Luis Severino is staying put.
The Athletics right-hander will exercise his $22 million player option and skip free agency, according to the first report from Mike Rodriguez of Rompiendo Sports. That keeps Severino in the A’s rotation for their final season in Sacramento before he can test the market in the 2027-28 offseason.
The decision makes sense on a few levels. Severino had already logged a 4.16 ERA across 12 starts and 62 2/3 innings before landing on the 15-day injured list at the end of May with a strain in his shoulder capsule and subscapularis muscle. The injury ended his season, and even after he resumed throwing, he never got far enough along to start a minor league rehab assignment.
He also wasn’t positioned to cash in elsewhere. After a shortened season and a middling 2025 showing, Severino was not headed toward anything close to $22 million on the open market. And with the offseason expected to be disrupted by a lockout, opting in gives him guaranteed money and lets him focus on getting back to the mound in 2027, his age-33 season.
Severino’s return also extends a deal that already stands as a notable one in A’s history. He signed a three-year, $67 million contract with the club in December 2024, the largest free agent contract in franchise history. Through the first two years, he has produced a 4.43 ERA in 41 starts and 225 1/3 innings.
The strikeout totals aren’t what they once were during his peak with the Yankees. Severino has punched out just 19.4% of opposing hitters with the A’s, though that number was 24% in his limited work this season. His 8.3% walk rate and 42% ground ball rate in 2025-26 have been a touch better than league average.
The home-road split has been hard to miss. In 20 home starts as an Athletic, Severino has a 5.85 ERA and has allowed 14.2% of fly balls to leave the yard.
On the road, he’s been much sharper, posting a 3.14 ERA in 21 starts with a 6.0% HR/FB rate. Opponents have hit .640 OPS against him away from Sacramento, compared with .823 at Sutter Health Park.
That split leaves open the possibility of a winter trade. The A’s explored moving Severino at the 2025 deadline, though they reportedly weren’t eager to absorb much of the remaining salary. That could change if they’re more willing now to cover part of the money to make a deal happen, or they could send him out for another player on an unwanted contract.
Still, the more likely outcome is that Severino returns as the veteran anchor of a young staff. The A’s already declined Jeffrey Springs’ club option yesterday, leaving Severino, J.T.
Ginn, Jacob Lopez, and Gage Jump as the projected top four starters. Jack Perkins, Luis Morales, Luis Medina, and others will be in the mix for the fifth spot unless the A’s add a more experienced arm this winter.