Watch CBS News

Athletics Move On From Another All-Star

By Matt Furtado/KHTK Sports 1140

The Oakland Athletics traded 2014 All-Star Brandon Moss to the Cleveland Indians for second base prospect Joe Wendle.

In a span of about five months, the A's have shipped out three all-star players.

We all know about the trade of Yoenis Cespedes. Whether you were for, or against the trade of the Cuban slugger, it has been debated non-stop ever since.

On Black Friday, the A's made a deal to trade their MVP candidate, Josh Donaldson, to the Blue Jays for Brett Lawrie and a few prospects.

Now, Brandon Moss is out of Oakland.

So the question is why. Why are the A's shipping out great players when they've made the playoffs the last three seasons?

Well it's quite simple.

MONEY!

One of the problems with Oakland developing all-star level players is that when it comes time for arbitration, or even the end of a contract, the money that needs to be given exceeds the amount the A's are willing to spend.

Donaldson and Moss were both players that seemingly didn't have a big league career until the A's found a way to develop them into great players.

Both players were coming up on arbitration and when a player has a title like all-star on their resume, the money value on that player is only going to raise.

It's hard to watch the Athletics in full-out rebuild mode this offseason because they weren't too many pieces away from a World Series contending team. In fact, some will argue that they were a contending team before Cespedes was sent to Boston.

If the A's were bottom feeders for the past three seasons, it would make a bit more sense why there's such a sense of urgency to rebuild the team. The fact that the A's were the best team in baseball for the first half of the season makes these trades questionable.

But again, it all comes down to money.

Whatever the situation may be for the Athletics' ownership, it seems as if they are handcuffing Billy Beane into making trades to save money.

"In Beane We Trust?"

He does have a rare ability to make something out of nothing, but doesn't it seem pointless to develop star players if ownership isn't willing to spend the money to keep them?

In a perfect world, the A's could combine Beane's skill to find under the radar players and a willingness to spend the money to keep them, but until then, the Athletics will always have a short window for success.

This won't be the last trade Oakland makes this offseason either. According to various reports, it's likely that starting pitcher Jeff Samardzija will be traded as well.

There will be many new faces donning the Green and Gold next season. It will take one heck of a coaching job by Manager Bob Melvin to keep this team as a contender in the American League West.

More A's Stories:

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.