Now brace yourself, these aren’t your ordinary acquisitions. No. Not at all. Be aware that these are antiquated names sure to raise an eyebrow or two. Once lost in the sands of time, these players seek to reestablish themselves through the means of a minor league contract with an invite to spring training. For many of them, it’s one last chance to prove relevant again. One last gasp for air. One more chance.

As fellow Swingin’ A’s scribe Sean Davis detailed in his article bringing attention to brittle bodied Bobby Crosby’sattempt at a comeback this spring with the Milwaukee Brewers. The often injured, slider flailing middle infielder, will seek to resurrect his career at age 33 in 2013 and make the Brewers bench. Despite being out of baseball for two seasons, Crosby will have to show that he has something left in the tank as the odds are stocked against him.

Crosby won’t be alone in his quest for a triumphant return to the big stage; a multitude of relics from the A’s past will dot the rosters of Major League teams this spring. Let’s take a look a few standouts, for old times sake.

Miguel Tejada, Kansas City Royals

Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Quick, grab a Giants fan. Any Giants fan will do. Got them? Good. Ask they why they didn’t repeat in 2011. Go ahead ask them. Without a doubt they’ll point to Buster Posey’s horrific season ending ankle injury at the hands of Scott Cousins and the Marlins. That much is obvious. Yet allowing a Giants fan to further elaborate, they’ll inevitably point a finger a former A’s MVP Miguel Tejada as a scapegoat for his inability to adequately replace departed playoff hero Juan Uribe. Looking at his 2011 numbers, it’s hard to argue with their claim. Tejada was an unmitigated disaster both in the field and at the plate. Never one to walk, his declining bat speed struggled to a .239/.270/.326 line while providing little defensive value at third base or shortstop. Discarded in September after being replaced in the lineup by the equally useless Orlando Cabrera, he couldn’t find any takers over the winter and had to settle for a short early-season stint with Baltimore’s Triple-A team in 2012. Unable to fight his way back, he was unceremoniously released in June  and for all intents and purposes it appeared his illustriously troubled career was over at age 38. Latching on with Kansas City this December, Tejada will try to prevent his career from a flatlining for a third time in as many years. Even if he fails in his attempt, Miggy will always have his fair share of admirers in Oakland who fell in love with his aggressively joyous style of play in the early 2000′s. Hopefully by now he’s finally gained an understanding of the obstruction rule.

Charles Thomas, Kansas City Royals

Raise a hand if you saw this one coming. Charles Thomas, the lone position player acquired in the ill-fated Tim Hudson deal has latched on with Kansas City Royals at age 34 after being absent from affiliated baseball since 2007. “Two Buck Chuck”, as he was so eloquently referred to by the Oakland faithful was never ever to solidify his place with the Athletics after his acquisition. While never truly regarded as top prospect, there was still a level of buzz circulating around him when reporting to Oakland camp in 2005. Thrown in the starting lineup a season earlier in Atlanta, Thomas proved himself to be a decent injury replacement by hitting his way to a .288/..368/.445 line while providing stellar defense as the Braves primary left fielder during the second half of the season. Expectations were tempered, but it seemed perfectly logical that he could settle into a role on the bench as the A’s resident spot starter and defensive replacement. Unfortunately Thomas could not adjust to the spotty playing time and new league, hitting a career crushing .109/.255/.109 in 30 games before being exiled to the Triple-A. Never to be heard from again.

Or so we thought. Now I have no inside information concerning his out of the blue agreement with the Royals. I really have no idea if he has incriminating photos of Dayton Moore from their time in Atlanta together, or if he just knocked them dead at an open tryout. Whatever the case, Thomas always seemed like an affable chap, and it’s nice to see him get another opportunity. Here’s hoping he’s the second coming of Roy Hobbs.

