Is Lance Berkman on the A's radar? (Photo Courtesy of yardbarker.com)

It’s holiday season! The Oakland A’s, who finished behind the Texas Rangers in the American League West with an 81-81 record, should be relatively busy this holiday season as they try to upgrade their offense.

This season, the A’s ranked 23rd in runs (663), 17th in average (.256), 16th in OBP (.324), 26th in SLG (.378), and 21st in OPS (.702). The team hit 109 home runs (28th), and had just one player with more than 15 home runs. 3B Kevin Kouzmanoff had 16 for the year. The A’s offensively, did not pack much of a punch.

It goes without saying then, that the A’s have a lot of shopping to do this winter. Now, the A’s could address their offensive woes through trade as well, but remember they’ve got a little money to spend this winter. It would be a shame to let money go to waste.

The A’s made headlines when they won the negotiating rights to Japanese pitcher, Hisashi Iwakuma for a hefty price of about $18-19 million. Pitching should be a strength for the A’s next season, but adding a pitcher like Iwakuma could really solidify an already solid starting rotation.

Unfortunately, however, the A’s and Iwakuma are currently at odds with each other. The A’s reportedly offered Iwakuma a deal worth about $15 million over four years, but Iwakuma’s agent is (reportedly) pushing for a Barry Zito-type deal, but without all those years attached to it. Zito signed with the Giants for a $126 million contract over seven years.

So for now, it seems unlikely that the A’s will be able to land Iwakuma. If so, the A’s would get their $18-19 posting fee returned, and they could use the money to address their offensive situation.

The A’s have had a relatively busy offseason thus far, but guys like OF David DeJesus and 3B Edwin Encarnacion hardly seem like impact additions that can take the team to next level. An ‘A’ for effort, Billy Beane, but there’s still much more to do.

The A’s need power. That’s obvious. How they’ll obtain it, however, is less obvious. The A’s are not on most free agents’ preferred destinations list, so it makes it a little difficult to sway a player to come to Oakland, and the almost ghostly Coliseum.

The A’s have reportedly made an attempt to try and sign free agent 3B Adrian Beltre, who was on the A’s radar last offseason. The offer of $64 million over five years have been neither confirmed nor denied. If it is true, Beltre’s agent, Scott Boras, will probably not accept it. According to FOXSports.com’s Ken Rosenthal, Boras claims that he’s never had this much interest in a player (talking about Beltre).

Aside from Belte, here are a few other players who could help the A’s out next season, if they should find their way to Oakland (not in any particular order):  (more…)