The Oakland A's are struggling near the bottom of the American League West division, and are shopping their veteran talent once again. Utility gem Ben Zobrist, arguably the quintessential Billy Beane player because of his versatility and on-base skills, could be the first to go.
Sources: #Nationals have contacted #Athletics about Zobrist. Talks preliminary. Zobrist could play LF until Werth returns, then both IF/OF.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) June 5, 2015
The Nationals have struggled with injuries this season in the lineup and rotation, and may be viewing Zobrist as an immediate solution to their outfield problems while Jayson Werth heals from a fractured wrist. Werth's goal is to be back by August 1, almost a full two months away.
Zobrist himself hasn't been a model of health in 2015, but he is back now and continuing to display a knack for getting on base. Zobrist, hitting just .222 on the season, is still getting on base at a .304 clip. Unfortunately, his defense has been a negative this year; he's cost the A's 6.5 runs, but he's played almost all of his innings at second base. Last year for the Rays, Zobrist was worth 9.4 runs in 358 innings in the outfield.
In Werth's absence Michael Taylor has played right field, and he's struggling. Taylor's slash line of .239/.294/.402 with four home runs and 18 RBI is far from the production they Nationals expected from Werth. Zobrist's average may be in the gutter too, but he can point to an unfortunate BABIP as a sign of positive regression to come
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