Athletics Roster Move: Why Langeliers Could Be Traded

Rumor True or Not, a Contract Extension Will Be Very Difficult

In a recent article, we spoke about the success of the Athletics' ticket sales for their inaugural year in Las Vegas, which could bring in north of $125 million, more than the last three years' ticket sales combined. Langeliers' camp is probably well aware of the Athletics' projected revenue, which will make contract negotiations that much more difficult.

With Langeliers making this year's All-Star Game, it is obvious that his asking price will be way more than the Athletics might be willing to pay for an aging catcher. This is no slight to Langeliers at all, but when weighing the outcomes, the Athletics would be much better off leaving this situation with a few elite prospects

Langeliers' agent is Scott Boras, an agent who has made his players a lot of money by not signing contracts during arbitration. If the report is true, this is completely on-brand for Boras and Langeliers, so looking into it too much might not even be worth it. But of course we are anyway.

Relationship Severed?

As mentioned earlier, the "alleged" contract talks did not progress when the $80 million was on the table. With every variable accounted for, Langeliers could be in the $15-20 million range per year. So, if the $80 million was offered, it might have looked close to $13 million for six years. Not bad, but not enough.

With the Athletics looking to extend superstar Nick Kurtz very soon, they may have tried to spread the $80 million over even more seasons, which might have been why talks ended so quickly. If this is true, it can be inferred that Boras and Langeliers might be upset with the Athletics.

If this is the case, we could see a trade on the table as soon as next week. While it would hurt, the long-term opportunity is hard to ignore.

This team has too many issues that could be addressed with a trade of this caliber. It is also important to note that the A's selected three catchers in this year's draft: Alex Sosa (R6), Bear Madliak (R18), and Anthony Marnell IV (R20).