CHICAGO -- The Oakland A's have emerged as a possible new home for Barry Bonds, although the stars must be perfectly aligned for that to happen, said Lewis Wolff, the team's managing partner.
"Statistically, Barry is terrific," Wolff said after the owners met briefly here on Thursday morning. "But you know how we operate. We're going to stay in a certain budget. So I don't know if that's going to give us any chance with him or not."
Wolff said there had been ongoing discussions between A's general manager Billy Beane and Jeff Borris, Bonds' Los Angeles-based agent.
"Billy is talking to everybody," he said.
Asked if the A's would sign Bonds at the "right price," Wolff added: "We'd have you playing shortstop at the right price."
Borris, when reached by phone, declined to discuss those talks, although he wouldn't deny that some had taken place.
As the free agent signing period began in earnest, the A's interest in Bonds has heightened, particularly with the reported signing by the Blue Jays of former Oakland designated hitter Frank Thomas for two years at $22 million. That's far too rich for Wolff's blood even after the announcement on Tuesday that his franchise has gone into partnership with CISCO Systems to build a new $400 million to $500 million ballpark in Fremont, Calif.
The reality of that ballpark opening is a minimum of four years away, meaning the A's will have to work within the restricted revenue they generate at McAfee Coliseum. Bonds made $18 million last season, the final one in a five-year, $90 million deal he signed just after hitting 73 homers in 2001 to break Mark McGwire's three-year-old single-season record.
With the Blue Jays' reported signing of Frank Thomas, the A's could decide to fill their need for a slugger with Barry Bonds (above). (Brian Bahr/Getty Images)
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A's interest in Bonds heightens
A's interest in Bonds heightens
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