The bullpen was the Oakland A’s strength in 2020. But they’ll lose one of their strongest performers in free agency.
Joakim Soria, who posted a 2.82 ERA with 24 strikeouts in 22 games, signed a deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks, per reports. Soria spent two seasons with the A’s, and his last year he added substantial vertical movement on his slider and curveball, which helped him become one of the manager Bob Melvin’s go-to high-leverage arms.
But Soria is 36, and the A’s bullpen could trend younger with higher velocity stuff and eye-popping spin rate with lower-cost additions such as Nik Turley and Dany Jimenez. The A’s also have a plethora of young MLB-ready arms — Daulton Jefferies, James Kaprielian, Grant Holmes, Wandisson Charles and Miguel Romero, to name a few — that could provide plenty of depth and trend toward higher-velocity arms that fill modern bullpens.
If the A’s are looking to sign a veteran player, Yusmeiro Petit, another free agent, is still unsigned and could return on a cheaper deal.
The A’s have now lost six of their 10 free agents this offseason. The list includes Reliever of the Year Liam Hendriks, who signed a four-year, $54 million with the White Sox. Marcus Semien, who signed a one-year, $18 million deal with the Toronto Blue Jays. Mid-season acquisition Tommy La Stella, who signed with the San Francisco Giants. Robbie Grossman, who signed with the Detroit Tigers. And mid-season acquisition Mike Minor, who signed a two-year deal with the Kansas City Royals.
