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A’s, Nick Anderson Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Athletics are in agreement with reliever Nick Anderson on a minor league contract with an invite to big league camp, reports Jon Morosi of MLB Network. The Gaeta Sports Management client would be paid at a $1MM rate if he cracks the MLB roster.

Anderson made 12 appearances with the Rockies this past season. He allowed 10 runs over 14 2/3 innings, striking out 10 while issuing a pair of free passes. The 35-year-old righty pitched in Triple-A with the Cardinals, Rox and Mariners. He combined for a 5.26 earned run average over 38 outings despite striking out an above-average 27.1% of batters faced.

A veteran of six big league seasons, Anderson has moved around as a depth piece since excelling in leverage spots with the Rays from 2019-20. Anderson has missed bats in Triple-A over the past couple years but hasn’t translated that into many whiffs against MLB competition. He still has mid-90s velocity and a career 3.43 ERA over 177 big league outings. That has gotten him various looks on minor league contracts over the past couple years.

The A’s have one of the younger bullpens in MLB. None of their projected relievers have even two years of service time. They’ll surely make more impactful bullpen pickups over the next couple months, but it’s no surprise that they’re looking to add an experienced arm like Anderson to compete for a middle relief spot in Spring Training.

Nick Kurtz Wins American League Rookie Of The Year, Earns Full Year Of Service Time

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Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz has been named the 2025 American League Rookie of the Year, the Baseball Writers Association of America announced. His teammate Jacob Wilson finished second and Roman Anthony of the Red Sox finished third in the voting. Kurtz, who was the unanimous choice for the award, will be retroactively awarded a full year of service time by finishing in the top two of the voting. The full voting results can be found here.

Kurtz was the fourth overall pick of the 2024 draft and came into 2025 as one of the top prospects in the league. He didn’t break camp with the club but was called up on April 23rd. Almost immediately, he started showing his talent for crushing the ball. Due to his late call-up and a brief injured list stint for a strained left hip flexor, he only got into 117 games, but that was still enough time for him to put the ball over the fence 36 times.

It wasn’t a perfect season, as Kurtz struck out at a high 30.9% rate. However, his 12.9% walk rate was quite strong. When combined with his aforementioned power, it was a very productive season. His .290/.383/.619 slash line translated to a wRC+ of 170. Among hitters with at least 20 plate appearances this year, only Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani topped that wRC+ number.

It’s impressive that Kurtz did so much despite not even playing a full season. His late call-up also has notable implications for him and the club. The most recent collective bargaining agreement included measures to discourage service time manipulation. If a team promotes a top prospect early enough in a season for him to earn a full service year, the team can earn an extra draft pick if the player meets certain awards voting criteria, via the Prospect Promotion Incentive. On the flip side, if a player is not promoted early enough for a full service year and then goes on to finish in the top two of Rookie of the Year voting in his league, then he is retroactively credited with a full service year.

Kurtz came into the year as a consensus top 100 prospect in baseball, meaning he would have been PPI-eligible this year if the A’s had called him up earlier. He only got 159 days of service, 13 shy of the 172 needed for a full season. If he were PPI-eligible, this award win would have netted them an extra draft pick in 2026. Since they did not call him up early enough and Kurtz finished in the top two of the voting, he will get a full year of service anyway. That reduces the club’s window of control over Kurtz from six years to five, meaning he’s now on pace to reach free agency after 2030 instead of 2031.

Wilson is Kurtz’s teammate but the two are polar opposites when it comes to their offensive profiles. While Kurtz strikes out a lot but also draws walks and has huge power, Wilson has modest power and rarely walks but almost never strikes out. His 7.5% strikeout rate this year was the second-lowest among qualified hitters, trailing only Luis Arráez. Wilson only hit 13 home runs and drew a walk in just 5.2% of his plate appearances, but he still managed to hit .311/.355/.444 for a 121 wRC+ while playing the premium position of shortstop, even if his defense wasn’t highly rated.

The shortstop actually got promoted in July of 2024 but he landed on the injured list and missed enough time to still have rookie status coming into 2025. Despite having rookie status, he would not have earned the A’s a PPI pick even if he had finished first in the voting. Players are ineligible for the PPI bonus if they have at least 60 days of service time. Wilson earned 73 days of service in 2024, much of it on the injured list, meaning he was in a weird twilight zone of being rookie eligible but not PPI eligible.

