The Athletics have added another arm to their offseason mix, signing left-hander Luke Little to a minor league deal as they keep working to shore up a pitching staff that needs help.
It’s the second move of the offseason for the A’s, following the addition of former Red Sox outfielder Nate Eaton. And with Taylor Smith now running baseball operations as president and Cam Castro in place as general manager, the club is clearly taking a broad look at possible fits - from experienced pitchers to lesser-known arms who could still matter down the line for the 2027 team.
Little fits into that second category. He’ll head into Spring Training with a chance to win a job, and he gives the A’s a left-handed option with at least some big-league track record. He has appeared in parts of four seasons with the Chicago Cubs and owns a career 2.97 ERA across 36.1 innings.
The bigger question has never really been whether Little can miss bats. It’s been whether he can stay on the mound.
His best major league season came in 2024, when he threw 26 innings and posted a 3.46 ERA, even though he spent most of that year injured. Chicago still seemed intrigued by what he could become after that season.
There’s plenty to like in the raw stuff, starting with the frame. Little stands 6-foot-8, and his draft buzz was boosted by a video that showed him throwing 105 miles per hour. He’s not that same pitcher now, but the ingredients are still there.
In 2024, Little averaged 95.8 miles per hour on his fastball. That number dropped to 93.3 in 2025 during limited big-league work, then climbed back to 95.8 in his one inning in 2026. He also gets excellent extension thanks to his size, sitting in the 7.2-7.7 foot range over the last two seasons, which helps the pitch play even faster.
The results have backed up the stuff when he’s been on the field. Little posted a 60% groundball rate in 2025 and a 71.2% mark in 2024, numbers that point to the kind of damage control the A’s are hoping to uncover if he can finally put together a healthy season.
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