This gives my current sense, as of the date above, with prior versions archived below, of my understanding of the current roster: who fits where, what the lineups are, etc. etc. (In the offseason, this is more guesswork than empirical.)
This version change is occasioned by the A's acquiring Chad Smith off waivers from the Tigers and placing Taylor Thompson on the 60-day disabled list.
Starters
| Position |
v. LHP |
v. RHP |
| C |
Josh Phegley |
Stephen Vogt |
| 1B |
Mark Canha |
Ike Davis |
| 2B |
Ben Zobrist |
Eric Sogard |
| SS |
Marcus Semien |
Ben Zobrist |
| 3B |
Brett Lawrie |
Brett Lawrie |
| LF |
Craig Gentry |
Sam Fuld |
| CF |
Coco Crisp |
Coco Crisp |
| RF |
Josh Reddick |
Josh Reddick |
| DH |
Billy Butler |
Billy Butler |
Notes
- Butler could get time at first base in order to clear DH for Crisp, particularly against lefties, because Canha can shift to left field and Gentry to center, leaving the batting order unchanged
- It's harder to make that work against righties, however, because Davis isn't going to play outfield, but you could see, in that situation, Semien starting at shortstop, Zobrist in left, and Fuld shifting to center, on the assumption that you'd rather have Semien against a righty than Gentry, which is probably a fair assumption
Starting rotation
| Mythical slot |
Pitcher |
| 1 |
Sonny Gray |
| 2 |
Scott Kazmir |
| 3 |
Jesse Hahn |
| 4 |
Jesse Chavez |
| 5 |
Drew Pomeranz |
Relief
| Player |
Role |
| Tyler Clippard |
Closer |
| Ryan Cook |
Eighth inning |
| Eric O'Flaherty |
Seventh inning |
| Dan Otero |
Middle / groundball specialist |
| R.J. Alvarez |
Middle |
| Fernando Abad |
Middle / lefty specialist? |
| Evan Scribner |
Long |
15-day disabled list
| Player |
Position |
Date of return |
Effect of return |
| Sean Doolittle |
RP |
May 2015? |
Everyone in the bullpen down a slot; R.J. Alvarez to Triple-A |
| A.J. Griffin |
SP |
June 2015? |
Drew Pomeranz to Triple-A |
| Jarrod Parker |
SP |
June 2015? |
Jesse Chavez to bullpen; DFA Evan Scribner |
60-day disabled list
| Player |
Position |
Date of return |
Effect of return |
| Taylor Thompson |
RP |
??? |
DFA Chad Smith |
Minor leagues
| Player |
Position |
Role |
| Kendall Graveman |
SP |
Sixth starter |
| Sean Nolin |
SP |
Seventh starter |
| Chris Bassitt |
SP |
Eighth starter |
| Arnold Leon |
SP |
Ninth starter |
| Raul Alcantara |
SP |
July 2015 return from Tommy John? |
| Eury de la Rosa |
RP |
Eighth bullpen man |
| Chad Smith |
RP |
Ninth bullpen man |
| Nate Freiman |
1B |
MLBer if Canha doesn't hit |
| Rangel Ravelo |
1B |
Prospect |
| Renato Nunez |
3B |
Prospect |
| Tyler Ladendorf |
UT |
First line of injury defense for Semien, Sogard, Zobrist, Lawrie |
| Billy Burns |
CF |
Backup OF when Crisp gets hurt |
Prior Versions
January 31, 2015
