Oakland Athletics’ general manager Billy Beane recently discussed the organization’s approach to filling open positions, and like in past seasons, the approach should be to fantasy owners’ liking. Beane’s propensity to look within the organization for cheap, young help often yields intriguing prospects in fantasy drafts. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, that will again be the case in 2010.

The Chronicle talks about seeking the position player equivalent of the next Andrew Bailey - the reliever who came out of nowhere last season to make the All-Star team and win the American League Rookie of the Year Award. Two players were mentioned specifically as those with chances to make an impact next season - corner infielders Brett Wallace and Chris Carter.

Wallace, acquired in July from St. Louis in the Matt Holliday deal, is the more advanced, more logical choice to win an everyday job, but Carter is certainly worth watching. Where Wallace has a terrific contact bat and average power, Carter is a more flawed hitter, but with big-time pop.

Wallace’s skill set, not to mention his maturity, translates into more immediate success, but a lower ceiling in fantasy. Carter’s tendency to whiff — he had 133 strikeouts in 139 games between Double-A Midland and Triple-A Sacramento last season — could be cause for early growing pains. But, his power — 118 HRs in 548 career minor league games — could yield early results.

The fact that both of these guys are even in the ballpark of fantasy relevance is a testament to the A’s and GM Beane. Their youth-first approach always makes them a team worth watching in fantasy - one of the few organizations consistenly willing to let their young kids play through mistakes.

Entering the 2010 season, Oakland will have two of the more intriguing youngsters in fantasy; fantasy owners will be content if either one of them gets a chance to play.