2007 Spring Training Thread

[Providence A's]

Santiago Casilla (AKA Jairo Garcia) finally arrived last night...should be in camp tomorrow. He's got an outside shot at a bullpen spot...he was working out in DR while working out his visa problems.

It'll be fun once the games start...I look forward to reading about the progress of the younger players and seeing our main guys get through camp healthy

[A'sDiehard]

Hey Prov here is a pretty good place to view updated photos from ST:

http://search.espn.go.com/keyword/ph...e=mlb&team=oak

[redsrbetter]

Another great spot. In case y'all didn't already know.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/teams/oa...1MJdsIOnMj0bYF

[A'sDiehard]

Another great spot. In case y'all didn't already know.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/teams/oa...1MJdsIOnMj0bYF

Thanks. Crosby needs to ditch the beard IMO:

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/photo?sl...zer111&prov=ap

I hope he stays healthy.

[A'sDiehard]

Kotsay to get second opinion on back:

The Official Site of The Oakland Athletics: News: Oakland Athletics News

This doesn't sound good and it could be another choppy season for Mark. I hope Stewart can stay healthy because I read somewhere that Kielty is out 3-6 weeks as well.

[Providence A's]

Kielty being injured isn't a big loss IMHO...but already with the injuries again? As long as our key players stay healthy, I'll be happy.

[A'sDiehard]

Kielty being injured isn't a big loss IMHO.

Yeah you know how I feel about that guy.

Harden and Crosby are the important ones.

[A'sDiehard]

Check this out:

Oakland Athletics, Baseball Team Valuations - Forbes.com

[Providence A's]

interesting...but that information is from before the start of last season as it mentions they will be making capacity smaller for the 2006 season. I'd be interested in seeing that information going into this season.

[Providence A's]

Well, it appears Duke is out for a while with tendinitis in his pitching elbow...I hope this isn't going to be a trend again this year

[Providence A's]

The A's are considering signing Blanton, Street, and Swisher to long-term deals:

see here

Assistant GM David Forst said the front office will sit down in the next week or so and decide whether or not to give long-term deals to some of the players with two years' plus experience. Nick Swisher, Huston Street and Joe Blanton are the most likely to be considered for contracts that take them all the way through arbitration.

also see here

Assistant general manager David Forst said the organization soon will start discussing whether to offer long-term contracts to some players. Among the candidates are starting pitcher Joe Blanton, closer Huston Street and outfielder Nick Swisher, who all can become arbitration-eligible after this season.

I think this would be a good move. We've done it in the past with Haren, Harden, and Crosby being the most recent. I don't know about Blanton, but both Street and Swisher said last year that they weren't that interested in signing long-term to avoid arbitration. Hopefully, they've changed their mind. I'd think financially certainty would be as important to them as it is to everyone. If they have a shitty year or get hurt, they won't get much of a raise in arbitration for the next year...whether that be for next season or a season after that.

[A'sDiehard]

Well, it appears Duke is out for a while with tendinitis in his pitching elbow...I hope this isn't going to be a trend again this year

I don't think I've ever seen this many injuries this early.

[A'sDiehard]

Fatso struck out four today and Piazza left the game after being hit by a pitch (another possible injury ).

[Providence A's]

and you wonder why the team is moving...clearly, being in Oakland is just that damaging to our players...come to Providence...my cash and presence at every home game will soothe your pain

[DravenX]

Mark Kotsay will have surgery to repair a herniated disk in his back and is expected to miss at least eight-to-12 weeks.
This is something Kotsay could have gotten done back in November had he been more aggressive about it, and considering that the A's are paying him $15 million over the next two years, they deserve better from the center fielder. Don't count on seeing Kotsay back before June, and it wouldn't come as much of a surprise to see him miss the entire first half. The A's will likely go with Milton Bradley in center field, Nick Swisher in right, Shannon Stewart in left and Dan Johnson at first base. Bobby Kielty will take over as the fourth outfielder once he's recovered from knee surgery. This would also seem to open the door for Rule 5 pick Ryan Goleski to make the team.

Lou Merloni suffered a concussion after being hit in the helmet by a pitch Tuesday.
"It was an eye-opening experience," Merloni said. "I don't really remember much about yesterday. I knew what happened and I was conscious. Even after, it was scary just knowing how lucky I was." A CAT scan showed no damage and Merloni said Wednesday that he expects to return soon.

Mike Piazza remains day-to-day after being hit on the left elbow by a pitch Tuesday.
"It's just stiff," Piazza said. "It's feeling a little better and will hopefully improve. It's spring, so it's better to err on the side of caution."

Source: RotoWorld