A's Land Big Draft Haul

Post date: Apr 2, 2012 4:33:41 PM

A's GM Matt Veasey wheeled and dealed the club into a position where the club selected 8 of the first 17 players in the 2012 WFBL Draft

With a number of holes to fill, A's GM Matt Veasey was busy wheeling and dealing in anticipation of the 2012 WFBL Annual Draft process. In trades that counted towards the Roster Season limits, Veasey agreed to deals with Las Vegas, New York and Detroit which in the end netted the club 8 of the first 17 selections in the Draft. The Majors roster was cut to the bare minimum of 12 players, the lowest it has been in franchise history. Sent away were prospect outfielders Jackie Bradley Jr and Daniel Aldrich, along with a number of the A's own selections in the Draft. The A's also flipped some of the picks received from one club on to another in order to move up. In the end, Veasey made overall selections in the #3 & 4, 9 & 10, 12, and 15 through 17 spots. The team also retained control of it's own picks in both the 9th and 10th rounds.

The A's GM started things off with a pair of picks in the first round, the 3rd and 4th overall selections, and with those he brought back a pair of longtime Athletics favorites in lefthanded starting pitchers Randy Wolf and Andy Pettitte. Wolf was an original A's selection in the first-ever WFBL Minors-stocking draft process way back in the fall of 1998, and was a rotation regular in both 2000 and 2003. Pettitte was the #1 starter for the 2001 team that reached the WFBL Finals. He has had a handful of other seasons with the club as well. In the 2nd round with the 9th overall pick, the A's selected righthanded starting pitcher R.A. Dickey, then came back in the 3rd round with the 10th overall and took another lefty, Erik Bedard. Two picks later in the round, with the 12th overall selection, the A's took righthander Jeff Samardzija.

Having added five arms to the rotation, Veasey started to look for offense, as the club had entered the Draft needing a starter at 3rd base and a pair of outfielders. With the 15th and 16th overall selections, the GM picked up slugging veteran outfielder-1st baseman Carlos Lee and multi-tooled outfielder Alex Rios. That was immediately followed with the 17th overall selection, and another rotation candidate was brought in with the selection of Joe Blanton. The A's finally addressed the 3rd base situation with their final selections in the 9th and 10th rounds respectively, drafting veterans Chipper Jones and Scott Rolen. Jones, in his final season, will start the year on the DL, but is expected to take over the starting role by the 3rd or 4th week. Until then, organizational favorite Rolen will try to stay healthy and productive.

"We absolutely did not want to get caught like we were last season, with minimum rotation candidates, unable to matchup with 2-start weeks" said Veasey. "The deals we mad pre-Draft were completely geared towards what we promised the fans after last season, that we would no longer be in a rebuilding mode, but instead were going to look to contend again as quickly as possible. I take my promise to these fans seriously. They stood by us while we went through the tear-down process. I promise them to continue to move forward aggressively, and that is exactly what this draft process for us should reflect."

The A's now enter 2012 with enviable depth in their starting pitching, one of the deepest staffs in the league. They have a talented bullpen, albeit without a current closer. The position regulars are far more settled, and should prove far more productive, than a season ago. Veasey went on to state that the club has a goal "to finish at .500 this season at a minimum", and with this Draft he just may be able to make that happen.