A’s general manager David Forst chatted with reporters on Monday evening, discussing a few areas of the roster. Perhaps most notably, the GM said he didn’t expect to trade either starter Paul Blackburn or outfielder Seth Brown this offseason (relayed by John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle).
Blackburn has been the subject of trade speculation as far back as the 2022 deadline. The right-hander has turned in serviceable back-of-the-rotation numbers for the past two seasons, combining to post a 4.35 ERA in 215 innings. That has arguably made him Oakland’s most reliable starter, although he battled some injuries on his throwing hand late in 2022 and early in the ’23 campaign.
The A’s control Blackburn, who turned 30 on Monday, for two additional seasons. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects him for a $3.2MM arbitration salary. Brown, who is controllable for three years, is projected at $2.4MM. The lefty-swinging corner outfielder had a down season in 2023, hitting .222/.286/.405 in 378 plate appearances. He’d posted a more robust .230/.305/.444 showing — albeit mostly in favorable platoon situations — the year before.
Those are modest salaries by MLB standards, but there’d been some speculation that the A’s could look to tear spending down even further. Forst suggested that’s not the case, telling reporters he anticipates opening next season with a higher payroll than they ran to end the 2023 campaign.
Of course, that’s not exactly portending massive spending. The A’s ended last year with a payroll in the $59MM range, as calculated by Roster Resource. That was the lowest mark in MLB. Forst estimated their current commitments for next season sit around $43MM, a little north of the $40MM which Roster Resource projects.
That leaves some amount of flexibility to dip into free agency, although they’d surely be for players in the lower tiers. Last offseason’s acquisitions of Aledmys Díaz, Jace Peterson, Trevor May, Drew Rucinski, Jesús Aguilar and Shintaro Fujinami were all one- or two-year commitments that tallied a little over $40MM in overall spending.
Forst suggested that adding to a rotation without many clear candidates behind Blackburn and JP Sears was likely (link via Martín Gallegos of MLB.com). The GM made clear they’re looking to wait out the market for what is likely to be a low-cost veteran flier. “This time of year, the market is peaking,” Forst said. “It’s expensive, nowhere more than starting pitching, which is something we’re out there talking about. We are trying to be patient. I think we know with what we have to spend and what we need to do, patience is probably our friend here.”
One player who doesn’t seem likely to be part of the rotation competition: right-hander Mason Miller. Forst suggested the A’s were planning to move him to the bullpen, potentially as a closer, for the ’24 season (via Gallegos). One of the hardest throwers in the sport, Miller has been limited by injuries as a professional. He pitched only 39 1/3 innings over parts of three minor league seasons and was limited to 33 1/3 frames during his MLB debut this year, missing a good chunk of time with forearm tightness. A relief role will allow the A’s to keep a close watch on his workload next season, although Forst left open the possibility of stretching him back out as a starter in 2025.
Buzzz Killington
But Blackburn is going to earn in the millions. The A’s are going to have a very high payroll next year.
deweybelongsinthehall
Blackburn pitches half his games in Oakland. Could he really be a full-time starter for a club with a smaller park? I don’t know his splits but I’d be concerned.
Tabata's Adopted Son
Blackburn has actually been better on the road by a lot of metrics. Slugging against is .456 at home and .443 away, and OPS against is .802 at home vs .776 away.
deepfryar
Who the hell cares about anything the As do! Literally the worst team in baseball history, like the plot of Major League except the team never does the naked lady motivator and leaves town for real!
Fonzy13
I know the recent A’s have been real bad and are unwilling to spend, but we are talking about a franchise with the 3rd most 100 win seasons and 9 world series victories so worst team in baseball history may be bit of a stretch. Not an A’s fan just don’t want people to forget about the history of the game.
deepfryar
i’m not talking about wins and losses, i’m talking about how they treat their fans!
ruff kuntry
Even though I’m not from the Bay Area but still an A’s fan, it’s sad they’re leaving Oakland having won 4 World Series there and have been to the World Series 6 times with greats like Rickey, Jackson, Catfish, Fingers, Eck, McGwire, Dave Stewart, etc.
Hopefully Fischer sells the team and a much richer person actually invest money in top players.
The Big Yo
San Diego? the money you guys have been handed must be nice. How are those play offs treating all that money?
i like al conin
They had all that talent and traded them for mostly nothing. Just once I want this front office to get my approval before making a deal.
BrianStrowman9
I don’t believe any ML teams have interest in Seth Brown. Oakland is about the only place that the guy would field big league Abs.
LordD99
FLASH: Paul Blackburn and outfielder Seth Brown traded by A’s in package deal.
deweybelongsinthehall
For a Domino’s pizza (with that free coupon they’ve been offering).
its_happening
Cheesy bread must be in the deal.
ruff kuntry
Making Miller the closer is the right call.
BigGarg
Considering how bad the A’s do in trades involving actual very good players, they might as well hang on to a couple guys and try to field a semi-competitive team for once.
Don T
A’s need pitching help? Shocking! They couldn’t possibly be any worse in 2024 but don’t expect less than 100 losses again. This team has an amazing history of success on the field but the last two years have been brutal. Don’t see them regaining their former glory any time soon. The city of Oakland has to take some of the blame for their inability to build a MLB quality stadium after years of trying. Absolutely no sense of urgency cost them their team.
Not a clever name
Yep they are going all in to get Ohtani, Ryuta that is
Gumby82
Dumb A’s!!Trade everyone and forfeit the season! F&ck John Fisher to helllllll!!!!!
Gumby82
John fisher makes me violently ill and I hope he doesn’t wake up tomorrow
Gumby82
They both stink and whoever wants them should be relocated to Las Vegas