Anthony came into the year not only as a top 100 prospect but most rankings had him first or second in the league. However, the Red Sox had a crowded outfield mix that was difficult for him to break into. Eventually, injuries opened a path and he finally got the call in June. By August, he had impressed the Sox enough that they signed him to an eight-year, $130MM extension.

Though he only got into 71 games, Anthony slashed .292/.396/.463 for a 140 wRC+ and stole four bases. He was credited with seven Defensive Runs Saved and six Outs Above Average. FanGraphs credited him with 2.7 wins above replacement in less than half a season. He would have pushed those numbers even further if not for an oblique injury sending him to the IL in early September.

Anthony only got 112 service days this year. He would have earned a full year if he had cracked second place in the voting, though that is largely a moot point with his extension. However, the result does impact him financially when looking at the details of his pact. The deal contains a number of escalators which Anthony can unlock via awards voting. Some extra money could have been tacked on with a top two finish but this third-place finish isn’t enough for him to add anything to the $130MM total. He can still push that up in the future by getting MVP votes.

Several other players received some recognition from the voters. Noah Cameron of the Royals finished fourth in the voting, followed by Colson Montgomery of the White Sox, Carlos Narváez of the Red Sox, Jack Leiter of the Rangers, Will Warren of the Yankees, Luke Keaschall of the Twins, Braydon Fisher of the Blue Jays, Shane Smith of the White Sox, Cam Smith of the Astros, Chandler Simpson of the Rays, Luis Morales of the A’s and Jasson Domínguez of the Yankees.

Photos courtesy of Charles LeClaire, Daniel Kucin Jr., David Richard, Imagn Images

Athletics, Austin Wynns Avoid Arbitration

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The Athletics have agreed to a one-year, $1.1MM deal with catcher Austin Wynns, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. The team has yet to officially announce the move. Wynns is represented by Klutch Sports.

Matt Swartz’s arbitration projections had Wynns receiving $1.8MM. While he fell short of that mark, his deal includes some incentives, notes Murray.

The Athletics acquired Wynns in June after the Reds designated him for assignment. They were in need of catching depth after Shea Langeliers went down with an oblique injury. Wynns hit .222 in 22 games with the team. An abdominal strain in early August cost him the rest of the season.

Wynns was drafted by Baltimore in 2013. He debuted with the Orioles in 2018. After a few seasons as a part-time player, Wynns elected free agency. He latched on with the Phillies in March 2022. Wynns was dealt to San Francisco in June of that season. The Giants gave him his longest opportunity to date, running him out there for 66 games. Wynns passed through multiple organizations over the next couple of years, finally landing in Cincinnati in 2024.

Wynns had several productive offensive seasons in the minors, but it never translated to major-league success. That changed when he got to the Reds. Wynns went 7-for-19 with four extra-base hits in his first year in Cincinnati, though a shoulder injury cut his season short. He posted a 35.7% hard-hit rate in that brief sample, which was more than 8% better than his previous career-best mark. Wynns maintained those gains in 2025, slashing .400/.442/.700 in 18 games with the Reds. He wasn’t as productive with the Athletics, but in 40 games between the two teams, he notched a hefty 46.6% hard-hit rate. Wynns’ barrel rate was an excellent 9.6% over 110 plate appearances.

Langeliers is coming off a breakout campaign and will handle the majority of the catching reps. If Wynns can keep up the improvement he’s shown at the plate, he’ll be a serviceable backup option. The Athletics may need to add a bit more depth at the position after losing Willie MacIver to the Rangers via waiver claim.

MLBTR Podcast: Offseason Preview Megapod: Top Trade Candidates

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The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Steve Adams and Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

Check out our past episodes!

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

Photo courtesy of Jeff Curry, Imagn Images

Athletics Hire Ryan Christenson As First Base Coach

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The Athletics announced they have brought back Ryan Christenson to serve as first base coach. Bobby Crosby will shift from first base to third base next season, bumping Eric Martins from the role. The rest of manager Mark Kotsay’s staff will be back for 2026.

Christenson has spent a large portion of his baseball career in the A’s organization, both as a player and a coach. He debuted with the team in 1998 and would appear in parts of four seasons with the club. Christenson got his coaching start with the A’s as a minor league manager in 2013. He spent five seasons as a skipper at various levels. Christenson compiled a 391-307 record and was named the California League Manager of the Year in 2014 and the Texas League Manager of the Year in 2016.

