Dallas Keuchel Needs To Be A Hard Pass From The Oakland Athletics
Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
There are quite at few notable free agents left on the market. Dallas Keuchel is one of those big names. The Oakland Athletics need to build up their pitching staff. However, Dallas Keuchel shouldn’t be a player on their radar.
Athletics General Manager, David Forst, has put together a quality roster. The pitching staff might be the weakest part of this Athletics team. On paper, you’re not going to win many games with Mike Fiers as the number 1 starter. Of course, this is Oakland we are talking about. The A’s are known to spend little and produce quality MLB rosters.
It’s about time Oakland goes out and gets themselves a quality number 1 starter to anchor the rotation. There’s only one issue. The free agent pitching market is very lackluster. The team was in the trade market for former A, Sonny Gray (Who eventually got traded to the Cincinnati Reds). With Keuchel still available, Forst needs to resist temptation
The A’s 2018 team ERA of 3.81 was good for 6th in the American League. Oakland also placed 11th in the A.L. with 1,237 strikeouts. There wasn’t a single starter who placed below a 3.30 ERA. You’re not going to find that in Dallas Keuchel.
Keuchel is a former Cy Young Award winner. While he didn’t have the season many expected him to in 2018, the makeup of a great pitcher is all there. Keuchel’s ERA in 2018 was just a bit higher than that of the A’s 2018 average. He’s had some very poor seasons after his Cy Young campaign, though. A good reason to not sign Dallas Keuchel.
It’s a bit concerning for Keuchel, who has dealt with injuries in the past, to go from a Cy Young year, to some very pedestrian seasons. He doesn’t help the A’s rotation in the slightest. With that being said, Keuchel isn’t the worst pitcher at the Oakland Colliseum. He sports a .333 ERA with 39 K’s. His record is 2-4 when pitching in Oakland. This shouldn’t be a major factor in signing Keuchel.
Again, Oakland can sign just about anyone and find success. Last year, Edwin Jackson pitched like an All-Star at certain points of the year. Credit the pitching staff for getting most out of the rotation. Keuchel might be able to rejuvenate himself under the Oakland Athletics, it’s just not worth the hefty price tag, especially given the risk you’ll have.
Don’t sign Dallas Keuchel if you’re the Oakland Athletics. He’s not the ace you need to anchor the pitching staff. There’s little reason to believe he’ll be any better for the Athletics this year than he was last year with Houston. In addition, a flier like Keuchel isn’t worth the contract he’ll command. Oakland has a history with not signing the big names. They’d be smart to keep it that way.
Daniel is a guru of baseball and basketball prospects. He’s a very experienced Amusement Park traveler as well. Follow him and his hot takes on Insta @dgentleman9288
