Elephant Rumblings: A’s sign Court, Freeman to minor league deals

A’s Coverage:

• Cotillo: Red Sox manager search - Mark Kotsay believed to be a candidate as Boston continues interview process...
• Posnanski: The Baseball 100 - No. 59, Reggie Jackson... ($$$)
• Kleinschmidt: Why A’s wild-card loss to Rays still stings Sean Manaea months later...
• Brazil: Matt Chapman Q&A - A’s star discusses life in MLB, favorite actor...
• Lockard: ‘A Hall of Famer in my book’ - Why Keith Lieppman’s legacy will extend well beyond his first 50 years with the A’s... ($$$)
• Moriarty: A’s Farm Podcast’s FanFest Special #1 with Jesus Luzardo, A.J. Puk, James Kaprielian & Daulton Jefferies...
• Lockard: Crystal ball - Three prospects from the A’s and Giants who will have breakout 2020 seasons... ($$$)

MLB News:

• Heyman: Astros finalizing deal with new manager Dusty Baker...
• Camerato: 1B Mitch Moreland returns to Red Sox on one-year, $2.5M deal...
• Sheldon: Reds’ 3B Eugenio Suárez has right shoulder surgery...
• Guardado: Giants, Gold Glove 2B Yolmer Sanchez agree to MiLB deal...

Baseball Interest Stories:

• Rosenthal: With Nick Castellanos in the fold, what happens next for the Reds? ($$$)
• Clemens: 2019 Had a Lot of Meaningless Baseball...
• Brown: Heartbroken over Altobelli deaths, Orange Coast College baseball team starts picking up the pieces...
• McCullough: Two aces, a sea of scouts and a near-brawl - Tales from Patrick Mahomes’ high school no-hitter... ($$$)
• Paschal: The Roof Will Set You Free. Sort Of...

Today in Baseball History:

• 1971 — In accepting the Tris Speaker Award from Houston sportswriters, Roberto Clemente gives a speech which, apart from being called by many of those in attendance “the best talk any baseball player ever made,” is the source of Clemente’s most famous – if oft misquoted – assertion: “If you have an opportunity to accomplish something that will make things better for someone coming behind you, and you don’t do that, you are wasting your time on this earth.”
• 2006 — The Oakland Athletics sign Mark Ellis to a two-year, $6 million contract, rewarding their second baseman for his strong comeback season last year from a major shoulder injury.

Best of Twitter:

• This is good to hear, re: the walk to Howard Terminal...

• It’s only fair...

• A pair of moderately interesting depth additions...