The Oakland A’s acquired David DeJesus from the Kansas City Royals for right-hander Vin Mazzaro and left-hander Justin Marks, the teams announced today. Royals GM Dayton Moore says Mazzaro will join the team’s rotation, and Marks will start the season at high Class A Wilmington.
Mazzaro, 24, posted a 4.27 ERA in 122 1/3 innings for the A’s this year, with 5.8 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9. He became expendable when Oakland won the bidding for Japanese right-hander Hisashi Iwakuma earlier in the week.
If the A’s reach a deal with Iwakuma, he’ll join Brett Anderson, Trevor Cahill, Gio Gonzalez and Dallas Braden in the team’s rotation.
DeJesus batted .318/.384/.443 in 394 plate appearances this year, but he missed the final two months of the season because he required surgery on his right thumb.
The 30-year-old, who has spent all of his eight-year career with the Royals, has experience in left, center and right field. He joins Rajai Davis, Coco Crisp, Ryan Sweeney, Conor Jackson and Jack Cust in a crowded Oakland outfield that could clear up if Jackson and Cust are traded or non-tendered.
Marks, 22, posted a 4.87 ERA as a starter in the lower minors in 2010. The 2009 third-rounder posted 9.5 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9, as he picked up his first significant experience as a pro.
DeJesus will earn $6 million in 2011 and qualify for free agency after the season. Mazzaro may qualify for arbitration as a Super Two next winter, but he is cheap for now and won’t hit free agency until after the 2015 campaign.
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