Less than 24 hours after parting with Josh Donaldson, shipped to the Blue Jays on Friday evening for four players in a blockbuster trade, the A's appear ready to continue dealing.
Jeff Smardzija has been at the forefront of continuing trade rumors involving the A's, with reports linking the pitcher to both the White Sox and Braves.
The Oakland Athletics have traded Josh Donaldson to the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for four players.
For Donaldson, the A's will receive third baseman Brett Lawrie, right-hander Kendall Graveman, left-hander Sean Nolin and minor league shortstop Franklin Barreto.
Donaldson told the San Francisco Chronicle that he was playing video games when his agent texted him about the trade.
"I'm so shocked," Donaldson told the newspaper. "I just got off the phone with [general manager] Billy Beane, and I guess they got an offer that they couldn't resist. I'm definitely a little emotional about it. Oakland is my home. At the end of the day, it's a business, as much as it hurts emotionally. The guys in that clubhouse are my brothers."
Beane considers both pitchers ready for the majors.
"They had been pretty persistent, and we were pretty adamant that wasn't something we were willing to talk about," Beane said of dealing Donaldson. "We wouldn't have done the deal unless it addressed now and the future, and they were able to do that. This deal in our minds addresses a little bit of everything. It got pretty serious the last 48 hours. They were reluctant to give up all four players, and we weren't going to do it without those four players in the deal."
According to wins above replacement, only Mike Trout has been more valuable than Donaldson over the past two seasons.
The Cincinnati Reds are looking to trade Jay Bruce and want "inexpensive major-league ready players" in return, according to scouts from a rival club.
Bruce will earn $12 million next season, $12.5 million in 2016 and has a $13 million option for 2017 with a $1 million buyout.
Frank Coonelly, the president for the Pittsburgh Pirates, says the club is likely to increase their payroll heading into the 2015 season.
The Pirates "certainly can and I suspect will" top $90 million in payroll for 2015, according to the executive.
Pittsburgh's 40-man payroll for 2014 was around $82 million.
The Miami Marlins continue to look for help at first base and they have added Allen Craig to their list of targets.
The Boston Red Sox acquired Craig from the St. Louis Cardinals at midseason, along with Joe Kelly, in exchange for John Lackey.
Ross Detwiler is disappointed with the way the season unfolded with the Washington Nationals.
He competed for a spot in the starting rotation last spring, was moved to the bullpen and then left off the club's postseason roster.
"I was extremely disappointed," Detwiler said of missing the chance to pitch in the playoffs. "I know it was a team full of lefties and I thought matchup-wise we would have gone with three lefties if we were trying to match up. I guess they had a different plan. Maybe someone had a better history than me and it came down to two people. I don’t know. I know down the stretch I hadn’t really thrown much in the last two weeks of the season. The last time I remember being in a close game was the day after we clinched [the division]. It was really tough to sit on the sideline and knowing I didn’t have a chance to get out there and watch us lose in the first round again. It was tougher to do that and knowing I couldn’t do anything to help."
According to a person familiar with the situation, Detwiler's camp has suggested to the Nationals that they try to trade him if possible.
Having missed out on Pablo Sandoval, the San Diego Padres are now focused on improving via trade.
The Padres are believed to have reached out to the Boston Red Sox about Yoenis Cespedes.
Cespedes is only under contract through the 2015 season.
The Miami Marlins are looking for an upgrade over Garrett Jones at first base and have begun exploring trades.
The Marlins have inquired about Baltimore's Chris Davis and Atlanta's Evan Gattis.
The Philadelphia Phillies are open to trading Cole Hamels this offseason, but Ruben Amaro says he doesn't feel any urgency to move the left-hander.
"I'm in no rush to do it," Ruben Amaro Jr. said. "I have to do what's right for this organization."
Hamels is coming off perhaps the best season of his career and has four more seasons at $22.5 million annually left on his contract.
The Seattle Mariners are looking to acquire a right-handed-hitting corner outfielder via trade and have had talks on Yoenis Cespedes, Matt Kemp and Justin Upton.
Cespedes and Upton are entering the final years of their respective contracts, while Kemp is owed more than $100 million over the next five seasons.
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