In 2018, Christenson got his first job on the big-league staff. He joined the A’s as a bench coach, a role he would retain through 2021. When former A’s manager Bob Melvin took the same gig in San Diego, Christenson went with him. He once again followed Melvin in 2024, this time to San Francisco. Christenson had been a bench coach with the Giants for the past two seasons.

Crosby’s career has also played out largely with the A’s. The team selected him in the first round in 2021. He spent seven of his eight MLB seasons with the A’s, taking home AL Rookie of the Year honors in 2004. Crosby entered the coaching ranks in 2019 with Midland, the Double-A affiliate of the Athletics. He coached in the minors until 2024, when he became the A’s first base coach. Crosby will now head across the diamond after a pair of seasons at first base.

Martins had been the club’s third base coach since 2023. He also got his coaching start with Midland, serving as hitting coach in 2015. He joined the A’s as assistant hitting coach in 2020. After two seasons in that role, he was named first base coach in 2022.

Rangers Claim Willie MacIver, Michel Otañez

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The Rangers announced that they have claimed catcher Willie MacIver and right-hander Michel Otañez from the Athletics. Additionally, Texas has outrighted outfielders Dustin Harris and Billy McKinney. Both outfielders have elected free agency.

There wasn’t any previous indication that the A’s had put anyone on waivers or designated anyone for assignment. However, roster maintenance is common at this time of year. The 60-day injured list goes away five days after the World Series, which can often lead to roster crunches.

MacIver, 29, is a longtime depth catcher who just made his major league debut. He was initially drafted by the Rockies back in 2018 and finally got to the show with the A’s in 2025. He got into 33 games and slashed .186/.252/.324. His Triple-A work this year was much better, as he put up an eye-popping line of .362/.426/.541. That took place in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League and was aided by a .428 batting average on balls in play, but it was nonetheless enough to intrigue the Rangers.

Texas has Jonah Heim and Kyle Higashioka on the roster. MacIver is the clear #3 catcher on the roster for now. He still has options and can be kept in Triple-A as depth, though his path to big league playing time could open up if the Rangers decide to shake things up with a trade. For the A’s, they still have Shea Langeliers as their primary backstop. Austin Wynns is also on the roster for now but he’s a non-tender candidate, so perhaps they will look to add more depth this winter.

Otañez, 28, has been on the Athletics’ 40-man since the summer of 2024. He has thrown 39 1/3 big league innings with a 4.81 earned run average. His 34.1% strikeout rate is impressive but he’s also walked 14% of batters faced. He has also tossed 55 minor league innings since the start of 2024 with a 6.05 ERA, 31.8% strikeout rate and 16.5% walk rate. The righty has powerful stuff, averaging in the upper 90s with his fastball, but clear control issues. He is still optionable, so the Rangers could keep him in the minors as they try to help him harness his arsenal.

Harris, 26, was once a notable prospect but his stock has faded in recent years. Dating back to the start of 2022, he has taken almost 2,000 minor league plate appearances with a .268/.364/.428 line and 103 wRC+. He has also stepped to the plate 50 times in the majors with a .217/.280/.435 line. He exhausted his final option season in 2025. The Rangers outrighted him to the minors in August but re-selected him later. Since this is his second career outright, he has the right to elect free agency.

McKinney, 31, is somewhat similar. He is also a former prospect who hasn’t delivered much on the hype. He has received almost 1,000 big league plate appearances but has produced a .209/.283/.382 line and 79 wRC+. He was added to the Texas roster late in the year as they were playing out the string. He has the right to elect free agency both due to having a previous career outright and three years of big league service time.

Photo courtesy of William Liang, Imagn Images

A’s Outright Three Players

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The A’s announced that three pitchers have gone unclaimed on outright waivers: righty Anthony Maldonado and left-handers Ben Bowden and Jared Shuster. Maldonado and Bowden have each elected free agency, as is their right as players who have been outrighted more than once in their careers. This is the first outright for Shuster, so he’ll be assigned to Triple-A Las Vegas and remain in the system going into 2026.

These were three of five players whom the A’s placed on waivers this week. Righty Michel Otañez and catcher Willie MacIver were claimed by Texas. This gets their 40-man roster count down to 38. All teams need to be at or below 40 by Thursday, when they’re required to activate everyone from the 60-day injured list.

Maldonado was a waiver claim from Miami last winter. The A’s outrighted him shortly before the start of Spring Training but put him back on the roster in May. He held his 40-man spot for the remainder of the season but spent most of his time on optional assignment to Triple-A Las Vegas. The 27-year-old posted a 5.10 ERA despite an impressive 29% strikeout rate at the top minor league level. Maldonado walked almost 12% of opponents and gave up a decent number of home runs across 47 2/3 frames. He only pitched six times for the A’s at the MLB level, allowing eight runs on a trio of homers in six innings.

