Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that the Oakland Athletics and Nomar Garciaparra are "in serious talks" about a bench spot for the team. Slusser notes that the Phillies are likely competing for Nomar’s services as well; I myself would also mention the Cubs as a team in need of a right-handed bench bat.
Additionally, Slusser points out that signing Garciaparra would not preclude the Athletics from also going after Orlando Cabrera. However, it seems as though the two parties continue to have difficulty in bridging the salary gap, despite Cabrera’s reducing his salary demands from $9MM to roughly $5.5MM at this point.
Also on the A’s radar are a pair of relievers: lefties Dennys Reyes and Andrew Sisco.
