trade, had 1 clean inning of work.   Cook is one of the relief pitchers who will be vying for a bullpen spot come opening day
• Former top prospect and first baseman turned pitcher, Sean Doolittle (LHP), pitched 1 inning today.  He allowed a triple and 1 unearned run
• Josh Donaldson (3B) had an error in his first Spring Training game at third today, but he also hit a 3-run homer off of Jim Miller (RP)
• Newly acquired Derek Norris (C) also hit a solo home run off Miller

In case you missed it: Fangraphs has ranked Oakland’s broadcasters, Ray Fosse and Glen Kuiper, the 9th best TV broadcasters in baseball (out of 31).

They note that Ray Fosse had an “unanimous support among respondents” while Glen Kuiper had mixed results.

Welcome to March A’s fans, baseball season starts in only 28 days for us and I couldn’t be more excited!

There’s just a few things coming out of Arizona this past day, but worth the mention.

The A’s will play an intrasquad game today, a few players expected to pitch in today’s game are Sonny Gray, Sean Doolittle and Ryan Cook.

There are two top prospects who are looking forward to tomorrow’s game:

Miguel Tejada spoke with Susan Slusser on Tuesday, he expressed an interest in coming back to Oakland and playing third base for them.  Susan Slusser and Ray Ratto both explain why the A’s bringing Miggy back is a long shot.

It’s possible that the Yoenis Cespesdes will join the A’s as early as this weekend.  The outfielder and the A’s agreed on a 4-year deal, but he has not been able to come to camp because he is still waiting on a work visa.

Billy Beane spoke with the press on Wednesday about his Oscar experience and I don’t know about you all, but I am still waiting to see that picture of him and Tim Tebow.

In case you missed it: It’s been over 10 years, but that infamous Derek Jeter flip is back in the spotlight thanks to Bobby Valentine. Lucky us.

(Photo: ydhsu/Flickr)

I was really hoping I wouldn’t have to write about injuries until at least March, but it is the A’s.

According to several sources, Scott Sizemore injured his left knee this morning during field drills. Sizemore is still waiting to have a MRI, but for now the team is referring to his injury as a sprain.

I have talked about the third base position in the past, but outside of Scott Sizemore the A’s don’t really have any viable options to play third.

Susan Slusser is reporting that Wes Timmons and Josh Donaldson would likely be the fill in for Sizemore, and if he is expected to miss a significant amount of time, the A’s may look outside of the organization for a third baseman.

(Photo: Salina Canizales/Flickr)

Manny is here!  Well, technically in Phoenix, but he joined the team on on Friday.

Thanks to the wonderful Jane Lee (@janemlb),  Joe Stiglich (@joestiglich) and Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) we had a ton of pictures, notes and videos of Manny all over twitter this morning:

-Manny will be wearing the number 1 this season, he says it’s because he wants a “fresh start” and because “one starts everything”.

-Susan Slusser reports, that during batting practice, Manny hit six home runs, including one to dead center.

-Speaking of batting practice, here’s a video (courtesy of Susan Slusser) of his first swings.

-Jane Lee posted a video of Manny discussing why he decided to come out of retirement.

And the greatest Manny news of the day:

I believe that’s what they call “Manny being Manny”.

In case you missed it: Starting this season the O.co is now limiting signs and banners to 3-feet by 6-feet.  You can read about it more on the The Oakland Tribune.

There is not a lot coming out of Spring Training the past couple of days, but here’s the latest:

On Tuesday we learned that Billy Beane thinks there is a “less than 50/50 chance” the A’s make any more roster moves.  Which leads me to believe the asking price for Koji Uehara was a bit too steep for Billy’s liking.

Beane also addressed the Manny Ramirez signing and his answer, when asked, why he signed Manny? “Why not?”.  Speaking of Manny, he should arrive to camp on Friday, according to Bob Melvin.

On Wednesday Bob Melvin addressed the closer situation and we don’t know a lot more than we did 4 days ago.  Melvin states that Brian Fuentes and Grant Balfour look great and he expects “big things” out of De Los Santos this upcoming season.  As I had pointed out before, Melvin also has a concern over how many walks the right-hander issues and not being able to hold runners.

Bob Melvin says the team may decide to transition Jordan Norberto into a starter if he doesn’t make the team out of Spring Training, Norberto spent his first three years as a starter in the minors before being converted into a relief pitcher in 2009.

In case you missed it: Brandon McCarthy and his wife, Amanda, are gracing the cover of ESPN magazine this week and you can check it out here.

Thanks to Twitter, Susan Slusser, Jane Lee and Joe Stiglich we have a few notes coming out of Spring Training already:

Bartolo Colon says he is healthy and is ready to take on the leadership role in the Oakland clubhouse.  He Also says he is excited to play for Oakland and thinks they are going to be a “good team” this season.

After having Tommy John surgery last July, Brett Anderson is ahead of schedule and they expect him to return to the A’s rotation as early as August and he will be throwing from the mound on Monday for the first time since his surgery.  Anderson has also lost 25 pounds since starting rehab.

Catching prospect, Max Stassi, who had shoulder surgery back in May, says he is now back at full strength.  He also has lost 13 pounds through dieting.

Dallas Braden is now aiming to return to the rotation on April 16th.  He will be throwing with the other A’s pitchers, but not as often.  He, too, had shoulder surgery back in May and Monday will be his fourth bullpen session since he has started throwing again.

