This just in: Crosby files for free agency

Just filed a story on A's free agents, but I'm not sure how quickly it'll be posted, so here's the latest thanks to the immediacy of the blogosphere ...

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Six members of the 2009 A's are eligible to hit the open market this offseason, and one -- right-handed swingman Edgar Gonzalez -- has been out there for a few weeks. He was removed from the 40-man roster when he was sent outright to Triple-A Sacramento on Oct. 10, allowing him to become a free agent immediately.

Infielders Adam Kennedy, Bobby Crosby and Nomar Garciaparra, and right-handed starters Justin Duchscherer and Brett Tomko are Oakland's other free-agent eligibles, and all of them are expected to file during the 15-day window that opened Thursday.

Crosby, who lost his starting job at shortstop when the A's signed Orlando Cabrera during Spring Training and didn't get it back when Cabrera was traded to the Twins in July, told MLB.com early Thursday afternoon that he'd already filed.

"I just got off the phone with my agent," he said. "I don't know exactly what the process is, but I know he's filed, so [the process has] started."

The 2004 American League Rookie of the Year, Crosby, who turns 30 in January, played all over the infield and also appeared in the outfield during the final year of his five-year, $12.75 million contract.

Asked if he was interested in retuning to Oakland, Crosby said he hadn't heard from the A's since the season ended and had accepted that 2009 was his final year with the team when rookie Cliff Pennington was named the starting shortstop after the Cabrera trade.

"I honestly don't see it happening" said Crosby, who batted .223 with six homers, 29 RBIs and a .295 on-base percentage in 97 games at five positions this season. "I'd like the opportunity to play shortstop somewhere."

The A's are known to have had conversations with the agents for Kennedy and Duchscherer, but assistant general manager David Forst on Thursday suggested that those talks have been casual at best.

"There hasn't been anything of substance," Forst told MLB.com.

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There's more detail in the story itself. Check it out once it's up. Hope your offseason is going well. I'll be blogging more freqently once the Hot Stove really starts heating up. For now, Billy Beane tells me, "I think patience is the plan this winter."

--Mychael Urban