The Athletics made a suprising early splash in free agency after they "faced some pressure" to do so, according to ESPN's Jorge Castillo. Per Castillo,

The Oakland Athletics signed Japanese two-way player Shotaro Morii, 18, to a minor league contract with a record $1,510,500 signing bonus, seeing him as a potential future star like Shohei Ohtani. Morii has a notable high school record with 45 home runs and aspires to join professional baseball swiftly.

Shotaro Morii has proven to be an elite hitter and pitcher in Japan, and the A’s are ready to throw some major cash at the teenage high school prospect.

will be held at the Arena Oakland Athletics | The agreement with Rooker is the latest big move for the A’s this offseason. The team previously signed pitcher Luis Severino to a $67 million, three-year contract — the largest deal in franchise history.

The Athletics agreed to a five-year, $60 million extension with Brent Rooker one day after signing RHP Luis Severino on a three-year, $67 million contract from free agency.

The Oakland Athletics showed they are ready to spend this offseason as they gave Brent Rooker a $60 million extension spread over five years.

Mark Kotsay sees a new era ahead for the Athletics, and not just because they’ve left their longtime Oakland home and will play in West ... The A's manager watched the team sign pitcher Luis Severino to a $67 million, three-year contract this off-season ...

The A's lock up slugging DH Rooker - a true bat-only player - for five years, $60 million. The key question - is he a hit-before-power or a power-before hit guy?

The Athletics are holding onto star slugger Brent Rooker for the foreseeable future. Rooker and the Athletics are in agreement on a five-year, $60 million contract extension with a club option for 2030,