As the Athletics’ slide stretches from a June swoon into an even uglier July collapse, the calendar starts to matter almost as much as the standings. The A’s won on July 1 and haven’t won since, and with that kind of skid in the background, it’s natural to start looking past this season and toward 2027.
The next month brings three major MLB events, and two of them could shape the A’s future in a big way. First comes All-Star week, where American League starters Shea Langeliers and Nick Kurtz are set to get the kind of experience players remember forever - sharing space with the game’s best, taking swings alongside them and against them, and spending time around the stars they’ve admired past and present.
But the bigger turning points are still ahead. The MLB draft starts this Saturday, July 11, and runs through Sunday, July 12.
That’s the chance for clubs to keep building out their farm systems and try to turn raw talent into players who can eventually help at the big-league level. And as history reminds everyone, not every can’t-miss prospect turns into a sure thing; for every Mike Trout and Nick Kurtz, there are names like Mark Appel and Brien Taylor.
Then comes the trade deadline on August 3. For the A’s, the shape of that deadline seems pretty clear: keep the core pieces that shouldn’t be moved, and look to shed veteran, expensive contracts while opening space for promising minor leaguers who could get a shot in the majors.
For fans, this is usually the part of the season where hope starts to creep in - the what’s-next part of the baseball calendar. This year, though, there’s a darker cloud hanging over it.
The possibility of an ownership lockout is hard to ignore, and a recent poll of MLB players showed just how real that concern is. Out of 101 current major leaguers asked, “Do you believe there will be a lockout at the end of the season?”
80 said “yes,” two said “no,” and 19 said they were “not sure.” Some players went a step further, saying the bigger issue isn’t whether a lockout happens, but whether games will be cancelled.
That’s a tough backdrop for anyone trying to stay optimistic. Still, the best way through the stretch for A’s fans may be to keep their eyes on what next year could bring.
In Other News...
As Fans Just Got Another Zack Gelof Injury Scare
Zack Gelof gave Athletics fans another anxious moment during the game against the Tigers, when the left fielder slid for a catch and slammed into the side wall, leaving him with a right knee injury. He stayed in the game at first, but the sight of him going back down later in the inning changed the tone quickly, especially for a club that has already spent too much of this season managing injuries.
Gelof eventually had to be helped off the field by Jeff Collins and Mark Kotsay, a scene that only deepened the concern around an Oakland roster that has been stretched thin. Brent Rookers season-ending left knee injury is already a major blow, and any extended absence for Gelof would add another difficult layer to a season that has not offered much relief on the health front. [Read more 🡒]
A's Fans Won't Love What's Already Happening In Las Vegas
Even before the Athletics have played a game in Las Vegas, the premium market is moving fast. The club has already sold most of its 294 Athletic Club seats behind home plate in the new domed stadium, a sign that demand is real for the teams future home on the Strip even as the franchises relationship with Oakland remains a sore point for many fans.
The pricing helps explain why the seats are going quickly. Those spots carry a $900-per-game tag and a one-time $100,000 personal seat license fee, putting them in the rarefied air of the new $2 billion ballpark. With the stadium set to feature 30,000 fixed seats, 3,000 standing tickets and other premium areas such as the Diamond Club and Dugout Club, the As are building a venue where the most expensive inventory is already drawing plenty of interest. [Read more 🡒]
As Rookie Joshua Kuroda-Grauer Is Already Doing Something Rare
Joshua Kuroda-Grauer has given the Athletics a quick jolt since reaching the majors, carrying over the kind of contact-oriented approach that got him noticed in Triple-A. Through July 8, the rookie was hitting .500 with 15 hits in 30 at-bats, and he has paired that early production with a strikingly low strikeout total in his first eight games.
The opening in Oakland came after Jacob Wilson was hurt, and Kuroda-Grauer has done more than just hold the spot down. He was already batting .352 in Triple-A before the call-up, and the early returns suggest the As may have found a player who can make immediate use of every chance he gets, even as the bigger question is how long this kind of start can last. [Read more 🡒]