Last night’s loss to the Rays put the Athletics right back where they’ve spent too much of this season: staring at the same problems at home and waiting for the next chapter to arrive.
Tampa Bay beat the A’s for the second straight game, and the damage was loud. A’s pitchers gave up six home runs, while Rays starter Nick Martinez spun his second career complete game. That’s the kind of night that leaves no wiggle room, no soft landing, and very little to feel good about in the short term.
With a little more than 40 games left, the focus has shifted again to what comes next. The A’s still have time to sort through who fits, who doesn’t, and who can be part of the team that eventually emerges from this stretch. Finishing well matters, but so does using these final weeks to make hard evaluations.
There’s a bigger picture hanging over all of it, too. If the 2027 season survives the offseason’s looming lockout, it could open a major wave of change for the franchise, from a new league-wide CBA to a new general manager and possibly a new manager. Whether Mark Kotsay stays in place depends on whether owner John Fisher and the incoming head of baseball operations decide continuity makes sense or whether a fresh voice is the better path.
The clearest area that needs fixing is the pitching staff, and especially the bullpen. That unit has been one of the main reasons this season has gone sideways, and the A’s can’t afford to treat it like a side project. Right now, left-hander Hogan Harris and right-hander Luis Medina are the only current relievers who look like locks to remain part of the group moving forward.
There’s talent in the bullpen beyond them, but not enough consistency. Right-handers Elvis Alvarado and Seth Johnson have the stuff to handle high-leverage work, yet neither has put it together for long. Johnson was the one who started Monday night’s eighth-inning collapse, another ugly reminder of how fragile that group has been.
The rotation also needs attention. J.T.
Ginn and Gage Jump are expected to lead it, while Luis Severino’s future remains unresolved after he missed most of this season with an injury. Severino can opt out and hit free agency, or he can take the $22 million player option and stay with the A’s.
Beyond the arms themselves, the organization also needs more pitching coaches and support systems if it wants real improvement in development.
Offensively, the picture looks much more settled. Top prospect Leo De Vries is expected to join Triple-A Las Vegas for its playoff run if he’s healthy, and he could eventually slot in alongside Jacob Wilson, Zack Gelof and Nick Kurtz on the infield next season. Brent Rooker will be back after season-ending knee surgery, and the current starting outfield trio could return as well, with center field set up as a spring training battle between Henry Bolte and Denzel Clarke.
That leaves Mason Barnett, Jack Perkins, Tommy White and Max Muncy with a chance to make a case over the rest of the season. They’ve got an opening to show they belong as part of the next version of this team. The question now is whether they seize it or get exposed before the year is done.
In Other News...
Nick Kurtz Puts The Athletics In A Tough Spot They Can't Ignore
Nick Kurtzs thumb injury has become more than a short-term roster issue for the Athletics. He has already been on the injured list, and the organizations larger problem is that the team is not in playoff contention, so there is little competitive reason to gamble with a young players health when the season has already gone sideways. Add in the clubs other injuries and uneven performance, and the calculus gets even murkier.
A thumb injection changed the outlook further, pushing Kurtz farther from a return and making the decision easier in one sense and harder in another. Oakland can no longer think only about getting him back as soon as possible, because any rush would invite the possibility of a worse problem down the line. For a team trying to sort out both its present and future, Kurtzs situation is another reminder that sometimes the most important move is the one you dont force. [Read more 🡒]
Athletics Young Pitching Keeps Ruining Any Momentum They Build
A day after briefly giving themselves a lift with a win over the Red Sox, the Athletics were right back in familiar territory, watching momentum slip away in a series loss that featured both a blown four-run lead and a lopsided defeat. The rotation has shown some signs of improvement at times, but the inconsistency keeps putting too much pressure on a lineup that is still searching for traction, even with Lawrence Butler flashing better moments during the series.
What makes it so frustrating is how often the damage seems to come from the young arms the club is trying to build around. Mason Barnett and reliever Yunior Tur both came away from recent outings with rough results, and performances like those have a way of wiping out whatever good feeling the As manage to generate. For a team trying to prove it can stack wins together, every encouraging stretch keeps running into the same problem before it can settle in. [Read more 🡒]
Jack Perkins Is Facing A Late Season Test The As Cant Ignore
Jack Perkins latest outing turned into a reminder of how quickly a young pitchers margins can shrink late in a season. Against the Rays, the Athletics right-hander allowed seven runs over five innings, adding another rough line to a year that has already included a 7.27 ERA in 29 games. Even so, he has kept a confident posture as he works to sharpen the competitive edge that made him effective in the first place.
Manager Mark Kotsay has seen both sides of Perkins, from the talent to the frustration, and said the pitchers perfectionist tendencies are part of the challenge. For the As, this is about more than one shaky start. It is about whether Perkins can show the maturity and resilience needed to reset quickly and finish the season looking more like the pitcher they believe he can still be. [Read more 🡒]