A's, Giants Primed for Success
By Nick Ostiller
It's safe to say 2012 was a successful year for Bay Area baseball teams, as the Oakland Athletics surprised everyone by capturing the American League West crown and the San Francisco Giants won it all for the second time in three years. But with 2013 spring training kicking off this past weekend, the page has officially turned and a new baseball season is just around the corner.
While most players take vacations and spend time with their families during the winter offseason, general managers such as Oakland's Billy Beane and San Francisco's Brian Sabean have been hard at work trying to improve their respective teams.
The A's caught a lot of teams off guard last season with their young rotation of starting pitchers. The best move by Oakland was actually one that they didn't make, instead holding on to the lively arms of second-year starters Jarrod Parker and Tommy Milone. With a year of experience under their belts, both hurlers remain full of potential and should only increase their win total in the pitcher-friendly Oakland Coliseum.
As for the offense, Oakland's biggest offseason splash was the importation of shortstop Hiroyuki Nakajima from Japan. Beane was hoping for a repeat of last season's international endeavors, when Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes was plucked from the Dominican Republic and promptly finished second in American League Rookie of the Year voting.
Nakajima, an eight-time all-star in Japan, spent most of his initial press conference speaking through an interpreter but opened with a statement in English that he had prepared the night before. "Hi Oakland," he began. "My name is Hiroyuki Nakajima but you can call me Hero. I'm honored to be here today and very thankful for everyone coming today. Thank you very much Mr. Beane."
Just as Nakajima thanked his general manager in Oakland, Giants fans should be showing gratitude to Sabean for the offseason moves he made to keep San Francisco a top contender again in 2013.
The Giants did well to re-sign underrated contributors such as centerfielder Angel Pagan and infielder Marco Scutaro, but Sabean's best moves were keeping relief pitchers Santiago Casilla and Jeremy Affeldt on board. Quality arms in the bullpen always come at a premium, and the Casilla-Affeldt tandem proved to be one of the best in baseball. Casilla, a hard-throwing right-hander, was deployed to counter righty batters in tight situations while Affeldt, the wily left-hander, was summoned to neutralize left-handed bats in the late innings. Both relief pitchers were highly effective in their roles and will undoubtedly prove valuable again.
Both Bay Area baseball teams are coming off fruitful seasons and have been equipped for more of the same thanks to two of the best general managers in the business. Now all that's left to do is play ball!