Elephant Rumblings: Athletics Set Season-Opening Starting Rotation

MLB news roundup

Good morning Athletics Nation!

Yesterday the plans for the A’s Season-Opening rotation finally emerged, thanks to Martin Gallegos of MLB.com:

A bit of a surprise there. The front three were locks as Luis Severino, Jeffrey Springs, and JP Sears are well-established left-handers who were guaranteed a spot no matter what. They’d each earned that already entering camp this year, and many fans thought that Mitch Spence had done enough in his rookie season to join them. Instead of one open rotation job however, the A’s actually had two.

The spring began with the assumption that last year’s Rule 5 pick Mitch Spence had done enough in his rookie season that he looked at least likely to win a starting job. He looked solid in his first three outings this spring but a blowup last Saturday (7 ER in 3 ²⁄₃ IP) seems to have been heavily factored in. Last season the righty was a godsend for a rotation in need of innings as he induced groundballs and limited walks, but he also doesn’t possess “strikeout” stuff and those numbers dropped hard this spring. For now Spence will serve as the long man in the bullpen, which is going to be an important role for the Athletics this season. Even if he isn’t in the Opening Day rotation, you can still expect Spence to be taking the ball to start games for the A’s this year.

Joining the left-handed S-Trio in the rotation instead of Spence will be right-handers Osvaldo Bido and Joey Estes. Bido was with the Athletics last season and looked strong in limited duty, tossing 63 ¹⁄₃ innings with a solid 3.41 ERA over 16 appearances (9 starts). Th29-year old has generally looked solid outside of one blowup game this spring and many on the A’s coaching staff believe Bido has more to offer than meets the eye. They’ll get to see if they’re right now that he’s set to join the starting rotation full-time.

Along with Bido joining the rotation is fellow righty Joey Estes. One of the pieces the Athletics got in return for perennial All-Star Matt Olson, Estes finally got some serious major league innings under his belt in 2024. The then-22-year old righty tossed 127 ²⁄₃ innings for the Athletics last season, though with a below-average 5.01 ERA. His advanced metrics weren’t much better last year either as he sported a 4.94 FIP. The Athletics know they’re not going to be getting a strikeout artist in Estes but they seem to be content with a starter who doesn’t allow free passes and also offers a bit more upside than Spence.

The starting rotation is set and the bullpen is more or less as well. All-Star closer Mason Miller will lock down the ninth inning for the A’s this year, while Jose Leclerc, Tyler Ferguson, Noah Murdock, and TJ McFarland are all locks for a bullpen job. Lefty Hogan Harris looks likely to nab one of the final two spots, while word is spreading that Justin Sterner is the favorite to land the last spot in the ‘pen. At least until Michel Otanez is ready to return from the IL.

The position player side of things has a couple irons left to work out. The club still hasn’t announced who will be going to Seattle but we have a general idea that both Luis Urias and Max Schuemann will be the bench bats for the club. And it’s all but certain that Jhonny Pereda will be the backup to Shea Langeliers at least to start the season. Will there be any surprises on that side of the ball?

Have a great Thursday everyone.

A’s Coverage:

• Athletics take down Guardians 8-3 in Goodyear
• Athletics finalize Season-Opening starting rotation
• MLB, NBC Sports team A’s, Giants, Phillies games direct to consumers
• A’s reportedly have some investors for Las Vegas ballpark

MLB News & Interest:

• ‘Superhero’ Shohei! Ohtani rises to occasion, electrifies Tokyo Dome with 1st HR
• Dodgers sweep Cubs in Japan
• A former NFL QB brought his glove to the Tokyo Dome — and caught a foul ball!
• Roki shows flashes of brilliance — and wildness — in his MLB debut
• Rangers sign veteran left-hander Patrick Corbin to 1-year deal
• Phillies’ Ranger Suarez to miss next start with back stiffness
• Yankees eyeing third base help before Opening Day
• Carlos Carrasco can opt-out of Yankees deal; likely to make Opening Day roster
• Astros manager Espada confirms Jose Altuve will be primary left fielder
• Pirates’ Jared Jones pauses throwing due to elbow discomfort
• Giants sell 10% Ownership stake to private equity firm
• Jackie Robinson story restored at Defense Dept. website
• Today in Baseball History

Best of X:

Can’t believe it took him this long to get long ball #1 this spring. How many does he hit this season?

Yesterday*

Urias looks like a capable backup to Jacob Wilson: