Elephant Rumblings: Calling All “Seasoned” Veterans

MLB Roundup

Summarized by AI ⓘ

What is the story about?

MLB.com ran an interesting story this weekend that caught my attention and got me thinking. Will Leitch (@williamfleitch) posted a piece on “old guys” who still want to play and likely can still be valuable contributors to major league teams. The list is a who’s-who of perennial all-star players. For argument’s sake, these are players over the age of 38, and Leitch limited the list to ten players. The A’s have a relatively young roster, the eleventh youngest in the majors, with an average age of 26.5.

Their 40-man roster ranged from 22-35. This year Michael Kelly is the most senior player at 33. Just for the record, the A’s have two players who are 22, Henry Baez, the pitcher who has yet to throw a pitch in the majors and Luis Morales who broke in last season and is likely to be in contention for a spot in the starting rotation this season.

So, would bringing in a wily veteran add some stability and wisdom to the team? Let’s look at who’s out there:

First Baseman Paul Goldschmidt is 38, and while at best he’d be backing up our Rookie of the Year Nick Kurtz, it was not too long ago that he was an MVP and a feared part of the Cardinals starting lineup.
Relief Pitcher Chris Martin is 40, finished last season with the Rangers and had a 2.98 ERA in 49 appearances.
Designated Hitter Andrew McCutchen is 39. While he said he’d like to end his career in Pittsburgh that is not finalized yet.
Outfielder Tommy Pham is 38. He’s probably just a righty platoon player or pinch hitter, but he seems to still have a fire in his belly for the game. (I’m actually surprised that he’s as old as he is.)
Relief Pitcher David Robertson is 41 and played an important role in the Phillies bullpen during their run to the post season.
First Baseman Carlos Santana is 40, and contributed to both the Guardians and Cubs success. He hit eleven homers and even stole seven bases but only hit .219.
Starter Max Scherzer is 41, and if I was writing this article during the season last year, I might be chuckling as I type, but he showed up in the post season!
First Baseman/Designated Hitter Justin Turner is 41 and still wants to lace them up. He had a down year last season with the Cubs, but was a great clubhouse influence and might just have some fuel left in the tank for another season.
Starting Pitcher Justin Verlander is 43 and is determined to reach 300 victories. He finished strong in 2025 with the Giants after a rough early part of the season, going 3-1 with a 1.96 ERA in his last seven starts of the season.
Relief Pitcher Kirby Yates is 39, and did not have a great year in 2025, but that was largely due to a lingering hamstring injury. Despite not being at full capacity he made 50 appearances for the Dodgers.