A bit more roster shuffling
The Athletics announced a couple of roster moves early Sunday morning, including the first trade of the 2024 season:
The A's have acquired infielder Jordan Groshans from the Yankees in exchange for infielder J.D. Davis and cash considerations.
— Oakland A's Communications (@AthleticsPR) June 23, 2024
Davis was designated for assignment a few days ago to make room on the roster for young outfielder Lawrence Butler. Davis hasn’t had a bad year to this point but the club clearly felt another direction was warranted. Now Davis will land in New York and is immediately apart of the Yankees’ postseason chase. Not a bad turn of events for Davis, who had been dealt a rough hand by the baseball gods this year. Things are turning around for Davis.
In return, the A’s are acquiring fellow infielder Jordan Groshans. The 24-year old is a former 1st-round draft pick of the Toronto Blue Jays (12th overall) and has already made his big league debut, a quick cup of coffee in 2022 for the Miami Marlins. This season he’s split between Double-A and Triple-A, hitting just .232/.310/.281 with just one home run in fifty games. He doesn’t add much in the base paths either with zero stolen bases this year. Maybe the A’s see something we don’t in Groshans. He is positionally versatile as he can handle second, third, and shortstop. He’ll likely report to Triple-A and could be an option down the line.
The trade wasn’t the only roster move the club announced today. The team also made another move to the bullpen:
We have made the following roster moves. pic.twitter.com/n3Z9TNyTOn
— Oakland A's (@Athletics) June 23, 2024
Jimenez only just returned to the A’s a few weeks ago after a stint in Vegas. He’s been one of the better relievers for the club since, posting an even 2.00 ERA over nine innings since his return to the Oakland bullpen. The hope is that Jimenez won’t need too long to recover but obliques can be notoriously tricky. They can either keep you down for a week or take months to overcome. We saw second baseman Zack Gelof get over his own oblique issue fairly quickly but we’ll see how fast Jimenez, a pitcher, can return to the Oakland bullpen.
Taking Jimenez’s spot on the roster will be righty veteran Aaron Brooks. Already with the Athletics organization for the third separate time, the 34-year old Brooks spent some time with the big league squad earlier this year as he pitched and started four games for the A’s. His first three turns weren’t bad as he yielded seven runs over 17 1⁄3 innings but got shelled in his fourth outing for seven runs. That prompted the club to DFA Brooks and outright him off the 40-man roster. He’s pitched in just a couple games since his return to the Aviators, one start and one relief appearance. Brooks returns to the club and should take Jimenez’s spot in the bullpen for the time being but could also be an option for a spot start if needed.
