The Athletics’ bullpen has gone from shaky to flat-out unreliable, and the recent slide has made that impossible to ignore. For most of the season, the group’s problem was that one reliever could sink an entire night. Lately, it has felt like the whole unit is on the brink at once.
That’s what makes this stretch so frustrating. There were times when the A’s could at least point to a few dependable arms.
Hogan Harris, Luis Medina, Jose Suarez and even Elvis Alvarado all had moments where they looked like real stabilizers. But that cushion has disappeared.
Suarez is a good example of how quickly things have turned. Against Boston, he was charged with a game-winning grand slam and later a top-of-the-10th two-run home run, turning what should have been a trust spot into two losses for the Athletics. That came after he had gone 7.1 innings without allowing a run before the All-Star break.
Medina had been one of the bright spots, too. From July 1 to the All-Star break, he posted a 0.00 ERA and allowed only three hits in 5.2 innings.
His velocity was up, his control had sharpened, and he looked like the kind of reliever who could anchor the bullpen. But that momentum has slipped away after he gave up back-to-back home runs against the Red Sox and then faltered late in a loss to the Diamondbacks.
Brady Basso had also been building something. Before the recent loss to Detroit, he had thrown 7.1 scoreless innings.
Then he allowed three runs, two earned, and gave up four hits against the Tigers. One outing can change the way a bullpen feels, and that’s exactly what happened here.
The weird part is that the Athletics’ biggest problem has shifted. Before the break, the rotation was the glaring issue.
Since then, the starting pitching has been solid, with Jeffrey Springs and, surprisingly, Gage Jump struggling the most. Jack Perkins could be lumped in there, though he looked excellent in his latest start.
That reversal has only made the bullpen failures sting more. The A’s are no longer getting buried early; instead, they’re hanging around long enough for the late innings to decide everything. That might sound like progress, but it isn’t sustainable if the same relievers keep wavering from night to night.
With the deadline only days away, a major move feels unlikely. The Athletics are out of contention, and their offense is sputtering badly, so the focus now is on getting some stability from the arms they already have.
There is still a path forward, at least in theory. These pitchers have shown they can string together stretches of success, and that’s the one reason to think things could settle down again. For now, though, the bullpen remains the clearest reason the Athletics keep finding new ways to lose late.
In Other News...
Jack Perkins Is Forcing An Athletics Rotation Question Late This Season
With the season winding down, Mark Kotsay is using these last weeks to take a longer look at young Athletics pitchers, and Jack Perkins has pushed himself into the conversation. The right-hander has shown enough progress to make this stretch matter beyond the standings, because Oakland is still sorting out what its future rotation could look like and who belongs in it.
Perkins added another layer to that case in a recent outing against the Tigers, where he gave up three home runs but also struck out a career-high nine over 5 1/3 innings. The mixed line fits the broader evaluation Kotsay is trying to conduct, and Perkins has made it clear he sees himself as part of the clubs rotation picture down the road, even if the exact timeline still leaves room for questions. [Read more 🡒]
As Rotation Plans May Depend On One Royals Deadline Decision
With Shea Langeliers and Brent Rooker now expected to miss the rest of the season, the Athletics are already looking past the immediate pain and into how they can build a sturdier roster for next year. Pitching is a clear part of that conversation, and the Royals have become a team Oakland has to watch closely as the deadline approaches. Kansas City has already moved Lane Thomas, a sign it may be willing to keep reshaping the roster rather than standing pat.
One path for the A's could open if the Royals decide to push their retooling further, because the market for available arms often shifts quickly once a team starts dealing from the top of its staff. Oakland has shown interest in pitchers such as Kris Bubic and Seth Lugo, which puts it on the lookout for rotation help whenever a seller or a semi-seller gets serious. For a club trying to recover from a brutal stretch of injuries, the next move in Kansas City could end up mattering more than it first appears. [Read more 🡒]