The A’s made significant (at least by their standards) efforts to field a more competitive team last year. With talented youngsters in the majors and coming up from the minors, the club augmented the pitching staff with moves to add players like Luis Severino, Jeffrey Springs, and Jose Leclerc to the fold. Those moves, generally speaking, did not work out especially well and a brutal first half helped lead to the team trading Mason Miller to San Diego. Losing Miller from the team’s core is a massive blow, but that didn’t stop the team’s young hitters (particularly Nick Kurtz, Tyler Soderstrom, and Jacob Wilson) from joining Brent Rooker to fill out the bones of a legitimate lineup down the stretch and keep the Athletics relevant ahead of their second year in Sacramento.
That’s led to an offseason that’s seen a bit more action, highlighted by the team’s successful trade for Jeff McNeil and a failed pursuit of Nolan Arenado. That the front office was willing to not only trade for Arenado, but take on more of his remaining contract than the Diamondbacks did, suggests at least some financial flexibility to make further additions. They’ve also remained active on the extension front, signing Soderstrom and Wilson to the two largest contracts in franchise history.
With the lineup looking as strong as it is, that would make the starting rotation a logical place to add. A’s starters were bottom four in the majors last year in terms of ERA, and their 4.93 FIP bested only Colorado. Their 808 1/3 innings from the rotation was also the sixth-fewest among MLB teams. Without Miller to help shoulder the load in the bullpen, improving the rotation seems like an obvious call for the team as they look to fight their way back into competitive relevance.
With that said, adding to the rotation could be easier said than done. Players have been generally hesitant to join the A’s given their ballpark situation. Sutter Health Park isn’t exactly major league caliber in the eyes of many MLB players, and if given the choice many would surely prefer playing elsewhere. What’s more, pitchers in particular might be hesitant to play there given how hitter-friendly the park played last year. Sutter Health’s Park Factor, according to Statcast, made it the second-most hitter friendly park in MLB last year behind Coors Field, with a substantial lead over third place (Comerica Park in Detroit). Between those challenges, lesser amenities as compared to most MLB ballparks, and the team’s uncertain ability to compete in a crowded AL West, pitchers might be hesitant about heading to Sacramento.
Fortunately, the A’s do have one thing benefiting them up their sleeve, and that’s the volume of starters still looking for teams. Framber Valdez, Zac Gallen, Lucas Giolito, Chris Bassitt, Justin Verlander, and Nick Martinez are among the biggest names left on the market, but there’s plenty of depth behind that group. Tomoyuki Sugano, Tyler Anderson, Jose Quintana, Marcus Stroman, and Patrick Corbin could be solid (if unspectacular) veteran innings eaters, while players like Walker Buehler, Jordan Montgomery, and German Marquez have shown real upside in the past and will be looking for the opportunity to bounce back this winter. (Montgomery is probably out until midseason after undergoing Tommy John surgery last March.) While some of those players might balk at the idea of pitching for the A’s, Spring Training is just a couple of weeks away and at least some of those players are surely hoping to avoid being caught without a team when pitchers and catchers report.
The A’s have not been publicly connected to the starting pitching market much this season. They’ve long been known to focus on trades rather than free agency due to the difficulties associated with selling free agents on joining the team, and most reporting about their trade pursuits has focused on the positional side of things. It’s possible the A’s are high enough on internal starting pitching options like Gunnar Hoglund, Henry Baez, Jacob Lopez, and Luis Medina that they aren’t willing to sacrifice the opportunity to give those young players a shot in order to bring in more proven talents with less upside. While adding to the rotation would surely help the team better contend in 2026, it’s not exactly a secret that the A’s main priority at this point is positioning themselves to do as well as they possibly can upon arriving in Las Vegas in 2028. Perhaps giving time to younger arms is the best way to accomplish that goal.
What do MLBTR readers think the A’s will end up doing? Will they manage to pull off a meaningful rotation addition? Or will they mostly head into Opening Day with the same group of young arms (plus Severino and Springs) that they have now? Have your say in the poll blow:
Yes, they will add a starting pitcher.
