Oakland Athletics

When the Oakland Athletics signed Coco Crisp to a two-year contract (one year guaranteed with a team option for a second season) beginning last season, they did not anticipate that they would only have their new center fielder on the diamond for only 75 games in his first season in green and gold.

Entering the 2011 season, the Oakland Athletics bullpen was projected to be one of the deepest and most solid relief cores in baseball. After the first two games of the season, the bullpen looks anything but what was projected.

Saturday night the Mariners roughed up the Oakland bullpen for the second night in a row to give the A's an 0-2 start for only the second time in their past 12 seasons.

The offseason buildup and hype surrounding the 2011 Athletics mostly centered on the improved offense that would support the teams solid pitching and defense.

Thankfully, the baseball season consists of 162 games, because after the Opening Day loss to the Seattle Mariners, that offseason assessment of this team took a major hit.

Following the Bay Bridge series finale and end of spring training, the A's made their final roster cuts and set their 25-man opening day roster.

The only remaining battles left after the A's announced over the weekend that Brandon McCarthy would be the team's fifth starter, were for the bullpen, backup infielder and backup catcher positions.

The A's seem to be everyone's "sleeper" team this upcoming season, and rightfully so.

The foursome of Trevor Cahill, Brett Anderson, Gio Gonzalez and Dallas Braden is the most underrated in baseball.  To go along with a strong bullpen, the pitching aspect is set.

The big story is the offense.  Will they be able to score enough runs to win games?

As the Oakland A’s get set to open the season at home against the Seattle Mariners, everyone in the A’s organization is excited about the potential of this team. Many will agree that with the Anaheim Angels, Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers all either not improving their rosters or losing players to free agency, the American League West Division is there for the taking if the Oakland A’s choose to take advantage of their situation.

After weeks of speculation, the fifth starter competition is finally over and the A’s have their rotation set heading into the final week of spring training.

Injuries and ineffectiveness removed Rich Harden, Josh Outman and Bobby Cramer from the competition, leaving Brandon McCarthy and Tyson Ross to battle it out as the Cactus League came to a close.

On Friday, the Oakland Athletics optioned Chris Carter to Triple-A Sacramento, ending his quest to break camp part of the A's opening day roster.

Carter was a long shot to make the team after the offseason acquisitions of Josh Willingham, David DeJesus and Hideki Matsui. Although Carter expected the move, he entered camp determined to make it a difficult decision for the Athletics management.

Oakland Athletics (2010 record: 81-81)

The Oakland Athletics finished last season with a .500 record after three consecutive losing seasons. They were able to do so thanks largely to an excellent young rotation, a good bullpen and a solid defense. Little of what they accomplished was owed to their offense—which finished 11th in the league in runs scored.

Weeks of speculation have finally come to an end.

The rotation shuffling that saw the A’s top four starters all in the running to make the opening night start over the past two weeks finally concluded when manager Bob Geren named Trevor Cahill his opening day starter this morning.

Just last season, Cahill battled through spring for the fifth and final spot in the rotation before he finally found himself starting the season in Sacramento on a rehab assignment.