The A's just didn't accomplish much offensively behind the plate last season. Kurt Suzuki's offensive downturn continued in 2012 before he was traded to Washington. That opened an opportunity for untested Derek Norris, who ironically came over from the Nationals in the Gio Gonzalez trade. Norris had a few big moments, most notably his walkoff home run to beat the Giants in June.
But the rookie seemed overmatched at times, hitting just .201 in 209 at-bats; George Kottaras wasn't much better in his opportunities after being acquired from Milwaukee. So it shouldn't be a complete surprise that the Athletics made a significant move on Wednesday, trading pitching prospect A.J. Cole back to the Washington Nationals -who are beginning to look like the Arizona Diamondbacks in terms of being frequent Oakland trade partners- and getting Mariners' catcher John Jaso as part of a three-team deal. Kottaras was designated for assignment.
As Athletics' MLB.com reporter Jane Lee pointed out in the above linked story, Jaso's left-handed bat that registered a .927 OPS against right-handed pitching should make for a nice platoon for the right-handed hitting Norris. Jaso hit 10 home runs with 50 RBI for the Mariners in 2012. And if Norris can improve on his abbreviated first season, the A's could have a nice two-headed option at catcher. But it given his numbers against right-handers Jaso will get the bulk of the starts considering the 2012 Athletics had twice as many at-bats (3,683) vs. right-handed pitching compared with 1,844 when southpaws were on the mound. The A's faced 103 right-handed starters, 59 who threw from the left side.
The Athletics should be an outstanding pitching team again, barring their young and talented rotation staying healthy. They should be tough to crack in the late innings if the Doolittle/Cook/Balfour combination stays effective. But offense remains a question mark, and that's why Jaso needs to continue his feasting on right-handers to give Oakland more productivity at a position that mostly was a liability during its division-championship run.
But the rookie seemed overmatched at times, hitting just .201 in 209 at-bats; George Kottaras wasn't much better in his opportunities after being acquired from Milwaukee. So it shouldn't be a complete surprise that the Athletics made a significant move on Wednesday, trading pitching prospect A.J. Cole back to the Washington Nationals -who are beginning to look like the Arizona Diamondbacks in terms of being frequent Oakland trade partners- and getting Mariners' catcher John Jaso as part of a three-team deal. Kottaras was designated for assignment.
As Athletics' MLB.com reporter Jane Lee pointed out in the above linked story, Jaso's left-handed bat that registered a .927 OPS against right-handed pitching should make for a nice platoon for the right-handed hitting Norris. Jaso hit 10 home runs with 50 RBI for the Mariners in 2012. And if Norris can improve on his abbreviated first season, the A's could have a nice two-headed option at catcher. But it given his numbers against right-handers Jaso will get the bulk of the starts considering the 2012 Athletics had twice as many at-bats (3,683) vs. right-handed pitching compared with 1,844 when southpaws were on the mound. The A's faced 103 right-handed starters, 59 who threw from the left side.
The Athletics should be an outstanding pitching team again, barring their young and talented rotation staying healthy. They should be tough to crack in the late innings if the Doolittle/Cook/Balfour combination stays effective. But offense remains a question mark, and that's why Jaso needs to continue his feasting on right-handers to give Oakland more productivity at a position that mostly was a liability during its division-championship run.
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