Nov. 26, 2012

LOS ANGELES - Former Trojan infielder Grant Green was recently named to the Oakland Athletics' 40-man roster.

Green, the Athletics' first pick (13th overall) in the 2009 MLB First Year Players' Draft, is now at second base after moving from shortstop to center field. He recently played exclusively at second base for the Phoenix Desert Dogs of the Arizona Fall League. He doubled his usual walk rate during his 17 games played, resulting in a .364 OBP. He also batted .273 with 11 RBIs and two home runs.

As a 2012 outfielder for the Sacramento River Cats, the A's Triple-A affiliate, Green batted .296 and drove in a team-high 75 runs. He also tallied 28 doubles, six triples and was tied for second on the team with 15 home runs. His 73 runs scored and 13 stolen bases were both good for third-best on the River Cats. Through his four seasons in the minors, Green has batted .302 with 227 RBIs and 44 home runs. Green was added to the 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft, which happens on the final day of the Winter Meetings on Dec. 6, where players who were signed when they were 19 or older, are not on the 40-man roster for a team and have played in professional baseball for four years are eligible to be picked up.

During his three-year career at Troy, Green started in 160 games, recording a .359 career average with 48 doubles, a school-record 20 triples, 15 home runs, 102 RBIs and 32 stolen bases. He sits in the USC career record book for batting average (sixth) and doubles (tied for 10th).