A's sign Robbie Grossman to major league contract

This is a bit of an odd move given the A's outfield depth. A switch-hitting corner outfielder (mainly left field), Grossman totaled 1.5 WAR in 396 ABs last year in Minnesota. His defense appears to be slightly sub-par, and he has limited power, but his career OBP is .355. His overall batting line was .273/.367/.384 in 2018, but he was a stud against lefties: .325/.438/.444.

MLB.com's Jane Lee speculates that this could make Dustin Fowler or Franklin Barreto more available in trade, but it could also just be insurance in case Martini stumbles and gets sent down to start the year, or there's an injury or two. Less likely, but still possible, is that Mark Canha could be dealt.

Assuming his deal is around the ML minimum, I'd chalk this up to getting a good player at a bargain price, figuring that if there aren't enough chairs available when the music stops, either Grosssman or someone else can be traded for a useful player at a position of greater need. Presumably, Grossman will take one of the 40-man roster spots made available when Cotton or Gossett are moved to the 60-day DL.