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OAKLAND http://www.padresfanproshop.com/authentic-ozzie-smith-jersey , Calif. (AP) — Athletics rookie Ramon Laureano has barely been in the majors for a month, and he’s making quite an impression.Laureano hit two home runs, Marcus Semien also went deep and Oakland beat the Texas Rangers 8-4 on Friday night.Oakland got its fourth win in five games overall and seventh in eight against Texas. The A’s are 30-15 since the All-Star break.The A’s remain 3 ½ games behind first-place Houston in the AL West and 3 ½ back of the New York Yankees for the top AL wild card. They moved 6 ½ games ahead of Seattle for the second wild card.Laureano’s multihomer game was the second of his short career. The 24-year-old center fielder homered twice against the Rangers on Aug. 20. He’s hit five home runs through his first 29 games.Laureano is the first player in franchise history with two multihomer games in the first 30 games of their career.“That is very impressive based on the fact that you’ve been running (Mark) McGwires and (Jose) Cansecos and Khris Davis and Reggie Jacksons and all those guys through this organization,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said. “It means he’s off to a nice start.”Laureano homered leading off against Yovani Gallardo (8-4). Gallardo gave up five runs, six hits and three walks in 4 1/3 innings.Laureano added an opposite field shot to right off Adrian Sampson that started a three-run sixth in which the A’s broke open a 5-2 game.“It’s pretty cool,” Laureano said. “I just want to focus and keep moving forward. All those accolades, I will reflect on in the offseason. I just want to keep moving forward.”Semien hit his 12th home run off Gallardo in a four-run second inning.Texas lost for the eighth time in 11 games.Joey Gallo was 3 for 4 with a home run, a double and three RBIs.The Rangers trailed 5-0 in the fourth when Gallo hit a two-run homer — his 35th — off Chris Bassitt.The Rangers had their chances. They left the bases loaded in the seventh and runners at second and third in the eighth. They were 3 for 12 with runners in scoring position.“This is a solid (A’s) bullpen,” Rangers manager Jeff Banister said. “They threw all their guys at us today with the exception of (Lou) Trivino. I loved the at-bats that our guys put together. We continue to battle like that we’re going to break through.”Yusmeiro Petit (7-3) pitched two innings of shutout relief. He was among seven pitchers the A’s used behind Liam Hendricks, who started and worked a scoreless first inning.FOR OPENERSThe A’s used a relief pitcher to start a game for the third time in the last week with Hendricks pitching ahead of Bassitt, who pitched three innings. “It’s a product of losing as many starters as we have,” Melvin said.Manager Jeff Banister said he’ll likely deploy the same strategy this weekend, likely on Sunday with Jeffrey Springs ahead of Ariel Jurado.OAKLAND’S UNBEATEN STREAKThe A’s are a win away from extending their streak of unbeaten series to 13, which would be an Oakland record. The A’s were 10-0-2 in series going into the Texas set.TRAINER’S ROOMRangers: OF/1B Ryan Rua (back muscle spasms) did running and hitting drills Friday. Banister said he’d have a better idea of his playing status by the end of the weekend.Athletics: LHP Brett Anderson (strained left forearm) will throw three 15-pitch simulated innings with breaks in between Saturday. If all goes well, Anderson could get a start on the team’s upcoming road trip, which starts Monday. … LHP Sean Manaea (left shoulder impingement) hasn’t resumed baseball activities since going on the DL on Aug. 26 and is unlikely to pitch again this season. … RHP Andrew Triggs (right arm nerve irritation) was shut down after experiencing symptoms of an injury that landed him on the DL on May 18.UP NEXTLHP Mendez (1-1, 5.59 ERA) has no record in three appearances against Oakland in which he’s given up three earned runs in seven innings. RHP Edwin Jackson (5-3, 2.91) is 0-1 with a 9.35 ERA in two starts against Texas this season. With Bryce Harper, Manny Machado, Dallas Keuchel and Craig Kimbrel still lingering on the open market, it's hard to say the Major League Baseball offseason is winding down, much less over.Spring training is just over the horizon, however, and enough has happened for us to take stock of who has and hasn't made out well during the hot-stove season.Ahead is a look at the four biggest winners and four biggest losers of the MLB offseason. For "variety is the spice of life" purposes, they include four teams, two free-agent signees and two traded players whose fortunes have or haven't been improved this winter.We'll start with the teams.Winner: Washington Nationals1 of 8Pablo Martinez Monsivais/Associated PressThe Washington Nationals haven't re-signed Harper yet, but that hasn't stopped them from loading up on both