As the winter slowly moves along and free agents are starting to sign their deals, the Oakland A's slowly tread water and have left several questions unanswered. 

There are questions about who is on the roster, there are questions about who is not on the roster, and there are questions about the organization from top to bottom.  I am going to go over the roster and look at my biggest question marks.

Let's start with the current free agency period.  Who are the A's going to sign, if anyone?

Jason Giambi - I still can't figure out why there is such a lovefest with Giambi right now in Oakland.  If the A's are going to invest money into Giambi, then they might as well just dig a little deeper into their pockets for a guy like Adam Dunn.  Hell, I wouldn't even mind seeing Barry Lamar Bonds in an A's uniform over Giambi.

Randy Johnson - There were some rumors about the Big Unit signing with the A's, but I hope that is completely false.  I want no part of this deal.  Again, if the A's are going to go after pitching, then maybe they should look at guys like Brad Penny and Jon Garland, Garland being my first choice.

Orlando Cabrera - He is certainly an upgrade on offense over Bobby Crosby, but at what price?  Crosby plays above average defense when he is on the field and costs quite a bit less than what Cabrera would cost.  I still wouldn't mind seeing him in Oakland this season.

I know Billy Beane makes pretty shrewd moves in free agency, so I'm not expecting anything big, but I would at least like the moves to be beneficial in the long run.  Now, let me get to the current roster.

Travis Buck - This kid (he's only 25) has a world of potential and he displayed that during the last month of the past season.  Now, he just has to figure out a way to bring that on a daily basis for a full season.  He is penciled in as the starting right fielder, so the job is his to lose.  I hope he locks it up, but not because of a lack of options behind him.

Daric Barton - Barton is in the same boat as Buck.  Both were supposed to be the next studs to come through the Athletics' system.  Barton struck out about 1 time per 4.5 at-bats last season.  If he is going to have any kind of success, he needs to get that up to at least 1 per 9 at-bats.

Starting Rotation - It looks like Andrew Brown is now going to be the 5th starter behind Justin Duchscherer, Dana Eveland, Gio Gonzalez, and Sean Gallagher.  This move puts Dallas Braden back into the bullpen (unless he is sent down again) for long relief.  I don't think the A's can go into the season with this rotation and think that they will be successful.

Health - It remains to be seen if Eric Chavez and Bobby Crosby can stay healthy for a full season.  If they can, then Oakland can get the most production out of guys like Jack Hannahan and Cliff Pennington without playing them everyday.  They aren't at that level yet, so spot starts are good.

Things can change on a day-to-day basis, so I will play the waiting game some more and see how things develop.