FanPost

Brandon Moss - Long term solution or trade bait?


Brandon Moss has provided in 13 games the stability we all were looking for from the 1B position, out of nowhere.

At the beginning, I was not a fan of the move, responding more to try to get something out of him, given his good numbers in Triple A and his opt out clause on his contract for June 5th. But his numbers with the A's has been nothing short of impressive. In 43 ABs, he has a slash line of .279/.354/.837/1.191, and an important part of our recent offensive explosion that started in Arizona (we were swept, but our offense looked good there) was his responsibility.

So, what if Brandon Moss continues at this level, or regress just a little to be considered a solid MLB 1B? He is 29, on a Minor League contract, and his current line might be just an effect of the SSS that only 43 ABs provide.

But if mid July comes, and he is still carrying those type of numbers, can you see another team giving some value for him? Would we need to sale while his stock is up? Or should we keep him and try to extend him on a cheap contract (1 year, 2 option year?), and find out if he can be the answer on 1B?

Both options are appealing, but given the fact that we have no real answers for 1B in the minors (Chris Carter probably being the "best" option) in Sacto nor Midland, he could be a gap filler in the meantime Head or Kirby-Jones reaches the Majors (IF, and that its a BIG IF, they ever reached the majors to be considered our long term answer), and that could be the worst case scenario. I would look to lock him out on a 1-2 year contract.

Let's keep in mind that Moss at some point in his career has such a value as a prospect, that he was included on the trade that involve Jason Bay and Manny Ramirez a few years ago, so we might be seen a late bloomer.