 12/19/2003 2:43 PM ET
Rhodes deal with A's likely soon
|
By Kent Schacht / MLB.com
|
|
OAKLAND -- Barring an unforeseen circumstance, Arthur Rhodes will be Oakland's new closer.
All that stands between the official announcement of a deal with the free agent left-hander is a physical examination, A's general manager Billy Beane said Thursday.
"It's moving along. I'm hopeful that'll get done no later than this weekend," Beane said Thursday, later announcing to fans at the club's First Pitch event that the deal for Rhodes was close to completion.
Rhodes, 34, has been Seattle's primary left-handed setup man for the last four seasons, but never been a full-time closer. He has 17 saves in 32 opportunities in his 13-year big league career and is known for his nasty fastball.
After two seasons with ERAs of 1.72 and 2.33, Rhodes struggled a bit in 2003, ending the season with a 4.17 mark. He saved three games in six opportunities for Seattle while the Mariners searched for an in-house replacement for the injured Kazuhiro Sasaki.
"Arthur has been in some tough situations and gotten some big outs in the eighth inning, so I don't see why he couldn't do it in the ninth inning," manager Ken Macha said at the club's First Pitch event.
|
News
