A's roster gets some much-needed depth
OAKLAND -- The A's roster grew by eight on Tuesday, a September luxury this banged-up club is more than grateful for.
Tuesday starter Cody Martin was joined by fellow right-handers Dan Otero, R.J. Alvarez, Arnold Leon and Ryan Dull, outfielder Jason Pridie, catcher Carson Blair and the ultra-versatile Tyler Ladendorf from Triple-A Nashville ahead of the club's game against the Angels.
To clear space on the 40-man roster for Dull, Pridie and Blair, the A's transferred Jesse Hahn (right forearm strain) to the 60-day disabled list, recalled A.J. Griffin from Nashville and placed him on the 60-day DL with a strained right shoulder and outrighted Angel Castro to Nashville.
All but Dull have enjoyed at least a cup of coffee in the big leagues. The 5-foot-10 righty reliever, sporting shaggy blonde hair, has quickly drawn attention in the Minors, posting a 0.74 ERA in 47 appearances between Double-A Midland and Triple-A Nashville this season.
"There's a lot of excitement," Dull said. "I'm very excited to be here and just enjoy the moment as it comes."
A 32nd-round pick by the A's in the 2012 Draft, the 25-year-old Dull has struck out 73 in 61 innings this year.
"Once you get to Triple-A and start to put up those type of numbers, you start watching them pretty closely," manager Bob Melvin said. "Any ERA that starts with a zero means that you've had some success. At certain times, we're maybe not going to have a full complement in the bullpen, and he's gotta be ready to pitch. We want to see what he has to offer, and we're looking forward to seeing him get in some games and maybe even some tight situations."
"You look at him, a little undersized, but the way he threw from Day 1 I knew, this guy's good," Pridie said. "He's aggressive, goes out there and gets the job done, so everyone was super excited for him. I truly think he deserves this. He's been excellent."
Ladendorf said he told Dull on Monday night, "You're not going to have much more fun than suiting up for a big league game."
Ladendorf got his first taste of the Majors in April, beginning the season on the A's Opening Day roster before returning to Triple-A on April 12 after just four appearances. He sprained his ankle less than two weeks later and underwent surgery, unsure if he'd play again this year.
"We had some plans for him, a versatile guy that can play the outfield and anywhere in the infield, so we'd like to take a longer look at him too," said Melvin, who noted the possibility of adding one or two more players when Nashville's season concludes.
Ladendorf said he was surprised to get promoted Tuesday, being less than two weeks removed from the DL, but emphasized how great he feels. "It's just about getting my game speed back," he said.
Pridie, too, was shocked by news of a trip to Oakland but was happy to share the ensuing celebration with his father, Keith, who happened to be in Nashville at the time.
Pridie, 31, was batting .310 with 20 home runs, 89 RBIs and 20 stolen bases in 127 games for Nashville, marking his 14th professional season -- now seven of which have included big league time.
"It's not like I've never been called up, but every year it's the same as the first day I was told because it's the ultimate goal," said Pridie, who started in center field Tuesday. "It's a really good feeling. Coming back up here is a good opportunity to be seen at this level. I'm just hoping to play well whenever I get the opportunity and make a good impression."
"A lot of times you don't bring guys up that weren't on the roster, but when you have the type of year that he did," Melvin said, "the organization felt that he needed to be rewarded, and rightly so."