A’s Unlikely To Pursue Free Agents

Billy Beane indicated that the A's will not pursue free agents with whatever money they have available, and instead will look to the trade market to fill any openings, according to MLB.com's Mychael Urban.

"We're going to look at young players to fill spots, first and foremost," Beane said. "If those players we'd like to acquire aren't obtainable, we'll consider bringing in guys who can hold the positions down. We're going to stay disciplined and try to do everything we can to fill those spots with young players.

"So the next step is to continue to bring guys like Andrew up here. That's our responsibility, and I know the deal. To sign a couple free agents and have three or four press conferences during the winter doesn't get it done. We're going to be disciplined."

Urban says that means the team may let Adam Kennedy and Justin Duchscherer entertain offers on the open market, and that Beane will look for an alternative (i.e. younger and cheaper) option at third base.

The A's traded for Matt Holliday while signing Jason Giambi, Orlando Cabrera, and Nomar Garciaparra last offseason, but only Nomar made it through the entire season with Oakland.