Kansas City claimed Rontrez Johnson off waivers from the A's this week as Oakland attempted to return the Rule 5 pick to Texas. Oddly, the Royals initiated Johnson's trip around the league this off-season by allowing him to leave as a minor league free agent rather than adding him to their 40-man roster and now they are obligated not only to keep him on the 40-man but also on their 25-man roster if they wish to insure they retain him.

Boston drafted Johnson out of high school with their 16th round pick of the 1995 draft. As a free agent prior to the 2002 season, he signed with the Royals but as mentioned above Kansas City allowed him to depart at the end of the year. Johnson then signed a minor league deal with Texas, but Oakland snatched him away in the Rule 5 draft. When making roster decisions this spring, the A's decided they did not have room to keep Johnson in the majors and placed him on waivers to offer him back to the Rangers, who could have chosen to reclaim him for $25,000 or to allow Oakland to send him to AAA. The 26-year-old earned this attention with a strong season at AAA last year in which he demonstrated he's prepared for at least a reserve outfield job and likely capable of handling a starting role. Johnson possesses solid plate discipline, considerable speed, and marginal power skills. Additionally, he supposedly plays centerfield with notable defensive skill.

However, although they released Mark Quinn earlier in the week, they do not appear to have a roster spot for Johnson unless one of the projected outfielders is injured. In a comment quoted by MLB.com writer Robert Falkoff, Royals' manager Tony Pena explains that "With Carlos being hurt right now, we just needed some insurance. We need to have somebody who can play center field. I keep saying over and over I will not take Gomez in the big leagues unless he's going to play every day. Michael Tucker can play center field. But Rontrez Johnson has been in our organization and we know how well he can play defense." Carlos Beltran strained his right oblique muscle during batting practice on Tuesday and has not played since that time. An MRI confirmed that the muscle is not torn, however the Royals want to take no risks that could aggravate the injury so he will likely sit out at least another week. Provided he suffers no setbacks, he should be fine for Opening Day, which would likely result in Kansas City waiving Johnson.

Mark Quinn was again experiencing problems with the left hamstring that prevented him from playing most of last season, and the Royals were unwilling to commit to paying his full $500,000 salary if he wasn't going to be healthy. He could easily re-sign with the team on a minor league deal if he wants to remain in the organization, though he may want to pursue a change of scenery. Unfortunately, the 28-year-old has missed an important opportunity to display his skills, which may limit him to AAAA status for the remainder of his career when he otherwise could have been at least a part-time starting outfielder.

While they lost Johnson on waivers, the A's claimed Jose Flores off waivers from San Diego. Oakland traded Flores to the Padres in December for Rule 5 pick Buddy Hernandez. Although his dominance at AA indicates Hernandez should be able to meet the challenge posed by skipping AAA, he has not had a strong Spring Training and Oakland has many other pitchers vying for the roster spot. The A's now appear likely to waive Hernandez and offer him back to Atlanta. However, as they've now reacquired Flores, looking at Hernandez has cost them almost nothing. If Oakland waives Hernandez, I expect someone to snatch him before the Braves have a chance to reclaim him.

Flores is a solid reserve middle infielder, lacking any significant power skills but possessing good plate discipline and moderate speed skills. Frank Menechino's blazing spring performance means he'll likely break camp with the team as their middle infield reserve. However, Menechino was among the players Oakland supposedly demoted in order to clean up the clubhouse last season and doesn't have a stellar performance record. Consequently, there is still a possibility that Flores could break camp with the team and if not he will definitely be in line for a mid-season call-up.

Jim Mecir underwent knee surgery to repair a torn patellar tendon in November. The injury reportedly occurred while he was playing with his children after the season ended. His rehab remains on schedule, however he's expected to be out until at least late May and may not return until June. While Oakland has expressed pleasure at his progress and supposedly hopes to have him back early, I doubt he'll replace a lesser pitcher when he's ready to come off the disabled list.

Chris Singleton missed close to a week with a sore right hamstring and is still favoring the leg. However, the A's seem confident that as long as he doesn't overexert himself now he should be fine by opening day. Singleton shouldn't be rusty when the season starts, as he's reportedly been taking extra batting practice this spring in order to work on his patience at the plate.