Season Preview: Philadelphia Athletics

Last Season: 78-76, 5th in ALManager: Connie Mack (48th season in Philadelphia, 51st total)Offseason: Philadelphia will roll out a new starter in right field on Opening Day after acquiring Don White from San Francisco in the Pacific Coast League. White is a 29-year-old rookie from Washington who has helped make the Seals the team to beat in the PCL. They also signed Rudy York, the slugger who has had four 30 homer seasons. York has aged quickly and is not the player he once was, but he was signed only to back up at first base. The Athletics also sold reliever Russ Christoper to the Indians, possibly in response to a holdout in the offseason.Catcher: Buddy Rosar has been an All-Star for the Athletics in each of the last two seasons, and also received the honor in his days playing for the Yankees and Indians. He has caught over 100 games in both of his last two seasons, helping mentor Philadelphia's young pitching staff. Age is catching up to him, though, and he will still see his share of days on the bench, when he will be replaced by Mike Guerra or Herman Franks.Infield: The Athletics return the same starting infield that they put in the lineup almost every game last season. Ferris Fain made a run at Rookie of the Year honors and is showing plate discipline most veterans don't even have. He finished in the top five in the league in walks at 95 but only struck out 34 times. Connie Mack hopes Fain can play every day but signed York just in case. More patient than Fain, perhaps too patient, is shortstop Eddie Joost. Joost drew 114 walks but also struck out a majors-worst 110 times. His .206 average is not ideal for a leadoff hitter, but with more walks than hits he is still adept at getting on base. Pete Suder has been used at every spot in the infield during his career but will return to second base after the position became his primary spot last year. Hank Majeski has bounced around multiple teams and missed four years during the war but made third base his last season. At age 30, it was his first full season in the majors. Philadelphia doesn't really have anyone to turn to, besides perhaps York at first base, if any of their starters are injured, so their health will be directly linked to the team's success.Outfield: Though White will start in right field at the beginning of the season, Elmer Valo should still see plenty of playing time. Valo has hit at least .300 in each of the last two seasons and could also see time in left field if needed. However, that may not happen often with Barney McCosky on the team. McCosky patrolled center field for the Tigers before the war and was well respected but was traded to Philadelphia in 1946 following a slow start. He bounced back to hit .318 that year and improved by ten points this past year. His skills are not needed at center in Shibe Park, though, as Sam Chapman has held the starting job since 1938 barring his time in the Navy. Chapman led the team in home runs last year and has hit 20+ three times this decade. He also reduced the number of strikeouts taken in his early years. Another outfielder on the bench is George Binks, who was an everyday starter on the '45 Senators team that missed the pennant by just one game.Rotation: Philadelphia has a young pitching staff with one veteran to lead them. Phil Marchildon won 19 games for the Athletics during their unlikely run last year. Back in 1942, he won 17 games even while the team lost 99, so who knows how well he could do if the team continues to defy expectations. Lou Brissie will be the second starter after an incredible comeback story. Brissie was injured in Italy a little over three years ago after a German artillery shell exploded near him. Field surgeons discussed amputation and his playing career certainly seemed over. Against the odds, Brissie has worked his way up to the majors and made his debut against the Yankees in the final game of the year last year. Joe Coleman, Carl Scheib, and Bill McCahan return for their second full year in Philadelphia after their rookie campaigns last year. McCahan won ten games in about half the starts of Marchildon in  '47. Dick Fowler is also part of the rotation and had the lowest ERA on the team last year.Bullpen: With six men getting regular starts, Philadelphia will regularly turn to some of them to come out of the bullpen. The only primary reliever on the roster at season's start is Bob Savage, who pitched 146 innings mostly out of the bullpen last year as one of two options alongside Russ Christopher. With Christopher gone, the Athletics may call up Bubba Harris as a second option out of the bullpen.Outlook: It was a dream season, within reason, for the Athletics last year. They were in second place on July 4th and held on to finish with a winning record for the first time since 1933. Connie Mack didn't want to mess with success and has brought back nearly the same roster to try and catch lightning in a bottle again. The team has one of the younger rosters in the league thanks to their pitchers, so the room for improvement is there. The pennant may be a bit too much to hope for now, but a first division finish is certainly within reach.