A's acquire outfielder Stephen Piscotty from Cardinals for minor leaguers

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LAKE BUENA VISTA, Florida — Steve Piscotty is on the verge of a poignant Bay Area homecoming, but it hasn’t happened just yet.

The A’s agreed to a trade with St. Louis on Wednesday that would send a pair of minor leaguers to the Cardinals in exchange for the Pleasanton native and former Stanford star, according to Jon Heyman of Fan Rag Sports.

A’s General Manager David Forst declined to confirm the deal earlier in the day and cautioned against jumping the gun. “This is time of year where we say: When you see a press release, that’s when deals are done,” he said. “So as much as we fight it, we’re all in an environment where people talk whether they’re in the know or not.”

The would move have the added benefit of bringing Piscotty closer to home, where his mother, Gretchen, was diagnosed with ALS in May. By mid-afternoon on Wednesday, Cardinals Manager Mike Matheny seemed to signal the importance of getting Piscotty back to the Bay Area.

“You let him know that you care. You acknowledge. You have compassion,” Matheny told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “We’re trying to be support for him, and we have to look to do anything we can.”

The San Francisco Chronicle first reported Wednesday afternoon that the A’s and the Cardinals were close to a deal, citing minor league infielders Yairo Munoz and Max Schrock as the players that would prospectively be dealt to St. Louis. The Post-Dispatch confirmed Thursday those were still the players the Cardinals would receive.

Sources: A’s are in agreement on a trade to acquire Stephen Piscotty. Two minors leaguers go to cards in deal.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 14, 2017

Asked if he was going to leave the Winter Meetings with the right-handed hitting outfielder he coveted, Forst said: “I’m leaving with my luggage. That’s about all I know.”

The Post-Dispatch confirmed through sources Thursday that those were still the players the Cardinals would receive but that the A’s were in the process of reviewing Piscotty’s medical reports following a physical. A deal was still expected to be formally completed in the next day or two, however.

Momentum for a Piscotty deal built throughout the week, then picked up steam early Wednesday when the Cardinals pulled off an apparent blockbuster. St. Louis acquired All-Star left fielder Marcell Ozuna from Miami Marlins, according to multiple reports.

Getting Ozuna, one of the prizes of the off-season, made Piscotty expendable in St. Louis, and the A’s pounced.

The former Amador Valley High star batted .235 last season but had an on-base percentage 107 points higher (.342). He had a terrific season in 2016, batting .273 with 22 home runs, 85 RBI, and a .800 OPS.

The A’s like his versatility. Piscotty has 260 career games in right field, 55 in left, 11 in center and 12 at first base.

Gretchen Piscotty’s diagnosis became public in early June, after Stephen missed nearly a week of Cardinals games. He’d returned to Pleasanton to be with his family — to “regroup” and “support each other.”

“We actually watched all the games,” Stephen Piscotty told the St. Louis-Dispatch at the time. “She thought it’d be a fun, weird idea to have me there watching. So we did that. The whole family was able to come back and spend some time and kind of gather ourselves. My mom is very strong. So we’re going to be behind her.”

The A’s would be happy to welcome him aboard. Their off-season to-do list included adding a right-handed bat to an outfield stable that also includes lefties Matt Joyce, Boog Powell and Dustin Fowler.

Piscotty signed a six-year, $33.5 million extension in 2017 that includes a club option for 2023. He’s scheduled to make $1 million in 2018, $7 million in 2019, $7 million in 2020, $7.25 million in 2021 and $7.25 million in 2022. The club option for 2023 is for $15 million, with a $1 million buyout.

The 2023 option increases by $500,00 with each All-Star selection.

The Rule 5 Draft was staged Thursday morning and while the A’s did not make a selection in the major league phase, the Marlins plucked right handed pitcher Brett Graves from Oakland in the second round. Graves split time between Class A Stockton and Double-A Midland in 2017.

The A’s selected Brallan Perez, an infielder from the Baltimore Orioles, in the Triple-A phase of the Rule 5 draft. Perez, from Colombia, spent most of his time playing in Class A this past season.

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