Many scouts have turned out to check out the back end of Oakland’s bullpen before the trade deadline at the end of the month, and while Ryan Madson and Sean Doolittle are sure to garner interest, John Axford probably would be a long-shot for contenders at this point.
Axford has a 5.95 ERA, highest among the regulars in the A’s bullpen, and he has allowed at least one run in three consecutive outings. Monday, he walked four batters and threw more balls (18) than strikes (15).
“He’s not throwing the ball where he wants to, you see the ball-strike ratio and walking guys,” manager Bob Melvin said.