All of those pitchers outside of Valdez have atrocious FB% rates and would likely not succeed in that little league park.
They could line up with the Dodgers on a starter. I think any of Casparius, Wrobleski, Knack or Klein could be reasonably added. All are controllable long-term, I believe all have options, and all have been used as starters/swingmen/relief.
Who would the dodgers even want on the athletics roster that would be good for them?
That’s a pretty naive comment, IMO. The A’s have quite a bit of talent a team like the Dodgers would actually like to have, such as Kurtz, Soderstrom, Wilson, and Butler, not to mention prospects such as Jamie Arnold, Gage Jump, and of course Leo De Vries. It would not be hard to interest the Dodgers in an A’s player or prospect — they just happen to be the very pieces the A’s aren’t going to want to give up.
Dodgers have kept Max Muncy around for 7 years and counting.
The A’s could send the Dodgers another Max Muncy 🤔
Klein is a reliever and was on the A’$ very recently before they let him go
Scherzer lol!
Why not? Scherzer is a proven veteran that can teach A’s young pitchers same as Verlander! Studs forever…
Do you think the we guys would really want to play in that mess of a park?
He’s a Boras’ client, which is why the A’s won’t sign Scherzer.
Pitching was god awful last year.
They have emerging bats; time to get the arms
to be fair, their bullpen was lights out in the second half even after Miller was traded. There is upside, but unproven pitching in this A’s team. However, they can only continue to learn how to use Sutter Health stadium as an advantage.
“G”
A couple of 1 year deals for free agents makes sense here. I’m surprised as aforementioned how many pitchers are still sitting in limbo. It would make sense for the Cardinals also to add a pitcher or two before spring training on said 1 year deals.
I’m holding out hope that they sign Bassitt, but I’m not sure how likely that will be. I just know the A’s need to add one more guy for depth purposes at the very least.
That seems like an excellent fit for them. Not optimistic for it happening, but I see the logic in it.
Personally I have no doubt the A’s will add a starting pitcher. The questions in my mind are how good a SP and whether through free agency or trade. What the A’s need is a mid-rotation arm but what is most attainable for them are back end arms. I think the best SP the A’s can hope to get are, in free agency, Gallen (still very unlikely) and through trade, maybe Pablo Lopez (but they would have to be willing to part with some legit talent).
More likely the A’s wind up rolling the dice on a SP fans aren’t at all convinced is better than what they can produce in house, but who could be good if things go right.. But they’re going to add someone, book it.
Someone’s going to lose the game of musical chairs and get stuck pitching in West Sacramento. They won’t be paid a lot but maybe a bit more than anywhere else. And they may have learned from Severino’s example to keep quiet about what they really think about pitching home games for the A’s.
I’d vote no and give the innings to one of the young starters they already have.
If this were a playoff year then that’s different but realistically this team isn’t good enough (yet) to make a deep October run.
Now, if you believed Perkins, Ginn, Lopez, and everyone else aren’t rotation worthy then yeah I could see why you’d want the A’s to make a move here. I’m definitely in the minority thinking that we can more the adequately cover all 5 spots with guys in-house and still have some depth left over.
They’ll sign a middling free agent, not too interested in spending 2026 money, unless someone significant is ok with deferred money.
Where is the option that they will trade for starting pitcher? That’s what they will do just like they did for Springs. Nobody wants to pitch in Sacramento. The A’s know that and know they have to trade.
Valdez’s grounder-heavy approach would honestly play really well at Sutter Health… but I don’t think they make that big of a splash. Makes a lot of sense on paper, though.
If I were the A’s I’d target bounce back years from Marquez or Quintana; both know what it’s like to pitch in a literal fishbowl
I have this nagging feeling you don’t fully grasp the meaning of “literal”.
Jacob Lopez & Luis Medina should be starting options to begin the year.
I think they need more help in the pen and can maybe sign someone once the season starts if it’s needed🤷