The Boston Herald reports that the A's have offered closer Keith Foulke a four deal at about $6 million a year. Foulke apparently wants to resign in Oakland, and the deal seems to be about the same money that Foulke is being offered by the Boston Red Sox. Expect to see a deal before Sunday, when the A's have to decide whether or not to offer Foulke arbitration. What's interesting about this is that Beane has made a little industry of moving closers at the point that they become overpaid. Tying up $24 million in a closer goes against what he's always done -- and that makes me wonder what he's thinking.
It seems to me that Beane thinks the window for this team might be closing, and he's probably right. Miguel Tejada is probably gone already -- Beane told MLB.com that "I haven't spoken to Miguel's agent. I don't know if we're waiting for anything, we're just sort of moving on." Chavez is a free agent after 2004, and the Big Three are signed through 2005.
His quotes about Tejada seem to indicate that the TLong/Hernandez for Kotsay trade wasn't a move to try and free up money for Miguel. Could there be another trade in the works? Was it to free up money for Foulke? Have Hoffman and Schott loosened the purse strings to let Beane try and grab a title before the Big Three put on their pinstripes?
I'm not sure, but I'd guess by the weekend, we might have a much better idea of what's going on in Oakland