the free-agent and trade markets.Patrick Corbin is Washington's biggest new addition. His free-agent contract is worth $140 million over six years. He's coming off an All-Star 2018 campaign highlighted by a 3.15 ERA and 11.1 strikeouts per nine innings. Along with fellow new arrival Anibal Sanchez and incumbents Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg, Corbin is now part of one of MLB's best rotations.Yan Gomes and Kurt Suzuki Cory Spangenberg Jersey , meanwhile, should fix a catcher position that produced negative wins above replacement in both 2017 and 2018, according to Baseball Reference. Brian Dozier and Matt Adams bring extra depth and offensive upside to the right side of the Nats infield.Washington's bullpen also now includes Trevor Rosenthal and Kyle Barraclough. Rosenthal is a former All-Star who should be recovered from Tommy John surgery. Barraclough is wild, but there's lightning in his arm.In all, the Nats are a much deeper team now than they were before. According to FanGraphs'projections, they're also the team to beat in the National League East in 2019.Loser: Chicago Cubs2 of 8Dylan Buell/Getty ImagesAs of now, Daniel Descalso and Kendall Graveman are the Chicago Cubs' two biggest additions. The former is a utility guy. The latter is a starter who'll miss 2019 recovering fromTommy John surgery.The Cubs' silence has much to do with their tricky payroll situation. Their luxury-tax bill for 2019 projects at $225.1 million. That's well over the $206 million threshold for baseline penalties, and less than $1 million away from the $226 million threshold for harsher penalties.However, the Cubs weren't doomed to be in this position.They could have let Cole Hamels go rather than picking up his $20 million option. They also could have cut alleged domestic abuser Addison Russell loose rather than tendering him a contract. They might also be trying harder to dump some bad contracts (e.g., Jason Heyward) via the trade market.Failing all this, the Cubs could always just, you know, go ahead and spend and worry about cutting payroll after their contention window closes.Instead, a team that likely overachieved in winning 95 games in 2018 looks no better for 2019. Meanwhile, the Milwaukee Brewers, St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds have been gearing up for a tough fight in the NL Central.Winner: New York Mets3 of 8Richard Drew/Associated PressThe New York Mets seemed ticketed for a rebuild after stumbling to 85 losses in 2018. Instead, Brodie Van Wagenen came aboard as their new general manager in October andimmediately announced a plan to win now.Thus began a major makeover which has thus far netted Robinson Cano, Edwin Diaz, Jeurys Familia, Jed Lowrie, Wilson Ramos, Keon Broxton and J.D. Davis.New York's bullpen, whichled the NL in meltdowns last year, now has arguably the best closer in baseball (Diaz) and an old friend (Familia) who's been an All-Star-caliber closer in his own right. This should equal better support for Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard and Zack Wheeler.On the offensive side of things, Cano, Lowrie and Ramos bring experience and reliability to a Mets lineup that was short on both. Davis and Broxton, meanwhile http://www.padresfanproshop.com/authentic-eric-hosmer-jersey , pack enough upside to earn playing time.Making this all the more impressive is how the Mets haven't blown up either their payroll or their farm system. They've spent money, sure, but their offseason has mostly been an exercise in creativity.The result is a team that should at least be a wild-card contender in 2019, and potentially much more if a few things break right.Loser: Cleveland Indians4 of 8Tony Dejak/Associated PressBack in 2016, the Cleveland Indians came one win away from their first World Series championship since 1948. Compare this to 2018, wherein they got swept out of the first round of the playoffs.Better things don't seem to be in store for Cleveland in 2019.As expected, budgetary constraints have taken a toll on the roster. Michael Brantley, Josh Donaldson and Andrew Miller have departed as free agents. Gomes, Edwin Encarnacion and Yonder Alonso have all left via the trade market.Comparatively, the list of new arrivals fails to impress. Carlos Santana's return is the big one. After him, there's Jake Bauers, Kevin Plawecki and assorted other depth pieces.Granted, there's comfort in knowing that Francisco Lindor, Jose Ramirez, Trevor Bauer, Carlos Carrasco and (for now) Corey Kluber aren't going anywhere. And for what it's worth,FanGraphsstill projects the Indians to win the 2019 American League Central race.This is nonetheless a weaker team than recent iterations.Maybe that won't cost the Indians the AL Central, but it'll almost certainly cost them in a wider AL race that was paced by three 100-win teams in 2018.Winner: Patrick Corbin5 of 8Pablo Martinez Monsivais/Associated PressAs far as players go, the biggest winner from this winter's free-agent market will be revealed after Harper and Machado sign contracts. One or both of them could beat Giancarlo Stanton's record $325 million payday.In the meantime, Corbin is the runaway champion among free agents.Beyond being more than twice as large as the next-biggest deal found on the open market鈥擟layton Kershaw's $93 million pact with the Los Angeles Dodgers doesn't count鈥擟orbin's $140 million contract with the Nationals is also more than he was expected to get.To wit,MLB Trade Rumors pegged him for $125 million. FanGraphs and Fancred's Jon Heyman only went as high as $100 million.At a time when free agents are typically coming in well under projections, this makes Corbin a refreshing outlier.Moreover, Corbin's $140 million deal landed him in a place where he should succeed. The Nationals can replicate the catching and defenseadvantages that aided the 29-year-old's big breakout with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2018. He could get his first taste of postseason action in 2018. It might not be his last.Loser: Yasmani Grandal6 of 8Elsa/Getty ImagesThe free-agent market peaked when teams invested $3.8 billion in it back in the 2015-2016 offseason.Now, things are different in ways that are frankly alarming.Front offices have become more apathetic toward free agency, and components such as the qualifying offer and the luxury tax have given owners an excuse to invest as little into it as possible. As a result, many players are walking away disappointed.For a prime example, look no further than Yasmani Grandal.The one-year, $18.3 million contract he signed with the Milwaukee Brewers is partially of his own making. Per Jorge Castillo of theLos Angeles Times http://www.padresfanproshop.com/authentic-jose-pirela-jersey , Grandal had previously rejected a four-year, $60 million offer from the Mets. In so doing, he clearly misread his market.In Grandal's defense, however, he was right to be optimistic. Talented catchers are hard to find right now, and he's arguably the best there is. Between his strong offense (.815 OPS and 24 homers) and excellent framing, he led all catchers in Baseball Prospectus' version of WAR in 2018.Good on the Brewers for making an opportunistic play, of course, but more teams should have been in on Grandal.Winner: Paul Goldschmidt7 of 8Bob Levey/Getty ImagesThe winter's most underappreciated move has to be the Cardinals' blockbuster trade for Paul Goldschmidt. It outfitted them with baseball's best first baseman, and it's a sweet deal for him, too.It might be good enough for Goldschmidt, whose contract runs out this season, that he's escaped from Arizona. The Diamondbacks installed a humidor at Chase Field for 2018. Perhaps not so coincidentally, Goldschmidt went from a career .959 OPS at home all the way down to a .782 OPS.That didn't stop him from having another MVP-caliber season, in part because he posted a 1.053 OPS on the road. Though Busch Stadium isn't the best venue he could have asked for as a place to carry that success over at home, it's a place where he's hit well (.890 OPS) in the past.As long as Goldschmidt, 31, does his thing, the Cardinals should build on last year's 88-win output. That would at least put them in range of a wild-card berth. It's not out of the question that they'll blow past that and reclaim the NL Central throne.Altogether, Goldschmidt should find more success and exposure in St. Louis this year than he would have in Arizona. Those are ideal conditions for a walk year.Loser: Tanner Roark8 of 8Mitchell Layton/Getty ImagesPlayers don't have much (if any) say in where they're traded, so there's always a possibility that a trade might leave one player grumbling.Right now, that guy might be Tanner Roark.The 32-year-old was sent from the Nationals to the Cincinnati Reds in December. He was due to spend 2019 in the back of Washington's rotation. Now he's slated near the top of Cincinnati's.Since 2019 is Roark's walk year, however, he needs all the help he can get to recover from two straight mediocre seasons (4.50 ERA over 361.2 innings) and get back to being more like the All-Star-caliber pitcher he was in 2014 and 2016.Such help may not be forthcoming.The Reds defense could be even worse than the unit that tied for 22nd in efficiency in 2018. Then there's Great American Ball Park to worry about. Roark was more of a fly-ball pitcherlast year. Only Coors Field and Fenway Park yielded worse resultsfor pitchers on fly balls than GABP in 2018.Fellow newcomer Alex Wood also has to worry about these conditions, but he has a more reliable strikeout talent than Roark's to fall back on. Roark may simply need to hope for good luck.Stats courtesy of Baseball Reference, FanGraphs, Baseball Savant and Baseball Prospectus. Payroll and contract data courtesy of Roster Resource and Spotrac.