FanHouse Keith Foulke

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Can you feel it? Spring is in the air. Real, actual baseball games were played Wednesday in the Grapefruit and Cactus Leagues. The arrival of baseball games is mostly pleasant for fans, even if the contests mean nothing and their favorite players end up doing wind-sprints in the outfield by the fourth inning. But it can also bring a bit of anxiety.

Winter is mostly gloomy with the next nine innings so far away, but it is also a time for boundless optimism. Squint hard enough between the leafless trees and falling snow and you can almost see Carl Pavano pitching 200 innings. Maybe that's why Spring Training can cause a little panic -- all it takes is one bad start to shatter the wildly optimistic construct of the 2009 season we've spent all winter putting together in our heads.

As much of a surprise as the Athletics have been this season, what's made their early season success so much more remarkable is that they've done it without Rich Harden (Harden's stint on the DL has obviously been the least surprising thing about the A's this season). They've also been doing it without Keith Foulke, who was supposed to be a big part of their bullpen in 2008.

Still, despite the absence of those two, along with Eric Chavez, that Athletics are 19-14 and would be the American League wild card if the season ended today. Whether or not they'll be able to maintain this level of play all year remains to be seen, but they'll be getting a boost soon with both Harden and Foulke scheduled to re-join the team shortly.

"We are deeper with Harden and Foulke coming back," [manager Bob] Geren said. "It gives us good options."

Harden is scheduled to pitch Tuesday at Class A Stockton. Foulke, who had neck stiffness that sent him to the disabled list retroactive to April 11, will throw approximately 30 pitches today at Triple A Sacramento and again Wednesday in Stockton, at which point he should be ready to return to Oakland.

There's an old saying about being nice to the people on the way up, because you're going to meet the same people on the way down. On his way to the pinnacle of his career, which was fielding an Edgar Renteria tapper and throwing it to a waiting Doug Mientkiewicz to clinch the Red Sox first World Series since 1918, Keith Foulke must have been very nice to the Athletics ... because after not having pitched in the majors during the '07 season, Foulke is making a comeback with Oakland, signing for one year at $750,000 with the team he pitched for in 2003.

"I decided I was not ready to leave baseball," Foulke said. "I started throwing again last November. It didn't take long to figure out I needed to give my knees a year. It was December before I could throw pain-free with my mechanics. (...)

Foulke auditioned for about 20 teams in Phoenix last month. He also considered offers from the Arizona Diamondbacks, San Diego Padres and New York Mets. "It came to who made the best offer, and would give me the best chance to succeed early in the season," he said. "Oakland has succeeded with, probably, less talent. That's their benchmark; it's how they do things. It's a great place to play."

Unless Huston Street is part of the A's current fire sale, Foulke isn't going to close, and that's fine by him.

"I've never considered myself a closer," Foulke said. "I consider myself a bullpen guy. There are times when pitching in the seventh inning is more viable."

It's certainly one of those low-risk, high-reward signings that Billy Beane is known for. Assuming good health, Foulke could really pay off for the Athletics as he's willing to fill whatever role the club needs. And if his working parts stop working in the spring, he'll always have 2004.

Previously on FanHouse:
Keith Foulke is Attempting a Comeback

I've always thought Keith Foulke was under-rated as a closer. It wasn't until he helped the Red Sox win the World Series in 2004 that he finally started to receive his due, but even then he was at the tail-end of his prime. He was more or less horrible the next two years, and even the Indians were willing to let him compete for the closers job last spring (if you recall, Joe Borowski was nothing more than a contingency play this time last year) he opted to retire soon after signing.

Or so we though. Turns out that "retirement" was actually just a prolonged vacation to get his body right, and he's now trying to return. He threw in front of reps from over 20 teams last week, and the D'Backs are among those who walked away impressed. And according to Foulke's agent, the feeling is mutual:

"Yeah, definitely they are one of his top choices," said Dan Horwits, Foulke's agent. "If it works out, he would love to pitch there. There are other teams he is interested in as well, but Arizona is on the top of the list.

Foulke lives in Arizona, so it'd certainly be the most convenient. He shouldn't expect to close, though. Considering his "fastball" barely gets into the mid-80s, he's probably not going to be much of a late-inning pitcher even if he does sign.