Athletics will acquire Adam Kolarek

11:45 am: Both teams announced the trade.

11:02 am: Athletics and Dodgers agree on trade that will send lefty Adam kolarek and minor league outfielder Cody thomas from Los Angeles to Oakland in exchange for an infielder Sheldon Neuse and minor league law Gus Varland, Reports Jeff Passan of ESPN (via Twitter).

Kolarek, 32, will give an immediate boost to a losing Oakland bullpen Liam Hendriks and Joakim Soria | this winter and could still lose Yusmeiro Small (still a free agent) too. Kolarek has emerged as a ground ball specialist capable of completely overwhelming left-handed hitters in recent years, throwing at a combined ERA of 3.07 and 3.61 SIERA with a below-average strikeout rate of 17.4% but a strong walk (5.7) and a ball on the ground (63.3) percentages. He’s controllable for four seasons and won’t be eligible for officiating until next winter, so he’s a worthwhile addition for an A-side that has drastically cut payrolls this winter while avoiding any real expense.

The short-term piece returned to Los Angeles is Neuse, 26, who made his MLB debut with Oakland in 2019 but did not appear in the Majors last season. Neuse saw moderate action in his brief debut, making 61 trips to plate and hitting .250 / .295 / .304 with a 31% pullout rate. It wasn’t a particularly encouraging start, but Neuse posted some big numbers in his final Triple-A ball season, hitting .317 / .389 / .550 with 27 big flies – good for a 126 wRC +.

Neuse saw some time at second base, but his best position is probably third, which left him blocked by Matt Chapman in Oakland. His presence gives the Dodgers a fallback option in the event that Justin turner eventually decides to sign elsewhere, but the Neuse acquisition is unlikely to close the door to a meeting with Turner in any way. Neuse still has two minor league options, which makes him the kind of depth the Dodgers tend to store: a former high draft pick who is a bit old to be a prospect now but has some defensive versatility and a solid experience in superior miners at the plate.

As for the minor league plays in the trade, the A’s are going to acquire Thomas, a 26-year-old corner fielder with plenty of power but swing-and-miss tendencies that limit his overall upside potential. The former 13th round pick hit .236 / .308 / .443 (108 wRC +) in a Double-A environment that turned out to be a wasteland for hitters in 2019 and hit .285 / .355 / .497 a year ago in class. -A Advanced.

Thomas was not selected in this year’s draft rule 5, illustrating that he is far from a premium prospect, but he is a close MLB stick with a career of .219 ISO (slugging minus the medium) in minors. It is conceivable that he could emerge as a big league option in 2021-2022.

Varland, 24, was Athletics’ fourth round pick in 2018 and has just 64 1/3 professional innings to his name. He wasn’t among Oakland’s top prospects, although FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen gives him the potential for an above-average warm-up and slider – although he has some work to do in terms of control. and improvement of a third field. Varland only pitched 26 1/3 innings at the Advanced Class A level in 2019, working at a 2.39 ERA and 4.00 FIP with a 27 to 8 K / BB ratio and bullet rate to the ground of 37%.