More will come in the days and weeks to come. Matt Chapman, Sean Manaea, Frankie Montas — anyone wearing green and yellow and anywhere near arbitration is on the market.
But instead of augmenting around them while they were inexpensive, instead of signing good players to contract extensions before they hit free agency, the A’s blew it all up again, well before this core’s time was up.But sports are an escape from everyday life. They need to sell hope — the idea that things will be great this year, or, at the worst, that they’ll be better soon.The way this organization treats fans is repugnant. No, it’s even worse: It’s shameless.
I’ve had a half a dozen hat-wearing, Coliseum-on-a-Tuesday-night fans say they’re done with this team over the last few weeks. And these are not reactionary people. They knew what was coming, but now that a new cycle has started, their new reality is rooting for the Padres, Mariners, White Sox, or Giants.
There could be a cool factor there. That’s something a competent organization could sell while they try to build a new park.