Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/658783
61 BAY AREA NEWS GROUP PLAY BALL THEA'S S inceYoenisCespedesandJoshDonaldsonlefttown,tradeshavebeenaparticularlysoresubjectamongthe Oakland A's faithful. The A's were 66-41 on the day they traded Cespedes to the Boston Red Sox on July 31, 2014, holding firmly to a 2½-game lead in the American League West. Since then? The A's have gone 90-128. It's not just that retaining Donaldson, the reigning AL MVP, and Cespedes would've made the A's better — they were fan favorites, too. It seems all A's fans can do these days is grab their favorite bobbleheads, hold them close and pray Billy Beane doesn't use the trapdoor yet again. Since the A's have made such good sport out of shipping too-rich-for-their- blood talent elsewhere, we couldn't pass up a chance to make our own sport out of that predicament. Here's our own hand-pick ed All-Star ros ter of former A 's . T ak e h ear t, Athle tics N at ion: I n s tudying the de tails, we confirmed tha t n ot every deal made by Beane and his cabinet of decision-makers has been a failure. At least there is that! SSAddisonRussell Traded: July5,2014 with RHP Dan Straily, minor league Billy McKinney and cash to the Cubs for pitchers Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel. A ermath:Samardzija was only 5-6 in 16 starts for the A's, but his 3.14 ERA, 12 walks and 99 strikeouts in 1112⁄3 innings indicate he pitched well. … Hammel was 2-6, and the A's lost 10 of his 12 starts. … Russell looks like the real deal. He hit just .242 but had 29 doubles and 13 homers in 142 games last season, and is a potential Gold Glove winner on defense. … McKinney, an outfielder, is one of the Cubs' top 10 prospects. Lowdown:Beane decided to go all-out for a World Series title, so Samardzija was added (along with Jon Lester in a subsequent deal) to bolster the rotation. The trade was costly, as the A's gave up Russell and McKinney, both No. 1 picks. C Derek Norris Traded: Dec. 18, 2014, to the Padres along with a minor leaguer and cash for pitchers Jesse Hahn and R.J. Alvarez. A ermath:Norris had a nice first season for the Padres. His 14 homers, 49 extra-base hits and 62 RBIs were career-highs. He led the majors by throwing out 44 attempted base stealers. Lowdown: If Hahn stays healthy, the A's should come out OK in this exchange. Hahn could go anywhere from No. 2 to No. 4 in the A's rotation. And Oakland's catching duo of Stephen Vogt and Josh Phegley is just as good as Norris. OF Yoenis Cespedes Traded: July 31, 2014, to the Red Sox for Jon Lester, Jonny Gomes and cash. A ermath: Should A's fans feel any better now that Cespedes has been traded twice since he was dealt by Oakland? He was a monster a er arriving in the Big Apple last season, belting 17 homers and driving in 44 runs for the World Series-bound Mets.… Fans can't totally blame Lester for what happened a er the trade. He was 6-4, 2.35 in his 11 starts for the A's, and his only no-decision was an Oakland win. When Lester didn't pitch, the A's were 17-29 during his short stay. Lowdown:It's hard to rake the A's front office over the coals for this one. Oakland was going all-out to win a pennant and tried to make it happen with four stud pitchers — Gray, Kazmir, Samardzija, Lester — in the rotation. But the Royals were the AL champions, and the Giants won the World Series with one ace named Bum pitching practically every inning. OF Carlos Gonzalez Traded: Nov. 10, 2008, to the Rockies along with pitchers Huston Street and Greg Smith for OF Matt Holliday. A ermath: CarGo,when healthy,is one of the better players in the game.Last year he hit 40 homers.In 2010,he won the NL batting title with a .336 average.From 2010 to 2013,he stole at least 20 bases in each season.But he's injury-prone.… Until last season,when closer Sean Doolittle missed most of the year with a shoulder injury, the A's hadn't missed Street.… Holliday played in 93 games for the A's in 2009,then was sent to St.Louis in July for three players who never made an impact. Lowdown:If you're going to imagine Donaldson and Cespedes in the same lineup, might as well stick CarGo in there, too. They combined for a staggering 234 extra-base hits and 116 homers last season. OF Andre Ethier Traded: Dec. 13, 2005 to the Dodgers for OF Milton Bradley and INF Antonio Perez. A ermath: Ethier has had a nice career for the Dodgers — a .286/.359/.464 slash line, double digits in homers in all but one of his 10 big league seasons, and at least 130 games per year with the exception of his rookie campaign in 2006. … Bradley was a five-tool player, but his off-field demons wrecked his career. He managed 115 games over two seasons (2006-07) with Oakland. Batted .279 with 16 homers. Was traded midway through the 2007 season for pitcher Andrew Brown.… Perez hit .102 in 57 games for the A's in 2006. Lowdown: A truly regrettable trade for Oakland.Ethier isn't a star,but he's been a fixture in the Dodgers' outfield for a decade. GETTY IMAGES Toprow,fromleft:Derek Norris, Carlos Gonzalez, Andre Ethier. Middle row: Yoenis Cespedes, Addison Russell, Jeff Samardzija. Bottom row: Josh Donaldson, Ben Zobrist, Brandon Moss.