Huston Street Is Back In a New Role

The Oakland Athletics are expected to activate Huston Street from the disabled list today. The closer has been out with an elbow injury since the beginning of May. In his absence Alan Embree filled in as the A's closer, and did a very good job, converting 10 of his 12 save opportunities.

He did such a good job in fact, that Street is going to be used in a setup role for the time being.

Huston Street stood at his locker before Sunday's game, addressing the team's plan to activate him today -- "it's about 95 percent," manager Bob Geren said -- and put him on the mound for the first time since May 12.

Then Alan Embree walked to his locker, which is adjacent to Street's, and noticed the interview in session.

"He can set up for a while," said Embree, chiming in. "He can be my setup man."

Typically, Embree wasn't serious. But for the immediate future, Street won't have his old job back. "I won't use him to close a game the next outing or two or three -- but in the sixth or seventh inning, to make sure he's ready to do that," Geren said.

It's probably the smart thing to do, working Street back in to his closer's role slowly. The way elbow injuries are, the A's don't want to put Huston right back in during high stress situations. Street will probably in a setup role for the first week, maybe two depending on how his arm feels, before reclaiming his role as Oakland's closer.