For those that watched the Athletics throughout the 2025 season, you could see that this team is close to making a return to the postseason. They have the reigning AL Rookie of the Year in Nick Kurtz, the runner-up in Jacob Wilson, and also enjoyed breakouts from Denzel Clarke defensively, Jacob Lopez on the pitching side, and Tyler Soderstrom turning into a core piece of this club.
The upward trajectory of this team is undeniable. Yet, after last offseason’s spending spree (compared to every other John Fisher offseason), the A’s haven’t been mentioned in many rumors this winter, despite the expectation that they’ll continue to spend.
Should this be a cause for concern? Let’s take a look at how active they were ahead of the Luis Severino signing last offseason.
Nearly a Year Ago…
Sep 13, 2025; West Sacramento, California, USA; Athletics starting pitcher Luis Severino (40) throws a pitch against the Cincinnati Reds during the first inning at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Lee-Imagn Images | Dennis Lee-Imagn Images
It was on December 6, 2024 that the A’s officially signed Luis Severino to the largest contract in A’s history at three years and $67 million. The move kind of came out of nowhere, which could bode well for the A’s this winter, given their lack of involvement in rumors at the end of November.
Last year at this time of year, they had traded Nick Allen after Jacob Wilson was the obvious shortstop moving forward. This year, they DFA’d JJ Bleday with the emergence of Clarke in center.
They also went out and signed guys like OF Carlos Cortes, LHP Matt Krook, RHP Jason Alexander, OF Drew Avans, RHP Tanner Dodson and RHP Gustavo Rodriguez. The A’s kept quiet until they ended up signing Severino, and then eight days later traded for Jeffrey Springs and Jacob Lopez.
This year, they signed 1B Joey Meneses, LHPs Matt Krook and Ben Bowden re-signed, and veteran RHP Nick Anderson was also brought in. The A’s continued to build up their relief depth with RHP Wander Suero, RHP Geoff Hartlieb and LHP Keiver De Horta.
In a side-by-side comparison, there isn’t much room for concern just yet, as the franchise has been following the same path they took last winter, when they ended up making some big additions. They are bringing in minor leaguers to help fill some open roles, and that is to be expected.
The Reason to Worry
Jul 27, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Athletics relief pitcher Ben Bowden (62) delivers a pitch against the Houston Astros during the ninth inning at Daikin Park. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-Imagn Images | Erik Williams-Imagn Images
If you’re looking for a reason to worry, it’s because the guys they’ve brought in fit into one of two molds. The first is the Suero, Anderson and Meneses category, which could be veteran players that are looking for an opportunity and aren’t likely to get many offers from clubs this winter. Adding those types of players is fine, but it’s not exactly the most invigorating addition for a team on the rise.
The other category of player is basically Krook and Bowden, who are a pair of veteran relief pitchers that have already been with the club. Krook is from Hillsborough, CA, just outside of Millbrae, so he’s also a fairly local guy.
The reason this is a bit worrisome is that it could be an early barometer of the type of additions the A’s will be able to make on the free agent market. Severino signed with the A’s before anyone had played in West Sacramento, and he spent his 2025 telling people that he didn’t like it very much.
All of the American League teams, and half of the NL ones have now played in Sacramento. How will that impact the A’s trying to lure players to play for them? If we’re looking at the minor-league free agents they’ve brought in, it could be a sign of a long winter for the green and gold.
On the other side of the coin, they were able to bring back a pair of left-handers that spent time with the club in 2025 in Krook and Bowden, so perhaps there is a sect of players that actually liked playing in the minor-league park and would happily sign on with the A’s. Only time will tell.
Get all of your A’s offseason news from us on Facebook and Twitter!
Recommended Articles: