A's Accardo elects free agency, turns down club assignment

OAKLAND -- Jeremy Accardo's one appearance in an A's uniform wasn't enough to sell him on staying. The veteran reliever has cleared outright waivers and elected free agency rather than accepting a club assignment. With five years of MLB service time, Accardo, 30, had the option to test the open market.Accardo was signed by the A's on August 15, and assigned to Triple-A Sacramento where he went 1-0 with a 1.17 ERA in seven games. He was selected by the A's on August 23, when the team was in New York. In his only game with the A's he pitched two innings and allowed two runs on four hits in Texas. Accardo was designated for assignment by the Cleveland Indians on August 5, and passed through waivers to become a free agent. That's how he made his way to the A's organization. He is 10-20 with a 4.27 ERA and 38 saves in 261 career appearances. The A's bullpen finished the year with a 2.94 ERA ranking them second in the American League. With the likely return of closer Grant Balfour, and the solid work of rookies Ryan Cook, Sean Doolittle, and Evan Scribner, the A's probably won't have a spot for Accardo in 2013. A strong indication he would've had a tough time cracking the A's 25-man roster in 2013 is the fact that he didn't make the A's postseason roster.