Athletics’ Ben Bowden among DFA resolutions as trade-deadline roster reshuffling continues

Major League Baseball’s trade-deadline bustle is still echoing through roster moves, and the first wave of “minor transactions” resolutions is giving teams a clearer view of their 40-man situation. According to MLB Trade Rumors’ tracker of recent DFA decisions, the Athletics are among the clubs working through outcomes for players who were designated for assignment last week.

The most specific resolution in the report involves left-hander Ben Bowden. MLBTR says the Athletics sent Bowden outright to Triple-A Las Vegas. The outright assignment matters because a player can sometimes refuse the assignment by exercising the right to reject an outright, an option that changes where the player’s next organization path can begin.

MLBTR also groups Bowden with other DFA resolutions tied to the same late-July to early-August transaction cycle, including pitchers Márquez, Martin and Strahm. The common thread is roster mechanics: when a team removes a player from the 40-man roster through a designation for assignment, the subsequent steps typically determine whether that player remains in the organization at the minor-league level, moves through waiver claims, or takes a path that depends on the player’s service time and contractual status.

For Bowden specifically, the key immediate question is whether he accepts the outright to Triple-A Las Vegas or uses the right to reject the assignment. If a player rejects an outright, the result is usually not a stay-put minor-league assignment, but a new set of possibilities that can include free agency, depending on the exact circumstances of the player’s roster and service status. MLBTR’s note indicates Bowden had that choice following the Athletics’ assignment decision.

The broader implication for Oakland is that post-deadline roster churn can take days, not hours, to settle. Even if teams completed trades by the deadline, designations and waiver claims often unfold in the following week, which can affect bullpen planning and the depth chart because teams may or may not be able to recall certain pitchers at the right time.

For Márquez, Martin and Strahm, the report functions as a reminder that “DFA resolution” is not a single event. Each player’s eventual destination will depend on whether he clears waivers and whether any election rights come into play after a team attempts to assign him to the minors. Until those specific outcomes are confirmed transaction-by-transaction, it is best to view their situations as in-progress rather than finalized.

What to watch next is whether Bowden’s acceptance (or rejection) changes the Athletics’ immediate Triple-A and major-league depth. If he stays in the organization after the outright, Triple-A Las Vegas becomes the next staging ground for his availability. If he rejects and leaves the organization, the Athletics’ replacement planning and bullpen depth could shift quickly as the regular-season schedule moves toward the stretch run.

As for the other names included in MLBTR’s post, their roles in their respective organizations could swing rapidly once the waiver-resolution status and any election outcomes are complete. For fans tracking late-season pitching depth, these DFA “minor transaction” posts are often the cleanest window into what a team’s pitching plans look like after the dust settles.