Bowden, 31, signed an offseason minor league contract. The 6’4″ southpaw had not pitched in the big leagues since his 2021 rookie season in Colorado. He made it back to the highest level early in the second half. Bowden posted a 1.36 ERA over 39 2/3 Triple-A innings to get an MLB look. He tossed 10 2/3 frames over 11 appearances, allowing six runs (five earned) with seven strikeouts and five walks. He went down with a season-ending lat strain in August.

Shuster, the only member of this trio who’ll stick with the organization, is probably the most well-known. That’s mostly a testament to his status as a former first-round pick of the Braves. He has pitched in parts of three MLB campaigns between Atlanta and the White Sox. The Wake Forest product carries a career 5.27 ERA with a well below-average 15.1% strikeout percentage in 141 2/3 innings. The A’s claimed him off waivers from Chicago around the trade deadline. He spent the rest of the season in Triple-A, where he was tagged for nearly a run per inning with seven strikeouts and walks apiece over 10 appearances.

A’s Could Pursue Relievers With Closing Experience

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The A’s go into the offseason prioritizing starting pitching and help at one or both of second and third base. They might also be in the market for a late-game reliever. Martín Gallegos of MLB.com writes that the A’s are likely to target a pitcher who has closing experience.

Manager Mark Kotsay used a committee approach in the ninth inning after the A’s traded Mason Miller at the deadline. Hogan Harris, Sean Newcomb, Michael Kelly and Tyler Ferguson each picked up at least one save. Osvaldo Bido got one as well, but that was of the ’three innings to finish a blowout’ variety.

The patchwork relief group pitched well. Only the Guardians had a lower bullpen ERA than the A’s 2.99 mark over the final two months. They surrendered only three leads, tied with Miller’s new team in San Diego for the fewest in MLB. It’s nevertheless understandable that the front office would prefer a more proven arm at the back end.

The quartet of Harris, Kelly, Newcomb and Ferguson had a combined four career saves before August. Newcomb, who had two of them, is headed to free agency. The A’s don’t have many relievers with significant big league experience of any kind. They won’t have a single reliever with even two years of MLB service time once Newcomb, José Leclerc and Scott McGough hit free agency.

The A’s tried to add a proven back-end arm last offseason, signing Leclerc to a one-year deal with a $10MM salary. He was supposed to be the team’s top setup man in front of Miller. Leclerc made 10 appearances before suffering a shoulder injury that required season-ending surgery. He’s highly unlikely to be back. It stands to reason they’ll try to retain Newcomb, who pitched to a 1.75 ERA in 51 1/3 innings after being acquired from the Red Sox. He’s got a shot at a two-year contract after that strong showing but won’t command much on an annual basis. The A’s aren’t going to sign Newcomb as a closer, though, so there should be room for a bigger move in the ninth.

There are no shortage of free agent relievers who have closing experience. The A’s aren’t signing Edwin Díaz, of course. It’s highly unlikely they’ll win the bidding for Robert Suarez either. Any of Kyle Finnegan, Raisel Iglesias, Emilio Pagán, Kenley Jansen or Ryan Helsley should be within the price range. There’s a chance Devin Williams settles for a pillow contract. Each of Seranthony Domínguez, Gregory Soto, Kirby Yates, Taylor Rogers, Paul Sewald and Michael Kopech have past closing experience as well. No one from the latter group seems likely to sign as a closer this offseason, however.

The A’s could have issues selling some of those pitchers on signing with a fringe contender that plays its home games in a hitter-friendly minor league stadium. They’d have no such need if they trade for a closer, so players like Pete Fairbanks, JoJo Romero and Dennis Santana could be targets on that front.

A’s Could Explore Second/Third Base Markets

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The A’s have around two-thirds of their starting lineup in place going into the offseason. While starting pitching should be the primary focus, they have some questions on the infield that may need to be addressed externally.

Second baseman Zack Gelof underwent surgery after dislocating his left shoulder with two weeks remaining in the regular season. Meanwhile, the team announced last week that third baseman Brett Harris underwent surgery to repair the UCL in his left thumb (link via Jason Burke of Sports Illustrated). The injuries cloud what were already the two weakest positions in the lineup heading into the winter.

