The Phillies and Rays, who met in the 2008 World Series, happened to be the two best fielding teams in baseball last season, tied with a UZR of +74.3 runs. Third on that list was the Oakland Athletics, who finished third in the AL West at 75-86. The Athletics have been known for defense for a while now, as GM Billy Beane has shown a knack for combining pitch-to-contact arms with solid defenders. The Oakland pitching staff also performed well, virtually deadlocked with the Rays, and ahead of the Phillies, in value wins. With a decent offense, the Athletics may have looked pretty darn good last season.

Of course, the offense was anything but decent save for Jack Cust, and its ineptitude canceled out the defensive contributions. Looking at the nine players who primarily comprised the Athletics offense, their slash line was an ugly .245/.323/.378. If you remove Cust, the line drops to .247/.315/.364, so it becomes evident just how much he added to the OBP and SLG.

In attempting to rectify the situation, Beane acquired Matt Holliday, brought back Jason Giambi, and emptied his pockets further for Orlando Cabrera and Nomar Garciaparra. Holliday is a tremendous offensive talent likely to take a slight step back due to the change in scenery from an NL hitter-friendly park to an AL pitcher-friendly park. He will still be very valuable, though, and a huge upgrade over the likes of Emil Brown or Rajai Davis.

Giambi is likely to spend most of his time as a designated hitter, though with Cust’s defensive struggles, the former MVP will probably get his fair share of innings at first base. For however many games he plays at first base, splitting time with Daric Barton, you can count on that position seeing a definitive rise in offensive production.

Orlando Cabrera is a better fielder than Bobby Crosby and though he isn’t going to light the world on fire with his bat, he will still be a better hitter than Crosby as well. The swap may very well add +1.5 to +2 wins depending on how well Cabrera utilizes his glove. And Nomar will primarily face lefties, whom he has hurt over the last few seasons. With Eric Chavez hurt and Jack Hannahan, well, not being a good hitter, I would think Nomar and Hannahan would platoon in some form at the hot corner, with Garciaparra facing lefties.

The As have several positions that will require playing time decisions, but the increase in offensive productivity not necessarily at the expense of defensive prowess brings the As to around 83-85 wins right now, which could end up being good enough for the division. Last year, their starting lineup featured four players who added +1 win or less. This season, even if some of those players still receive playing time in a platoon situation, expect that number to shrink. Giambi might not have much left and Holliday certainly isn’t going to re-sign after the season, but do not sleep on the Oakland Athletics in 2009.