Bob Melvin says he thinks that the A’s will be adding more pitching and offense to the team by the time full camp opens, although he did not state any specifics.

We also learned today that the A’s are allowed to bring 30 players to Japan, only 25 are able to be active for the games, but they will have some flexibility.

Jane Lee also confirms the A’s are still very much interested in Manny Ramirez so this seems to confirm it’s just a matter of time before they sign him.

Kurt Suzuki reports to Arizona tomorrow!

A’s pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training today!!!

Does Tyson Ross make the cut? (Photo: Dinur/Flickr)

There’s a couple of things we know, we know the A’s have pitching and we know that Brandon McCarthy and Bartolo Colon are our first and second starters.  Dallas Braden, if healthy, should be our third starter, but if he’s not that means there are three rotation spots up for grabs.

Before the Josh Outman/Guillermo Moscoso trade the A’s were much deeper in the pitching department, and by deeper, I mean they had more bodies to fill rotation spots.

At first glance it looks like we are pretty set in pitching, however, I am not convinced that most of these guys are ready for the Major Leagues (or they really shouldn’t pitch in the majors).

Here’s a look at the pitchers who will be vying for spots in the rotation:

Graham Godfrey: RHP: Godfrey had a really good season for the Sacramento Rivercats last season, he pitched in 19 games for them (18 started) and went 14-3 with a 2.59 ERA, 89 strike outs, he had a 2.97 SO/BB ratio and 0.5 HR/9.

Godfrey pitched in 5 games for Oakland last season (4 started) he went 1-2 with a 3.96 ERA, a 2.60 SO/BB ratio and a .322 BABIP.

» Continue reading “A’s Rotation: Who Starts?”

Brandon Moss (Photo: jmd41280/Flickr)

This is last edition of our Spring Training non-roster invitee list and there’s only 6 days until pitchers and catchers report!

Michael Choice: Drafted by the Oakland A’s in the first round of the 2010 draft.  Michael Choice played in 118 games for Class-A Stockton last season and had a .285/.376/.542 line with 30 HR, 82 RBI and a .973 Fld%.  While I don’t think Michael Choice will make the opening day roster, I won’t be surprised if he’s called up when rosters expand in September.

Jeff Fiorentino: Signed a minor league contract with the A’s on November 11, 2011.  Fiorentino split time between AA Bowie in the Baltimore Orioles organization, AA Mississippi and AAA Gwinnett for the Atlanta Braves organization, he played in 109 games between the 3 teams and  had a .255/.350/.405 line with 8 HR and 37 RBI.

He played in 2 games for the A’s in 2008, he had 1 at bat and 1 hit.

Grant Green: Drafted by the Oakland A’s in the first round of the 2009 draft.  Green was once a top shortstop prospect for the A’s, but he committed 21 errors in 79 games at short last season, and was asked to move to the outfield mid-season, where he only committed 3 errors in 47 games.

Green played in 127 games for AA Midland in 2011, he had a .291/.343/.408 line with 9 HR and 62 RBI. He was also named the MVP for the 2011 Futures Game.

Like Michael Choice, I don’t believe he will make the opening day roster, but there is a chance we see a late season call up for the 24-year old.

Cedric Hunter: Claimed off waivers from the San Diego Padres on October 25, 2011.  He played in 81 games for AAA Tuscon in the Padres organization last season, he had a .255/.322/.358 line with 2 HR and 33 RBI.

Hunter also played in 6 games for the San Diego Padres last season, he had 4 at bats with 1 hit and 1 run.

Brandon Moss: Signed a minor league contract with the Oakland A’s on December 1, 2011.  He played in 124 games for AAA Lehigh Valley in the Philadelphia Phillies organization last season, he had a .275/.368/.509 line with 23 HR and 80 RBI.

He played in 5 games for the Philadelphia Phillies last season and had 6 at bats with no hits.

In 2004, Baseball America named him the 2nd top prospect in the Boston Red Sox organization.

Jason Pridie: Signed a minor league contract with the Oakland A’s on November 15, 2011.  He played in 14 games for AAA Buffalo in the New York Mets organization last season, he had a .186/.226/.356 line with 0 HR and 3 RBI.

Pridie played in 101 games for the New York Mets last season, he hit .231/.309/.370 with 4 HR and 20 RBI.

In 2008 Baseball America named him the 7th top prospect in the Minnesota Twins organization.

This is a very short list and the chances of any of them making the big league roster are pretty slim, but they’re invited so you should get to know them.

Max Stassi (Photo: SD Dirk/Flickr)

Ryan Ortiz: Catcher: Drafted by the A’s in the sixth round of the 2009 draft.  Ryan Ortiz split time between Class-A Stockton and AA Midland last season, he played in 75 games and he had a .277/.396/.386 line with 6 HR and 35 RBI.

Max Stassi: Catcher: Drafted by the A’s in the 4th round of the 2009 draft.  Max Stassi was once a top prospect in the A’s system, but his offensive woes and shoulder injury has slowed his progress.  Stassi played in 31 games last season for Class-A Stockton, he had a .229/.310/.380 line with 2 HR and 19 RBI.

Wes Timmons: Infielder: Resigned a minor league contract with the A’s on November 11, 2011.  Timmons played in 95 games last season between AA Midland and AAA Sacramento, he hit .341/.420/.468 with 8 HR and 62 RBI between the two teams. Despite playing professional baseball for 8 years, he has no Major League experience under his belt.