Will You Miss Andrew Bailey & Ryan Sweeney?

Now that it’s been a few days since the Andrew Bailey to the Boston Red Sox trade, I’m a little more at ease with the whole situation. The A’s, currently in a state of rebuilding, traded their All-Star closer Bailey to the Red Sox in a deal that also sent outfielder Ryan Sweeney to Bean-town.

The Bailey trade didn’t wow anyone in baseball, with some calling the deal an absolute win for the Red Sox. Many A’s fans, including myself, were not entirely happy with what General manager Billy Beane received in exchange for Bailey and Sweeney.

Just take a glance at our very own Jason Leary’s take on the whole trade and you’ll see the kind of frustration that surrounds this latest deal from Beane.

Bailey, 27, went 0-4 with a 3.24 ERA and 24 saves for the A’s in 2011. He went 7-10 with a 2.07 ERA and 75 saves in his career with Oakland. He had some problems with injuries, but in the end, Boston gets a very talented and established closer in Bailey. In my opinion, had the A’s waited until July’s trade deadline, they probably could have gotten more for Bailey. Given his injury history, though, waiting until then may have been a bit risky.

Sweeney, meanwhile, was nothing special, but I did enjoy seeing him play for the green-and-gold. The 26-year old outfielder figured to be in the mix for one of Oakland’s vacant outfield spots, but given his lack of major league power his chances at winning a starting job weren’t too good.

Sweeney was acquired in the deal that sent Nick Swisher to the Chicago White Sox and proved to be a solid player upon arrival in Oakland. He showed some promise in 2008, hitting .286/.350/.383 with five home runs and 45 RBIs over 115 games for the Athletics. He followed up his ’08 season with a ’09 campaign that saw him hit .293/.348/.407 with six home runs and 53 RBIs over 134 games.

He posted a 2.1 WAR in ’08 and a 2.6 WAR in ’09, suggesting that he was deserving of a starting role within Oakland’s outfield. Unfortunately for Sweeney, however, injuries limited him during the 2010 season. His playing time was also cut short in 2011 after the A’s acquired outfielders Josh Willingham and David DeJesus.

While he may not have boasted tremendous power, Sweeney did usually post a high batting average, which isn’t something a lot of current A’s players can say. Defensively, Sweeney was always a treat to watch in the outfield.

What do you think? Will you miss Andrew Bailey and Ryan Sweeney? Sound off below! 

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