The strongest part of the 2016 Oakland A’s was the bullpen. It was at least Top 10 in the league, if not Top 5. Other than maybe their catchers, the pen was the only area in which the A’s were meaningfully better than league average.
But relievers are notoriously volatile, and you never know when they’ll fall apart for a year for no good reason — like in 2015, when a seemingly solid Oakland contingent went completely sour. The smartest plan is to stay proactive and keep adding arms even before you think you need to.