Now that he’s not so cheap, A’s cut ties with Cust

Oakland grabbed Jack Cust off the scrap heap in 2007, gave him the first regular playing time of his career, and ended up getting 1,717 plate appearances of .241/.378/.462 hitting with 84 homers, 309 walks, 226 runs, and 229 RBIs for a combined cost of under $4 million. However, with Cust now on the wrong side of 30 and in line for a raise to about $4 million for 2010 alone via arbitration the A’s have decided to non-tender him. Cust strikes out a ton with bad batting averages and is stretched defensively anywhere but DH, but also has 30-homer pop and elite patience. His lifetime .374 on-base percentage and .455 slugging percentage with an average of 28 homers and 100 walks per 600 plate appearances would fit just fine in plenty of lineups, but his skill set tends to scare teams off and re-signing with the A’s for a lesser salary may end up being his best option. For now Jake Fox sits atop Oakland’s depth chart at DH.