It's not totally out of the question that the Athletics could sign free-agent slugger Hideki Matsui. The San Francisco Chronicle is reporting that industry sources have linked Oakland to the Japanese hitter. "We're not opposed to bringing a veteran in that can help us in the short term until we create somebody from our organization to take that spot," A's manager Bob Geren said. "He's certainly one of the better players in the league for sure. He's had some great years, great numbers in New York. He's helped them win a lot."