Wednesday afternoon, Major League Baseball released dates for the first workouts of spring training with roster report dates officially locked in. The Oakland Athletics' pitchers and catchers will report to Phoenix on February 18, with their first workout scheduled for February 19. The rest of the A's roster will report on February 24, with the first workout scheduled for February 25.
This year's roster will feature numerous new faces as the A's deal away several pitchers and let several free agents walk in the offseason. The non-roster invitees include two players the A's will be expecting big things from in the near future. Pitcher Sonny Gray, a 2011 first round pick, had an invite included in his first professional contract and will look to build on five solid appearances at at Double-A Midland. Outfielder Michael Choice, a 2010 first round pick, will look to build on his own dominant season at Single-A Stockton. He led the California League in home runs and will look to make a big impression at spring training.
The A's open their spring training schedule on Friday, March 2 when they host the Seattle Mariners at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. The A's spring training schedule is a bit truncated due to their scheduled series with the Seattle Mariners in Tokyo. The A's Arizona schedule wraps up on March 21 against the Kansas City Royals, after which they depart for Tokyo. The A's will play a pair of exhibition games against the Yomiuri Giants and the Hanshin Tigers on March 25 and 26 before facing the Mariners on March 28 and 29.
The A's return from Japan and play four more exhibition games before the start of the season on April 6. The A's will play the Sacramento River Cats, their Triple-A affiliate on March 31 and then play their traditional three game exhibition series with the San Francisco Giants on April 2, 3 and 4.
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