The Oakland Athletics have undergone a major overhaul of the roster this offseason, offloading multiple key pieces in order to rebuild for the future. Effectively, the last man standing in Oakland is starting pitcher Frankie Montas, who has been linked with trades to various teams, including the Yankees. Well, despite the trade speculation circling Montas, the A's revealed he'd be on the mound for Opening Day against the Philadelphia Phillies, via Dallas Braden.

This comes on the heels of the Athletics trading Sean Manaea to the Padres on Sunday. That move signaled to some that a Montas trade could be just around the corner, but it seems, for now at least, the A's plan to hold onto the 29-year-old, and he's set to lead their rotation in 2022.

Oakland's current roster has the smallest payroll in baseball and is actually equivalent to their payroll from back in 1991. 30 years later, the A's are still just as cheap.

Rumors regarding a potential Montas trade won't go away just because he was named Opening Day starter, and the decision to offload Montas just a few days before the onset of the regular season could stand to fuel the trade talks for the 29-year-old.

Last season, Montas logged a 13-9 record with a 3.37 ERA, 207 strikeouts, and 57 walks across 187 innings and 32 starts. It was a bounce-back year for Montas, who had been looking to return to form after he was suspended 80 games in 2019 as a result of testing positive for PEDs.

Athletics' Opening Day is scheduled for April 8, 2022, with first pitch slated for 3:05 p.m. EST in Philadelphia.