Jeremy Bonderman, Seattle Mariners

Although never blessed with the opportunity to suit up in green and gold, Jeremy Bonderman nevertheless cemented a place in Athletics lore thanks to no devise of his own doing. As told by Michael Lewis in the pages of Moneyball, Billy Beane was so enraged by Bonderman’s 1st round selection in the 2001 draft that he threw a chair through a wall. This incident, eventually led to the departure of scouting director Grady Fuson and the eventual shipping of Bonderman to Detroit a year later. From that point on, it seemed that whenever he faced the A’s, Bonderman would develop a chip on his shoulder the size of Alaska and would attack the A’s hitters with a furious vengeance. The secondary numbers against Oakland were amongst his best against any opponent. Looking past the pedestrian 4-3 record showcased a 3.49 ERA and 1.30 WHIP in 8 regular season starts. Since his career was put on two-year hiatus due to arm injuries, Bonderman has deemed himself recovered from surgery and recently found a suitor in Seattle who will give him a chance to reestablish himself in 2013. Unfortunately for the A’s, this gives Bonderman a chance to further enact his revenge if he can get his career back on track at age 3o.

Honorable Mentions:

Mark Teahen (Ari), Jason Pridie (Bal), Conor Jackson (Bal), Erick Threets (Col), Kevin Kouzmanoff (Mia), Michael Wuertz (Mia), Donnie Murphy (Mil), Rich Harden (Min), Landon Powell (NYM), Omar Quintanilla (NYM), Dan Johnson (NYY),  Travis Buck (SD), Jason Ray (SD), Chad Gaudin (SF), Javier Herrera (SF), Brandon Allen (Tex), Aaron Cunningham (Tex), Ryan Langerhans (Tor), Greg Smith (Tor)

Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-US PRESSWIRE

Last offseason, brought the return of pitching coach Curt Young back to the Athletics after a brief and tumultuous year tending to the beer swilling, fried-chicken loving. underachieving staff of the Boston Red Sox. The news of his reunion brought little fanfare however to the A’s faithful, as many of us were too busy creating mass panic at the loss of Gio Gonzalez and company. As I recall, the news of Young’s return was trumped by the five-alarm fire caused by a misinterpreted tweet that the A’s has expressed interest in inflated Aruban felon, Sydney Ponson. Thankfully, that rumor never saw the light of day. Ponson, stayed safely out of an XXL A’s jersey and Young returned home to Oakland where he has spearheaded the second best pitching staff by ERA in the American League.

Coaches for the most part, don’t get the notoriety they deserve in professional baseball. After all, the job entails spending endless hours of coddling, honing, and molding players to be the best they can be. Much of their duties are behind the scenes, but integral to the success of the team. In many ways they are equivalent to the teachers and educators of our society. Unheralded, unselfish heroes who are responsible for the brightest, the best. and everything in between.

Curt Young, is amongst the best in the business.

Following a 69 win, 11 year career pitching primarily with the Athletics, Young embarked on his new career as a pitching coach in 1996 with the A’s rookie league affiliate in the Arizona league. Over the next eight seasons, he elevated up the minor league coaching ranks, before taking over for  pitching guru Rick Peterson at the big league level in 2004. Relieving the popular and respected Peterson was no easy task, as his predecessor  was responsible for the maturation of Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder, and Barry Zito into the Big 3 and was a generally regarded as one of the best pitching coaches in the game at the time of his departure to the New York Mets. Despite opposing styles and personality, Young transitioned into the role quite nicely bringing a structured professional method to managing a pitching staff.  Before his first tenure in Oakland ended, he oversaw the development of pitchers such as Gonzalez, Dan Haren, Joe Blanton, Trevor Cahill, Brett Anderson, Dallas Braden and Rich Harden into quality major leaguers.

