The Athletics might not be major sellers at the 2024 MLB trade deadline.
To the surprise of many, Oakland appears content holding onto its high-caliber players rather than offload them to one of the league’s buying contenders.
The A's are telling teams they're "reluctant" to trade away two of their most valuable assets in power-hitters Brent Rooker and JJ Bleday, the New York Post's Jon Heyman reported Saturday.
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A’s are telling teams they are reluctant to trade Brent Rooker (.948 OPS) or JJ Bleday (30 doubles). With progress being made and 103.7-mph closer Mason Miller on the shelf, it doesn’t look like a huge sale for them
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) July 27, 2024
Heyman’s report also backs what Oakland general manager David Forst told Chris Townsend on Monday's episode of "A's Cast” about the team’s approach to the July 30 deadline.
"We’ll be opportunistic," Forst told Townsend. "We may do some things. But anyone who expects we’re going to continue to just move guys out for prospects will probably be disappointed in the next week because there’s guys here we think are part of the team beyond this year.”
A’s fans might not be so quick to buy that given Oakland's past.
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But All-Star closer Mason Miller has seemed to be off the market -- or the most expensive prospect, at least -- in the eyes of the A’s and rivals for quite a while.
Rooker, however, has been viewed as one of the most prized bats on the market.
The 29-year-old designated hitter leads the A’s with a .288 batting average, 96 hits, 72 RBI and 25 home runs -- he hits tanks.
BRENT ROOKER. TIE GAME. pic.twitter.com/m0mKk9qg6r
— A's on NBCS (@NBCSAthletics) July 27, 2024
Rooker has been key alongside right fielder Lawrence Butler in helping Oakland finish a single month (July) over .500 for the first time in two years.
Bleday, too, has been a reliable bat for the A’s throughout much of the season.
The center fielder's 30 doubles clean up his .233 average, and his availability as Oakland’s leader in games played this year (104 of 106) is valuable. Bleday, 26, has heated up before the deadline, hitting .305 over his last 36 plate appearances.
Heyman’s report and Forst’s claims sing a different tune than what A’s fans have been familiar with since the GM took over in 2015.
Since then, Oakland has traded stars such as Matt Chapman, Chris Bassitt, Sean Manaea, Matt Olson, Frankie Montas and Sean Murphy, among others.
Whether the A’s will follow through on their reluctance to move their biggest names remains to be seen.
But Rooker, Bleday and especially Miller have proven to be pieces the A’s might want to carry to their developing experiment in West Sacramento and Las Vegas.
Oakland has developed a reputation for parting ways with talent over the last decade. So, the phones might be ringing wildly on Tuesday despite Heyman’s reporting and Forst’s statement.