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There's the bell, and I'm out for round two. Last time, as you may recall- and I'm sure you do, we previewed the Free Agent Draft needs of last season's four playoff teams- Crabapple, Maine, Sacramento, and Chicago. Now it's time to turn our attention to three of the also-rans- Oakland, Scottsdale, and Roseville. I'll try to conceal my excitement. Please, keep your chairs in the upright positions, buckle your seat belts, keep your hands in the car at all times, DO NOT feed the animals, give a hoot- don't pollute, and most importantly- Please, refrain from swimming for one hour after reading this article. And awaaay we goooo….(That's meant as GO-oooo not goo. Goo is much different and really doesn't belong in an article by a future Pulitzer Prize winner, such as myself). OAKLAND ATHLETICS (NEEDS: SP, C, 1B, 2B)- The Athletic's of Oakland backed out of last season's pennant race with a stinker of a final two weeks. You may ask how can a team with the likes of The Big Unit, The Big Hurt, The Big Junior, and The Big A-Rod fail to cut the playoff mustard? Beats the hell outta me. Maybe it's because their lineup sounds like a buncha X-men rejects instead of a baseball team. Or maybe the little encarnacion, the little grissom, and the little catchers (little johnson and little widger to you), had somsing to do with it, eh comrade? Well, I'm here today, peoples, to tell you this can change. Can I hear Hallelujah, brothers? YAYesss. And all it will take is the drafting of C Ben Petrick, OF Ichiro Suzuki, and a $50 donation to the Ace Church of Gumley, and these Oaklanders will be healed and will go the promised land. AMEN, fellow worshippers. Well, alright, they need to add a couple of starting pitchers to round out C.R.A.B.S. finest rotation this side of Sacramento, they'll need another A+ season from Frank and Alex, and a wee bit o' production from the general area of thirdbase. The A's could possibly, maybe, be thrown into the Phil Nevin derby, but I like this Piatt kid, so I would advise them to spend their money elsewhere. Like the Ace Church of Gumley, for example. The outfield is getting a little long in the tooth, so a nice young flycatcher like Milton Bradley, Peter Bergeron, or Juan Pierre would fill the bill. There are some needs to be addressed, but they already have enough star power to light the way. And fight the X-men, to boot. SCOTTSDALE HAWKEYES (NEEDS: SP, 2B, SS, 3B, OF)- The Hawkeye's only finished 2 games removed from the postseason, but I think their season was a little weaker than it appeared. The pitching staff is held together with bailing wire, gum, and pampers, so a legitimate numero uno is a perpetual need. Problem? There's no legit numero uno in this draft. Not even a number one, either. Steve Trachsel or Rick Helling would add a nice innings eating, veteran, influence, though. The Hawkeye's have also fancied Brett Tomko for awhile, so they could go in that direction. Lord knows, this team loooves those unfulfilled potential types. The starting positions around the infield are set, but they need to bring in some viable backups. 2B Todd Walker, and former Hawkeye's Scott Spiezio and Craig Paquette come to mind. One thing to remember is the health of 3B Fernando Tatis. He missed half of 2000 with a groin pull (Who wouldn't?), and Paquette was a less than adequate replacement. So, don't be overly surprised if they throw their hat into the Nevin or Ken Caminiti rings. The Albert Belle hip sitchieation also needs to be addressed. If the Belle hip keeps him out of the lineup for an extended period, these dudes are in trouble. I mean trouble with a capital TROUBLE. Johnny Damon or Todd Hollandsworth would be quality, albeit expensive insurance policies. This team has definite needs, but the answers may not be in this draft. ROSEVILLE ROWDIES (NEEDS: SP, RP, C, SS)- If this team played the first 100 games like they did the last 20 games, they wouldn't be included with the also-rans. So what team is this, the one that stumbled around for 4 months, or the one that caught fire those last 30 days? Kind of neither. I mean both, actually. But, leaning more towards the 4 month deal. Awright, awright, I have no clue. I do know this team needs some pitching help. Jamie Moyer and Kevin Tapani are the only decent starters in this group. I would say that puts these Rowdies at the head of the class for Steve Trachsel. For good measure, I'm going to throw Steve Woodard and Glendon Rusch into the mix. I wouldn't be surprised if they go after 4 to 5 starting pitchers. Yes, it's that bad. On the relief side, they have a quality closer in Dave Veres, so they just need a little help for him out in the pen. They could possibly spend some money on Kaz Sasaki, but I would advise against it. They could fill this spot nicely with a much cheaper model, and save some money to revamp that rotation. They could also use some production from the catcher's position. Tyler Houston put up some nice numbers in limited duty last year, but I don't see him playing everyday. I say Ben Petrick or Mitch Meluskey. Dammit. A decent replacement for Mike Lansing at second could be in the offering. Other than that they could use another utility infielder to round out the depth. All in all, not too hard to call, here. Starting pitching, starting pitching, starting pitching. Then we'll see if they can play well for longer than 30 days. Alright, Gang o' mine, that is, as they say, all for now. But, you make sure to get yourself back here in two weeks, and see what the ol' Acemeister has in store for the bottom dwellers- Orangevale, Davis, and Las Vegas. Until then, buckaroo's……Aces everyone…. |