The A’s have released 32-year old righty reliever Michael Wuertz. Wuertz was banged up physically last year and it really showed in his stat line in 2011. He pitched in 39 games (0 starts) for the A’s last year and he was 0-0 with a 6.68 ERA and a 1.87 WHIP. Wuertz pitched in 161 games (0 starts) in his three years against the A’s and he is 8-4 with a 3.97 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP. Wuertz did a good job in his first two years with the A’s, but they shouldn’t miss him too much in 2012.

The A’s have claimed 26-year old righty reliever Evan Scribner off waivers from the Padres. Scribner pitched in 10 games (0 starts) for the Padres last year (his first taste of the majors) and he was 0-0 with a 7.07 ERA and a 1.57 WHIP. He also pitched in 28 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball last year and he was 2-3 with 10 saves, a 4.71 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. The reason G.M. Billy Beane probably liked Scribner is because of his lifetime stats in the minors. He has pitched in 214 games (0 starts) in his five years in the minors and he is 19-18 with 59 saves, a 2.83 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP.

The A’s have claimed 23-year old lefty swinging outfielder Cedric Hunter off waivers from the Padres. Hunter played in 6 games for the Padres in 2011 and he was 1 for 4 (.250 avg, .650 OPS) with 1 run scored. He also played in 81 games in AAA-ball last year and he was 72 for 282 (.255 avg, .680 OPS) with 44 runs scored, 2 homers, 33 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. The whole A’s starting outfield from 2011 are free agents, so Hunter might have a really good chance of making the team out of spring training.

UPDATE: (4/5/2012) - The A’s have dealt Cedric Hunter to the St. Louis Cardinals for future considerations.

The Oakland A’s have six impending free agents, including the whole starting outfield as well as the starting DH. Here is a look at who I see staying and leaving out of this bunch:

Josh Willingham: 32-year old righty swinging LF Josh Willingham played in 136 games for the A’s last year and he was 120 for 488 (.246 avg, .810 OPS) with 69 runs scored, 29 homers, 98 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. The A’s likely want to bring Willingham back for 2012, but they aren’t going to be able to match what he can get on the open market. PREDICTION: LEAVING

Coco Crisp: 31-year old switch-hitting CF Coco Crisp played in 136 games for the A’s last year and he was 140 of 531 (.264 avg, .693 OPS) with 69 runs scored, 8 homers, 54 RBIs and 49 stolen bases. Crisp will also likely be too expensive for the A’s to bring back. PREDICTION: LEAVING

David DeJesus: 31-year old lefty swinging RF David DeJesus was a huge disappointment for the A’s in 2011. He played in 131 games for the A’s last year and he was 106 of 442 (.240 avg, .698 OPS) with 60 runs scored, 10 homers, 46 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. PREDICTION: LEAVING

Hideki Matsui: 37-year old lefty swinging DH/OF Hideki Matsui played in 141 games for the A’s last year and he was 130 for 517 (.251 avg, .696 OPS) with 58 runs scored, 12 homers, 72 RBIs and 1 stolen base. PREDICTION: LEAVING

Rich Harden: 29-year old righty starting pitcher Rich Harden pitched in 15 games (all starts) for the A’s last year in which he was 4-4 with a 5.12 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP. PREDICTION: LEAVING

Michael Wuertz: 32-year old righty reliever Michael Wuertz pitched in 39 games (0 starts) for the A’s last year and he was 0-0 with a 6.68 ERA and a 1.87 WHIP. The A’s have a club option worth $3.25 million bucks for Wuertz in 2012, or they can buy him out for $250,000 bucks. PREDICTION: LEAVING

28-year old righty swinging 3B Andy LaRoche has decided to become a free agent rather than accepting an outright assignment to AAA. LaRoche played in 40 games for the A’s in 2011 and he was 23 for 93 (.247 avg, .654 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 0 homers and 5 RBIs. He also played in 54 games in AAA-ball for the A’s last year and he was 50 for 197 (.254 avg, .710 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 4 homers, 27 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. LaRoche will get a minor league deal from another team over the winter, but the A’s won’t miss him.

The Oakland A’s just couldn’t hit in 2011 and that doomed them. They were 74-88 on the year, which had them in 3rd place in the A.L. West, 22 games behind the Rangers. Here is a look at the things that really stood out to me about the A’s in 2011:

TEAM MVP: 32-year old righty swinging LF Josh Willingham was the only A’s batter with more than 14 homers or 72 RBIs in 2011. Willingham played in 136 games for the A’s in 2011 and he was 120 for 488 (.246 avg, .810 OPS) with 69 runs scored, 29 homers, 98 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Willingham led the A’s in homers and RBIs, while finishing tied with Coco Crisp in runs scored.

BEST PITCHER: 26-year old lefty starting pitcher Gio Gonzalez was very solid for the A’s in 2011. He pitched in 32 games (all starts) for the A’s in 2011 and he was 16-12 with a 3.12 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. Gonzalez only gave up 175 hits in 202 innings last year while whiffing 197 batters. He still needs to cut down on his walks a little bit (he had 91 of them in 2011), but that’s nitpicking.

PLEASANT SURPRISE: This was a tie between 27-year old righty starting pitcher Guillermo Moscoso and 28-year old righty starting pitcher Brandon McCarthy. Moscoso pitched in 23 games (21 starts) for the A’s last year and he was 8-10 with a 3.38 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. McCarthy pitched in 25 games (all starts) for the A’s last year and he was 9-9 with a 3.32 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP.

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT: 31-year old lefty swinging RF David DeJesus was a career .289 batter with a .787 OPS in his first 9 years in the majors. That is the reason why the A’s picked him up last winter. But, in 2011, DeJesus was awful with the bat for the A’s. DeJesus played in 131 games for the A’s last year and he was 106 for 442 (.240 avg, .698 OPS) with 60 runs scored, 10 homers, 46 RBIs and 4 stolen bases.

The A’s have acquired 22-year old righty swinging CF Eliezer Mesa from the Rockies to complete the deal for 2B Mark Ellis. Mesa played in 53 games in A-ball for the Rockies last year and he was 42 for 164 (.256 avg, .631 OPS) with 22 runs scored, 0 homers, 13 RBIs and 11 stolen bases. He has now played in 268 games in his first four years in the minors and he is 294 for 1,024 (.287 avg, .725 OPS) with 157 runs scored, 5 homers, 102 RBIs and 55 stolen bases. I know that a lot of fans really liked Mark Ellis in Oakland, but his trade also allowed the A’s to bring up 24-year old switch-hitting 2B Jemile Weeks and he looked pretty good. Weeks played in 97 games as a rookie for the A’s last year and he was 123 for 406 (.303 avg, .761 OPS) with 50 runs scored, 2 homers, 36 RBIs and 22 stolen bases. Weeks has a nice upside.