What the Oakland Athletics Need To Win the AL West

The Oakland A's are in a familiar spot this season, as they have been most of the decade. There's a need for a big bat in the lineup.

So far in the young season the A's have been hovering near or have been in first place in the American League West. If the A's are to win the division, there's no question what needs to be addressed for this team, and that is to bring in a big bat to anchor the lineup.

The A's are currently on a four-game losing streak. Over the span of those games the team has faced three left-handed pitchers and one right-handed pitcher.

So far in the losing the streak, the A's have managed just five runs against Derek Holland, C.J. Wilson, Joe Saunders, and Ervin Santana. 

It's the lineup that was brought out against those three left-handed pitchers that make the A's lineup look more like a Minor League team rather than a Major League team.

Here's what the first game against Holland looked like:

1. Cliff Pennington

2. Adam Rosales

3. Daric Barton

4. Kevin Kouzmanoff

5. Ryan Sweeney

6. Jake Fox

7. Landon Powell

8. Josh Donaldson

9. Rajai Davis

The game against Wilson saw a lineup of:

1. Pennington

2. Rosales

3. Barton

4. Kouzmanoff

5. Fox

6. Powell

7. Donaldson

8. Gabe Gross

9. Davis

The third game's lineup was:

1. Pennington

2. Rosales

3. Barton

4. Kouzmanoff

5. Fox

6. Powell

7. Donaldson

8. Gross

9. Davis

None of these lineups would scare any Major League pitchers.

In the fourth game against Santana the A's lineup was a lot better and here's what that lineup was: 

1. Pennington

2. Barton

3. Sweeney

4. Kouzmanoff

5. Eric Chavez

6. Jack Cust

7. Rosales

8. Eric Patterson

9. Powell 

Still, for the A's the lineup isn't that strong. As seen by the fact that Patterson is tied for the team lead in home runs with just four. It also shows the problem with the A's in games where they don't score many runs. 

When the A's score four or more runs the A's are 17-1, and when the team scores fewer than four runs the team is 1-18.

That's a big problem because as the season progresses the A's are going to play in games where they will be scoring four or fewer runs. 

That means the A's need to bring in a big bat to the lineup to put some fear into the opposing team's pitching staff.

Right now the A's two leading home run hitters, who both have only hit four balls out of the park, are Patterson and Kurt Suzuki. Unfortunately, Suzuki is on the DL with an injury and has missed the last 20 games. 

Now more than ever is the time for the A's to bring in a big hitter.

There are a couple of names the A's should and could acquire in trade, especially with their talented minor league prospects.

If it means giving up a big name prospect, then that's the chance the A's should take. It shows A's fans that the team looking for a new ballpark is serious about winning.

One name to consider is Prince Fielder from the Milwaukee Brewers.

He's a free agent at the end of the year and could sign anywhere. He would bring a huge bat into the middle of the A's lineup and could offer the protection that has been lacking for Kouzmanoff, who has struggled with the bat this season for the A's. 

Another possibility to consider would be trading away Tyson Ross, Daric Barton (who has been the best A's hitter so far this season), Michael Taylor, and one of the young starters the A's have, such as Trevor Cahill, Vin Mazzaro, or Clayton Mortensen. 

Another name that has come up who more than likely will not sign with the San Diego Padres is Adrian Gonzalez.

If the Padres continue to win he may be untouchable. 

If the A's were to somehow pry away Gonzalez from the Padres they would have to give up players like Ross, Barton, Cahill/Mazarro, and Chris Carter, who is the best prospect the A's have in terms of power hitting ability. 

Manny Ramirez is another possibility. Though his baggage may not be what the A's want on this young team, his ability to hit would definitely add another dimension to the A's lineup.

Ramirez also knows what it takes to win, something the A's have not had since the early part of this decade. 

However, there's already a rumor that the Mariners may try to trade Cliff Lee for Ramirez because of the Mariners' woeful offense.

For the A's to get Ramirez, a trade for Ross and Mazzaro would be negotiated because it gives the Dodgers the young pitching talent that the team has been desperately seeking.

Again, Ross is projected as a solid starter once he gets settled in at the Major League level and Mazzaro is a very talented Triple A prospect. 

Lastly, another option for the A's would be to bring in Jayson Werth from the Phillies.

He'll also be a free agent at the end of the year and there is a rumor that Werth may cost too much money for the Phillies to retain. If that is the case, the Phillies will want to get something for him.

Maybe it means bringing back Michael Taylor, Adrian Cardenas, and Henry Rodriguez. Werth would give the A's versatility in the outfield because he can play all three positions and he adds a big threat to the lineup. 

One thing is for sure and that is that the A's need a bat in the lineup.

An addition of the big bat in the lineup would benefit the pitchers because they would be able to make a mistake and not have to think about it for very long.

In the 19 losses this season the A's have managed 38 runs! That's an average of two per game. 

When the A's win, though, it's a different story; the team averages 5.4 runs per game in the wins.

That's a huge difference between the runs scored in losses and the runs scored in wins, and an addition of a big bat to the lineup gives them a chance to win low-scoring games as opposed to losing them. 

Just maybe an addition of a big bat to the lineup would excite A's fans enough that they would to come to the ballpark and watch this young team compete on a regular basis.