Billy Beane (the GM, not the former number one pick) is a genius. Yep I said it. All this talk about Moneyball and about how he changed the way people look at the draft is fine. But why he is a genius, is because of how he gets great pitching prospects, year after year. His tactics are really quite simple, he needs 3 quality starters to be in contention every year. His current starters that are coming up on their first pro contracts ending he makes into innings workhorses (225+ innings). Once their contract is up, they only have a few more decent years in them, and although they seem like they are at the top of their game, they are really only one to two years away from severe downturns in their careers. So then he trades them, just before their contracts expire and get new pitching talent.
A quick look at former A’s staff members is a who’s who of once great pitchers now far from great. Tim Hudson (not great as he once was, but not as bad as…), Mark Mulder, and Barry Zito are all but done with their careers toss is Rich Harden and Dan Haren in a year or two and you’ll begin to see the picture. Well one of those trades yielded an excellent pitching prospect named Brett Anderson. He was part of the deal that sent Haren over to the Diamondbacks. Don’t get me wrong, Haren is a fantastic pitcher, but he does have a lot of innings on his arm and I wouldn’t be surprised if he starts breaking down next year.
Anderson was drafted straight out of high school in the 2nd round in 2006 by the Diamondbacks. Since then he has steadily moved through the ranks, faster than anyone thought he would. He started his career off in the Mid West League (low A) going 8-4/2.21/1.06. Mid season he was promoted to the California League (high A) where he finished off the season with a 3-3/4.85/1.56 offering. The Diamondbacks were worried about this, even though they know the league is a hitter’s league and that every pitcher takes his lumps there. After the trade he started 2008 back in the California League and went 9-4/4.14/1.16. The A’s knew they had a star on their hands and after the Futures game, promoted him to the Texas League (AA) where he is now and has a 2-0/1.50/1.00 pitching line.
I think if he can continue to produce in AA this year, he might get a shot at spring training, where if he doesn’t make the team, he’ll be shipped off to AAA for half a season and get the call up after the All Star Break next year. Of course that’s if he doesn’t get the call up in September. Either way I see a bright future for this guy and he is a must have as far as autographed cards go. His Donruss card is quite expensive (averaging between 25-35 dollars) but his Upper Deck Team USA cards are fairly inexpensive (between 2 – 5 dollars). Here are a few examples of his autographed cards:
He might be a genius, but as long as the A’s play in the same division as the Angels, they won’t be winning any playoff games any time soon.
That’s a very astute observation on the tactics of Mr. Beane. Here’s the haul of pitchers he has gotten from the trades of Nick Swisher, Dan Haren, Rich Harden, and Joe Blanton.
Dana Eveland—pitching well for Oakland
Greg Smith—Same as Eveland
Sean Gallagher—The best is yet to come for this guy
Gio Gonzalez—Lefty K Artist
Fautino De Los Santos
Brett Anderson—
Josh Outman–Late inning lefty and spot starter
not to mention the postion players…
Carlos Gonzalez—RF of the present and future
Eric Patterson—solid, athletic replacement for Mark Ellis
Adrian Cardenas-Phillie’s 2nd rated prospect
Matt Spencer—Under the radar power hitting OF
Aaron Cunningham—Eric Byrnes like baseball rat
Chris Carter—26 HR at Hi-A
Josh Donaldson—Supplimental 1st round catcher in ’07
Throw in the likes of Trevor Cahill, Henry Rodriguez, Sean Doolittle, Corey Brown, Jemile Weeks, and Scott Mitchinson and you have a farm system that is packed to the gills with talent.
As a devout M’s fan, I am fascinated and depressed by the adeptness of Billy Beane to draft and evaluate talent. Given a $125 million payroll, Oakland would be the perennial powerhouse of the AL.