Under his guidance, the A’s pitching staffs carried on over a decade of excellence and dominance. The pitching statistics on his watch speak for themselves. From 2004 to 2010, The A’s lead the American League in ERA, lowest opponent batting average, and fewest home runs allowed. He has personally overseen eight different pitchers be anointed All-Stars with Ryan Cook the latest, and two closers in Huston Street and Andrew Bailey crowned AL Rookie of the Year. In all respects, various pitchers have responded and excelled under him especially rookies. This season has been no exception. Rookies Jarrod Parker, Tommy Milone, and Dan Straily compose 3/5 of the A’s rotation and others have filled in with great success including A.J Griffin and Travis Blackley. Relievers Jerry Blevins and Jordan Norberto have evolved into trusted bullpen stalwarts and no longer suffer through cringe worthy sub par outings, and Cook has emerged out of nowhere to fill the closers role. In short, Young has had his hands full with the ever changing roster, injuries, and lack of experience on his staff. However, he has handled every challenge with great aplomb and watched his pitchers blossom.

A teacher is only as good as his students, and Curt Young is living proof.

Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-US PRESSWIRE

Well, here we are in mid July and your Oakland A’s have clawed and scratched their way back into playoff contention. As we wait to see how they handle perhaps their greatest challenge of the season, a six game home stand against the Texas Rangers and New York Yankees. General manager Billy Beane and his brass are busy at work at the executive offices in Oakland, evaluating what if any needs this team has, and which players on the trade market can be obtainable without mortgaging the future of his young team. As the longest tenured GM in the American League, Beane may be the first to tell you that the trades you don’t make may be as important as the trades you do. Let’s look at some rumored deals during his career that never came to fruition.

March 2000: Jim Edmonds to the A’s for Jesus Colome and Ron Mahay

Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

Three seasons prior, Jim Edmonds nearly came to Oakland as the centerpiece of a blockbuster Mark McGwire deal between the A’s and Angels. As the A’s tried to accommodate McGwire by returning him to his Southern California roots, the additional players involved in the deal and the remaining salary left on McGwire’s contract could not be agreed upon by the two teams. As a result Big Mac soon found himself headed to St. Louis for the immortal T.J. Mathews, Blake Stein, and Eric Ludwick. As McGwire would go on to make history, Edmonds would continue to establish himself as a solid player in Anaheim and the A’s would revisit a deal in the spring of 2000. With Beane dangling a top pitching prospect in the flame thrower Colome as well as the lefty Mahay, who had opened some eyes with a strong September the year prior. The A’s thought they had enough to deal for the previously injured Edmonds, who had struggled to a .250/.339/.426 split in just 55 games played in 1999. Whether it was concerns over his surgically repaired shoulder, or a hesitance by the two teams to deal within the division. Edmonds, would never suit up in Oakland and would go on to join McGwire in St. Louis where he would be an integral member of the Cardinals over the next eight seasons.

December 2001: Gary Sheffield, Luke Prokopec, and Mike Trombley to the A’s for Billy Koch and Jermaine Dye                                                                                                  

Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

When Gary Sheffield wasn’t allegedly pumping himself full of steroids, inciting bench clearing brawls, fighting with police, and generally being a disturbing human being. He could be found terrorizing pitchers in both leagues for the better part of his outstanding career. With his lighting quick wrists, and explosive power, Sheffield was already a six-time All-Star when Billy Beane began contemplating ways to acquire him during the winter of 2001. As anyone who watched Moneyball can tell you, this was the winter where the A’s sought a way to reinvent their offense upon the departures of Jason Giambi and Johnny Damon. But before they would become creative, they thought big and inquired about the disgruntled Dodgers star and set forth the parameters of a deal. The proposed deal would involve the A’s trading recently acquired closer Billy Koch and the man who propelled them to the playoffs in 2001 after being acquired at the trading deadline, Jermaine Dye. In addition to Sheffield, the Dodgers agreed to package aging late inning reliever, Mike Trombley and highly regarded pitching prospect, Luke Prokopec. With Sheffield demanding a raise, one can conjecture that with the exchange of Dye and Koch, Beane was trying to clear some payroll to acquire the slugging outfielder. Sadly, a deal could not be completed and Sheffield would stay in the National League being shipped to Atlanta in a deal involving Brian Jordan. With a hole in left field, the A’s would bring David Justice into the fold and the 2002 season would be one to remember. This was the case of a potential blockbuster becoming a bust.