OK, I know I’ve been MIA for awhile. But I really couldn’t wait for that horrid season to be over with. Now that it is, and we’re looking clearly toward ’09 and not back at yucky ’08, let’s talk some A’s.

1. So I read online this morning that the White Sox are aggresively shopping Nick Swisher this offseason, after aggressively pursuing him last winter. Not surprising, after his .219/.332/.410 season.

Could the A’s be in the mix to bring a fan favorite back? They’ve got a potential hole at first base with the disappointing Daric Barton needing to win his job back there next year. But we certainly wouldn’t be giving them back Gio, DLS, and Sweeney back…

2. Dan Meyer is gone – he was claimed off waivers by the Marlins earlier this week. So there goes the last remnant of the bust that was the Tim Hudson trade.

But I’m sure Billy would make that trade again. A starting pitcher in his last contract year for an outfielder and a reliever both coming off very solid years and a top starting pitching prospect. What’s not to like? Just bad luck.

Good luck to Meyer in Florida.

3. The Mark Ellis signing was nice. He’s not an impact player but a steady presence on the team. And I know we would have been cringing the first time a ball went through an Ellis-less infield that we knew he would have gotten to.

Maybe he’ll get that Gold Glove in the green and gold one of these days…