"I talked to Jason [Giambi] briefly before I left -- he had nothing but great things to say about the organization," said Lilly.
Lilly, 26, joined the A's in the three-team, seven-player deal that sent Detroit's Jeff Weaver to New York, Oakland prospects Carlos Peņa and Franklyn German to Detroit, and Yankee prospects John-Ford Griffin and Jason Arnold to Oakland.
Lilly said he had no idea the trade was coming. "I was shocked," he said. "To be honest, I felt a little weak.
"I love being here and the group of guys," Lilly said of New York. "But my first thought was that I'm going to a team that has a chance to win, and go all the way."
A left-hander who has started 11 games for the Yankees this season, Lilly has a 3-6 record in 2002 with a 3.40 ERA. He has also come out of the bullpen five times.
After the trade Friday, general manager Billy Beane said that although he has starting and bullpen experience, Lilly would join the A's rotation, something that pleases the newest Oakland lefty.
"I feel like I've learned a lot from being able to do both," said Lilly. "I feel like I'm more successful being a starter, but I've gained confidence coming in out of the bullpen, too."
Another attribute Lilly will bring to the A's clubhouse is the experience of spending parts of two seasons with a club that's been to where Oakland wants to go: the World Series.
"As a young player, being in this clubhouse has had so much to offer," Lilly said before departing New York. "Being able to pick up as much as I could, I feel like I took advantage of that and learned everything I could from the experience that's here."
In 2001, Lilly started 21 games for the AL champions, going 5-6 with a 5.37 ERA. He finished second to Cleveland's C.C. Sabathia in strikeouts among AL rookies with 112.
Eric Chavez, who has faced Lilly, said the trade gives the A's a boost heading into the second half.
"Everybody can agree that you always need more pitching," Chavez said. "Lilly's got very good stuff. Hopefully he feels confident coming here and he has a great second half."
After being a teammate with Lilly for the first half of this season and knowing the Oakland clubhouse well, Giambi thinks the trade will work out for everyone involved.
"He should be great with those guys," Giambi said. "There's a lot of great, young talent over there, they're a good group of guys and he should fit right in. He should help them out over there, so this move made the Oakland A's better too."
A California native who was born in Lomita, Lilly went to Yosemite High School and Fresno City College before spending time in the Los Angeles and Montreal organizations. He joined the Yankees in 2000 as part of the Hideki Irabu trade with the Expos.
Yankees manager Joe Torre said he was sad to see the young left-hander leave New York.
"I'm happy for Ted Lilly, even though I know he was unhappy about leaving," said Torre. "Just from the success he had here as a fill-in starter made him desirable for other clubs, and that's quite a compliment for him.
"He's going someplace where he's going to have a regular spot in the rotation, and that's a big move for him," Torre said.
Art Howe, who now will have Lilly's services at his disposal for Oakland, agreed. "I'm very pleased ... I'm looking forward to having him help us win some games," said Howe.
As for his immediate future, Howe said Lilly would be available out of the bullpen for Oakland's game Sunday against Kansas City. Lilly was scheduled to start for the Yankees against Toronto on Sunday.
Down the road, Lilly has one date circled on the calendar. "I look forward to coming back here and pitching in August, hopefully," Lilly told the New York media before heading west.
The others In the three-way deal, the A's also added minor league outfielder John-Ford Griffin and minor league right-hander Jason Arnold. Griffin was New York's top draft pick in 2001 and Arnold was the Yankees' second round pick.
"Obviously we think very highly of the guys we got in this deal," Beane said. "Griffin and Arnold were New York's top two picks last year, and they've already made it to Double-A."
Beane said both players would be assigned to Double-A Midland in the Texas League.
Before the trade, Griffin was hitting .328 with five homers and nine RBIs in 16 games at Double-A Norwich. Arnold was 7-1 with a 2.48 ERA and 83 strikeouts in 13 games at Single-A Tampa before being promoted to Norwich, where he was 1-2 with a 4.15 ERA with 18 strikeouts in three games.
