Jed Lowrie can’t escape the Oakland A’s.
The A’s have reacquired the shortstop from the Houston Astros in an one-for-one deal in exchange for minor league pitcher Brendan McCurry. It marks a return to the organization for the 31-year-old, who last played with the club for two seasons in 2013 and 2014.
On the surface, the move makes sense for both teams. The Athletics were in need of a versatile infielder, and Lowrie fits the bill. He can play shortstop, second and third base, and could supplant Marcus Semien, who struggled tremendously defensively in 2015, at the position. The A’s could also opt to start him at second base, move Brett Lawrie back to third and move Danny Valencia to the outfield. They have plenty of options, so they aren’t forced to displace someone given the versatility in their infield.
Offensively, Lowrie had a tough season in 2015. In his second stint with the Astros after signing a three-year deal in late 2014, he only managed nine home runs to go with 30 RBI and a .222 average in 69 games. With Carlos Correa’s star blossoming, he made a majority of his starts at third base. The Astros open a spot on their 40-man roster, and clear a significant chunk of cash, as Lowrie was due to make $7.5 million next year, $6.5 million in 2017 and has a $6 million club option for 2018.
Lowrie: "I'm disappointed to leave Houston. I think the Astros are obviously a team headed in right direction."
— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) November 25, 2015
McCurry, a 22nd round draft choice by the A’s in 2014, had a dominant 2015 campaign split between A+ and AA. In 50 games, he locked down 27 saves, posted a 1.86 ERA and struck out a whopping 82 batters in 63 innings, only walking 17. Despite the gaudy numbers, the 23-year-old doesn’t have traditional closer stuff.
“McCurry has excelled as a closer since taking on pitching full-time, but he doesn’t have traditional closer’s stuff. His fastball generally sits in the 88-91 MPH range,” wrote Melissa Lockard of The Ada News. “However, hitters often react to McCurry’s fastball as if it is coming at them at a much higher rate of speed thanks to the deception he offers with his delivery – or deliveries, to be more precise. Thanks to his upbringing as a middle infielder, McCurry has two different arm slots that he throws from – a more traditional release point and a sidearm slot that more closely mimics the throw from shortstop.”
The move isn’t a huge one, but may be a precursor to Houston making a bigger move. The team made leaps and bounds in their rebuild last year and aren’t the same team that’s trying to spend as little money is possible. Astros owner Jim Crane already said they’re going to increase payroll, so I wouldn’t count out a big free agent move coming.
Even if this trade has little impact, we can at least admire it for creating this confusion.
Try saying Lowrie-Lawrie a bunch of times.
— Jane Lee (@JaneMLB) November 25, 2015
