Oakland Athletics 2016 Preview: DH Billy Butler

In Oakland, if you mutter “Country Breakfast,” you will hear nothing but sighs and groans. Billy Butler is like the Hummer in your driveway: he’s big (6′ 1″, 240 pounds), he’s overvalued ($30 million for a batting line of .251/.323/.390? Nearly twice as many strikeouts as walks? Only 15 home runs?) ….and he’s only being used because you overpaid to get him. You’re even thinking about trading him away for something that costs a lot less.

The Athletics have very little reason to put him in the lineup, and yet they have 30 million reasons to put him in the lineup.