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| Samardzija stifled the Jays to complete a 4-game sweep |
For a majority of the season, Chicago had shopped each pitcher to various teams but finally struck a deal this weekend. Samardzija, seeking a hefty raise, commanded an extremely high price tag from his suitors due to the small market for high-level starters at this year's trade deadline. After dealing with a rash of injuries, Oakland jumped on the opportunity to improve their rotation tenfold. Marred with injuries for the beginning of the year, the A's needed to support the efforts of Sonny Gray, Jesse Chavez and recently named All-Star Scott Kazmir. Both Hammel and Samardzija had felt the effects of a Cubs offense that had been essentially anemic this entire season, both toting ERA's under 3.00 while combining for a record of 10-12. Now, each starter can reap the benefits of playing for the highest scoring offense in the MLB.
Even if the A's are simply renting out the pitchers for the stretch run and the postseason, this move makes the Athletics the clear favorite in the AL, if they weren't already. Toting the best team ERA in the American League, Samardzija and Hammel round out a playoff rotation that could potential feature 4 former opening day starters. Sonny Gray has struggled in recent weeks but his torrid start to the season should reserve any doubt that he will bounce back to his early successes in 2014. The thing that stands out most is the urgency from Billy Beane to enter "win now" mode although they were arguably the most complete team in the league. If there was ever a year to go all-in on a playoff season for the A's, it is certainly. The master of Moneyball isn't one for selling his beloved farm system for large trade targets, rather than resurrecting careers for players who had appeared to have seen their better days (i.e. Coco Crisp, Scott Kazmir). Beane, a tenured GM that has witnessed his fair share of winning in his days at Oakland must have mulled this decision over an infinite amount of times in the upcoming hours before the trade.
I say this because of the haul he was forced to part with in order to land these two. Making their way to Chicago was the last two first round picks for the A's organization, which included the #3 prospect in the MLB according to Keith Law, in Addison Russell. Russell, a promising shortstop was the centerpiece of the deal for the Cubbies. Already possessing 3 of the top 15 prospects this year (Baseball America), Chicago was once again able to stockpile assets for their rebuilding process. Samardzija and Hammel were both free agents after this year anyways, so how could Theo Epstein possibly say no? If they're this high on "Shark" still, they could ultimately sign him to his desired extension if Oakland opts to only keep him for the remainder of the season. The team may not look "sexy" on paper right now but the Cubs are assembling a formidable core of young players who continue to show improvements. The biggest surprise is Jake Arrieta, who was packaged along with Pedro Strop last season from the Orioles and has flourished into one of the most dominant pitchers in the past few months. Showing signs of his effectiveness last season, he has become the hottest pitcher in the league now named Kershaw and Wainwright. He will now be vaulted into the ace role of a Cubs team that saw their playoff aspirations fly out the window weeks before. However, the loss of Samardzija allows Chicago to retain a top of the line starter for a much cheaper price tag and can use their assets and large payroll to build around him.
Back to the A's, they concluded this weekend with Samardzija's debut start in the A.L. and Oakland was thoroughly pleased as he held the high powered Blue Jays offense to only one run over 7 innings, picking up the win. For Oakland, they improved to an astounding 22 games over .500 with the ASB break looming and have solidified their spot atop Nick Caputo's unofficial MLB power rankings for this week. Similar to Jaws in the town of Amity, this Shark has taken over the town of Oakland and the future looks bright for the A's.
