Oakland Athletics Roundup: A.J. Griffin Signed by Rangers; 50 Best Oakland A’s

A.J. Griffin to play for Texas Rangers; Ranking the 50 best Oakland A’s
Oakland Athletics Roundup: Saturday, January 2

Happy New Year, Oakland Athletics fans!

Let’s hope that 2016 works out much better than 2015 did for the A’s. Here’s to an injury-free season in which the Athletics live up to the record their run differential says they should have. (And perhaps a Cy Young Award for Sonny Gray, with Rookie of the Year honors bestowed upon Sean Manaea, while we’re on the subject of wishful thoughts.)

Of course, the realistic view is that the A’s are probably still at least a year away from contention. Their best prospects will be mid-season or September call-ups at best, and while they’ve revamped their bullpen entirely, there are still plenty of questions about the lineup and the rotation.

More from White Cleat Beat

• Zach Logue yet another disappointing Oakland A’s trade return
• Luis Barrera heading to familiar foe in Los Angeles Angels
• Looking back at Ruben Sierra with the Oakland A’s
• San Francisco Giants showing Oakland A’s offseason could be worse
• Lucas Luetge what Oakland A’s need in bullpen

But it’s January 2, and even if the upcoming season is another forgettable one, this is the time to be optimistic. Pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training in less than two months, and it won’t be much longer before we have actual games to look forward to. Whether you’re feeling good about next year or ready to throw in the towel already, let’s just agree that any baseball is better than no baseball at all.

In Case You Missed It:

The Top 50 Oakland Athletics of All-Time – If you’ve been following our series of the best and worst Athletics in franchise history (or even if you haven’t), be sure to check out our list of the Top 50 Oakland Athletics. Katrina Putnam ranks the best A’s to ever play at the Coliseum.

A.J. Griffin Signs With Texas Rangers – Andrew Dambrauskas explains why former Athletic A.J. Griffin may haunt the A’s this season, after signing with the Texas Rangers. Will Oakland regret their decision to release him?

#Athletics

Next: The 30 Worst Players in A's History

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Climbing Tal’s Hill: The Astros’ Non-Roster Invites – Eric Huysman of Climbing Tal’s Hill takes a look at the Houston Astros’ non-roster invites for 2016 Spring Training and predicts who will make the cut and who will not.