Athletics will not trade Scott Kazmir, Stephen Vogt

Heading into tonight's contest against the Tampa Bay Rays at 14-30, the Oakland Athletics may be prepared to sell come the end of July. But the sale may not come any time soon.

Oakland is still confident it can have success throughout the rest of 2015, and according to Peter Gammons of Gammons Daily, the Athletics will not trade Stephen Vogt and are not considering trading Scott Kazmir because of injuries to their pitching staff.

Vogt, 30, has had a notable amount of offensive success to this point in 2015. In 41 games, he has posted a .309/.408/.610 battling line to complement 10 home runs and 31 RBIs. Teams seeking infield assistance and power could be interested in Vogt, and he has established himself as consistent coming off of a .279/.321/.431 2014 campaign.

While Vogt may not be dealt because of his ability to produce consistently, Kazmir could be traded before the non-waiver trading deadline if Oakland's staff gets healthy. Cole Hamels and Johnny Cueto might be more realistic options for teams in pursuit of top-of-the-rotation arms, but Kazmir would likely yield a pair of prospects in a potential trade.

Kazmir, 31, has posted a 3.09 ERA and 3.92 FIP in 55.1 innings this season. He is a veteran left-handed starter who would improve a handful of major league rotations and produced even home/away splits last season. At the Coliseum, Kazmir was 8-4 with a 3.62 ERA and he was 7-4 with a 3.46 ERA away from Oakland. Prior to joining the Athletics, Kazmir had success with the Rays, posting a 55-44 record and 3.92 ERA over six seasons with Tampa Bay.

Although he has a notable amount of American League experience, Kazmir could be traded to a National League club. Toronto and Boston are two possible landing spots and interest in Kazmir will likely increase if Hamels is traded.

Oakland is not in a hurry to trade major league pieces and as a result, neither Vogt nor Kazmir are on the trade block. But the Athletics have not had an issue trading key starters whether they are competing or not, and both may be traded before the end of the season.