I’m sorry that I didn’t get this up here sooner. Fantasy baseball got in the way. We’ve completed catchers and infielders in this series, so next up are the outfielders. I’m going to start with center fielders because they’re usually harder to find than corner outfielders. If a team has an extra quality center fielder, he can move to a corner with no problem. If a team has an extra quality corner outfielder, he’s most likely relegated to the bench because his defense isn’t good enough for center.

Impact Center Fielders to Be Traded

Over the past two offseasons, the San Francisco Giants have spent a ton of money on two players that most likely aren’t worth it: Barry Zito and Aaron Rowand. What makes it worse is that it might be four or five years before the Giants re-enter the NL playoff picture. All the talk has been about how happy the players are now that Barry Bonds is gone. I’ve got a feeling that finishing last will make those players change their minds about the situation. Rowand is due $52 million over the next five years – all that for a guy with two good seasons at the plate in his career (2004 and 2007). As for trading him, it won’t happen because he has a full no-trade clause this year, but he only has a limited no-trade clause in subsequent years. If he has a good year in 2008, it will be time to unload him.

One other guy that’s been rumored to be available through trade is Coco Crisp, but I don’t agree with that decision. With Coco Crisp, they’ve got somebody who can act as a sub for six positions without a ton of loss at each. Obviously, he can sub for the three outfield spots and the DH. With Kevin Youkilis on the roster, he can also sub for first and third with Manny Ramirez moving to DH, David Ortiz moving to first, and either Youkilis or Mike Lowell at third. Now, let’s list the starters at those positions (if we consider Crisp as the bench guy): J.D. Drew, Jacoby Ellsbury, Manny, Ortiz, Youkilis, and Lowell. There are a few guys in that list that have had injury problems. Plus, Crisp is only set to make $10.5M over the next two seasons. He could be worth twice that. For these reasons, the Red Sox should keep Coco Crisp as insurance.

Contenders Needing a Center Fielder

Atlanta Braves traded for Mark Kotsay in an attempt to fill the void left by Andruw Jones’s free agent departure, but it has been three years since Kotsay has been both healthy and productive. The other options – Gregor Blanco and Josh Anderson – don’t provide much certainty for Braves’ fans either. It will be at least half a year until Jordan Schafer is ready to take over. As currently constructed, the Braves are in the mix for the wild card, and improving their center fielder would go a long way toward getting back to the playoffs. Maybe they could convince the Red Sox to trade Crisp.

Next Year’s Free Agents

Next year’s center field market won’t be anything like this past offseason. Mike Cameron and Mark Kotsay are the best free agents-to-be, but the Brewers hold an option for 2009 on Cameron. Given the alternatives, the Brewers might determine that he’s worth the $10 million to keep around for one more year.

Pre-Free Agent Stars

B.J. Upton tops the list here. Moved away from his error-prone tendencies in the infield, Upton had a great year in 2007. His incredible bat was finally on display at the major league level, and he will continue to prove why scouts were so high on him in the past. Like several of his teammates, the Rays should be trying to lock up Upton’s arbitration and possibly one or two of his free agent years.

Several players could make their way onto this list with good 2008 seasons: Jay Bruce, Adam Jones, Melky Cabrera, Lastings Milledge, Chris Young, Jacoby Ellsbury, Felix Pie, Cameron Maybin, and Josh Hamilton.

Recap

The Giants signed Aaron Rowand for some unknown reason, and they should look to trade him when his full no-trade clause becomes limited following the season. The Red Sox should keep Coco Crisp to guard against injuries among their starters at six positions. Despite trading for Mark Kotsay, the Braves still need a center fielder. Next year’s free agent class is not very impressive, which could mean the Brewers will exercise their 2009 option on Mike Cameron’s contract. B.J. Upton is an elite player deserving of a contract extension, and a whole slew of players could prove themselves deserving with good 2008s.

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If the Yankees win one more game or the Athletics lose one more game, Oakland will be completely eliminated from the playoff race. What's the probability of either one of those two things happening, let alone both? Zero.

The Good

Joe Blanton and Dan Haren have been about as good a 1-2 as can be found in the big leagues. Although Haren has seen his ERA go up for 17 straight starts, that's more a testament to how great he was to start the year than anything else. On June 9th, Haren's ERA was a measly 1.58. Since then, he has posted a 4.23 ERA, which puts him at the 3.11 ERA he has for the season. Their pitching staff can again thank their defense for good support in the field, led by Mark Ellis. Ellis continues to be one of the most underrated second baseman in the game. He doesn't consistently put up good numbers offensively, sitting at .276/.339/.440, but he does a great job in the field.

On the offensive side of things, Nick Swisher continues to be one of the best picks from the Moneyball draft. Several of last year's home runs have turned into doubles this year, but he improved his on-base percentage to .385, demonstrating the disciplined Oakland A approach at the plate. However, his disciplined approach is topped by midseason acquisition Jack Cust, who is currently hitting .257/.401/.510. Observers are quickly turned off by Cust's strikeouts (141 strikeouts in 343 at bats), and that has limited his opportunities to prove himself at the big leagues. Getting his first shot at more than 100 plate appearances in the majors, Cust has proven that he can hit at this level. His horrible defense makes him more of a DH than an outfielder, but Cust is a good example of just another way Billy Beane has been able to find inefficiencies in the player market.

The other positive happened on July 16. Not only did the A's find a taker for Jason Kendall and his .226/.261/.281 line, they got actual talent back in Jerry Blevins and Rob Bowen. In addition, it freed up a spot so that they could find out what they have in Kurt Suzuki, and Suzuki looks to be their long-term solution behind the plate.

The Bad

Injuries hit this team hard, but that shouldn't have been much of a surprise to A's fans. Injuries are one thing that Eric Chavez, Bobby Crosby, Mark Kotsay, Rich Harden, and Mike Piazza have had in common in their careers. If they can ever keep their talent on the field, the Athletics would have a really good team.

Looking Forward

In terms of talent, the Athletics have what it takes to field a contender. It is all a matter of whether or not they can actually keep their talent on the field. Their trainers have a disadvantage in terms of what they have to work with, but they could be the difference makers for the A's going forward. As far as preparing the roster for next season, Billy Beane and company just need to make sure they have adequate replacements for the sure-fire injuries that will take place.