Count right-handed pitcher Walker Buehler among those who won't be suiting up for the Athletics next season, when they play their first campaign in a minor-league park in Sacramento? Athletics manager Mark Kotsay acknowledged on Thursday night, during a speaking appearance at the USC SBA Sports Business Summit, that the club had reached out to Buehler -- and that the free-agent pitcher had expressed he had no interest in playing in Sacramento, according to USC student journalist Kasey Kazliner.
Buehler, 30, is coming off a disappointing season that saw him post a 5.38 ERA (72 ERA+) and a 2.29 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Buehler did recover during the postseason (and threw the title-clinching pitch in Game 5 of the World Series), leading CBS Sports to rank him as the 26th-best free agent available:
Buehler feels like this winter's version of Luis Severino: a once-promising right-hander with an injury history and a dismal walk year (at least in the regular season) to his name. As with Severino, the pitch-grading models are a lot sweeter on Buehler's arsenal than you might suspect they would be based on his poor results. Depending on which one you consult with, Buehler -- who closed out the World Series -- is estimated to have three or four above-average pitches. We fully expect some team to take that information to heart and hand him a one-year pact worth around $15 million.
Buehler not wanting any part of the Athletics' situation is unsurprising. As we explained when the A's claimed they would raise payroll this winter, any players who have a choice in the matter are unlikely to want part in playing their home games at a minor-league stadium. Here's what we wrote at the time:
Their pool of potential signings is likely to be limited to players who want an opportunity -- be it any employment at the big-league level or for the kind of role that a team without serious competitive aspirations can offer -- and who will be willing to take a one-year deal and overlook those aforementioned circumstances. (The Athletics could also absorb money in trades from teams looking to shed what they perceive to be bad contracts -- such arrangements would, in most cases, be executable without the player having a say in the matter.)
The Athletics are set to play their home contests at Sutter Health Park, home of the Triple-A River Cats, through the 2027 season. Enhancements are being made to the ballpark, but it's unlikely to compare favorably to stadiums designed for MLB teams.