Posted 4:34 PM by Sean
The A's trade Billy Koch to the White Sox, and get Keith Foulke in the deal (there are other players, plus cash considerations, involved, but right now I'm just interested in the closers). Looking at their 2002 performances against the Angels, Koch had 7 saves, a .220 batting average against, and a 1.64 ERA with 9 strikeouts in 11 innings. Foulke only pitched 4.2 innings against Anaheim, allowing a .333 average against and a 3.86 ERA while striking out three and saving none (but not blowing any, either). Overall, Koch has been the more consistent closer, but Foulke has shown some talent and may improve. Just on the face of it, though, this is a good deal for the Angels, who won't have to deal with Koch nearly as often - both because he moves out of their division, and because they're not likely to enter the ninth trailing the White Sox as often as they will against the A's.