St. Louis Cardinals Bench Help: Five Candidates

A.J. Griffin, RHP

Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Oakland DFA’d Griffin on Friday, and the righthander took it in stride. The easy-going, guitar-strumming California native was once a bulwark of the A’s rotation. He logged 282 1/3 innings for the A’s in 2012 and 2013, posting a 3.60 ERA in 47 starts. Then, he had Tommy John surgery, and his recovery included some shoulder issues that kept him out of both 2014 and 2015.

Griffin spoke to A’s beat writer Susan Slusser after the announcement, and he told her he’s healthy and learned form his experience coming back from surgery. He’ll still be just 28 on Opening Day. Should he be able regain feel for this curveball and use that 6-feet-5 frame of his, he could be the ground-ball machine he once was.

Griffin could be one of those sneaky good offseason signings that has every other GM in baseball swearing under their breath.