Martín Gallegos of MLB.com writes that Harris is expected to be ready for Spring Training. General manager David Forst was noncommittal about Gelof’s timeline, telling Gallegos that they’ll need to “wait further in the offseason to know exactly what [that] is.” It doesn’t appear that Gelof is locked into the starting second base job even once he’s healthy. Forst told Gallegos that the A’s will “be open to a lot of possibilities” at each of second and third base.

That presumably includes looking outside the organization. The A’s don’t have great internal options at either spot. Darell Hernaiz got some late-season run at all three infield positions to the left of first base (including everyday shortstop work while Jacob Wilson was out with a broken arm). Hernaiz put a lot of balls in play but didn’t hit the ball hard enough to make an impact, batting .231/.292/.306 across 197 plate appearances.

[Related: A’s Offseason Outlook]

Former first-round pick Max Muncy had a tough rookie season, hitting .214/.259/.379 over 220 trips to the plate. He struck out in more than 30% of his plate appearances and lost most of the second half to a broken hand. The 27-year-old Harris got regular third base reps over the final six weeks of the season. He hit .274 with a .349 on-base percentage but didn’t connect on a home run in 32 games. Max Schuemann is the only other utility infielder on the 40-man roster. He’s coming off a .197/.295/.273 showing and isn’t guaranteed to hold his roster spot all winter.

Gelof has shown the most promise of that group. The former second-round pick hit 14 homers with a .267/.337/.504 slash line over 69 games as a rookie in 2023. He has followed that up with consecutive tough years. Gelof led the American League with 188 strikeouts in ’24, causing his average (.211) and on-base percentage (.270) to plummet.

Injuries limited him to 30 MLB games this past season. He sustained a wrist fracture on a Spring Training hit-by-pitch and underwent hamate surgery. A stress reaction in his ribs set him back when he was on a rehab assignment six weeks later. Gelof didn’t make his season debut until July 4. The A’s optioned him to Triple-A a week later and kept him in the minors until late August. He got a few weeks of run before suffering the dislocated shoulder. While the stop and start nature of his season didn’t do him any favors, Gelof’s contact issues worsened. He struck out 46 times in 101 plate appearances while whiffing on more than 40% of his swings.

Top prospect Leo De Vries, the centerpiece of the Mason Miller return, may be the long-term answer at second base. De Vries has come up as a shortstop but could eventually move to the other side of the bag to play alongside Wilson in the middle infield. He’s coming off a .255/.355/.451 showing as an 18-year-old between High-A and Double-A. De Vries has a chance to get to the big leagues next year, but it’s hard to imagine the A’s would carry him on the Opening Day roster. He only has 21 games at Double-A and has no Triple-A experience. A second half debut is more reasonable and would still be remarkable for a player who turned 19 two weeks ago.

The A’s will want to keep one long-term infield spot available for De Vries. Their needs at second and third base mean they could pursue a controllable infielder at one spot while looking for a stopgap at the other. Brendan Donovan and Ozzie Albies each have two years of club control remaining and could be available on the trade market. Josh Jung and Alec Bohm are change-of-scenery candidates at third base. Jung has three years of remaining control and is projected at a $2.9MM salary, though it’s possible the Rangers would prefer to trade him outside the division. Bohm is projected for a salary in the $10MM range for his last arbitration season.

This isn’t a great class for free agent infielders. The A’s obviously aren’t signing Bo Bichette or Alex Bregman. Each of Jorge Polanco, Gleyber Torres and Ha-Seong Kim (if he opts out) could be available for two or three years, but they’re all going to command eight-figure salaries on an annual basis. Willi Castro, Yoán Moncada, Luis Rengifo and Isiah Kiner-Falefa will be available on one-year or cheap two-year deals at most. Signing someone from that group would aim a little higher than last winter’s deals with Luis Urías and Gio Urshela but would be broadly similar pickups.

10 Players Elect Free Agency

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Now that the season is over, we’ll start seeing several players choose to become minor league free agents.  Major League free agents (i.e. players with six-plus years of big league service time) will hit the open market five days after the end of the World Series, but eligible minor leaguers can already start electing free agency.

To qualify, these players must have been all outrighted off their team’s 40-man rosters during the 2025 season without being added back.  These players also must have multiple career outrights on their resume, and/or at least three years of Major League service time.

We’ll offer periodic updates over the coming weeks about many other players hitting the market in this fashion.  These free agent decisions are all listed on the official MLB.com or MILB.com transactions pages, for further reference.

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