Selected IA’s are correct Joey Estes in Triple-A yesterday, they were narrowing down the field of pitchers who occupied the positions of the big league staff. Estes looked like a long shot to make the club after being called up to the majors for just 11 innings last year and pitched to a 5.51 ERA in 15 Triple-A starts (and two relief appearances). He only threw 2 2/3 innings in an official Cactus League game.
Estes, 24, came to the A’s on the sidelines Shea Langeliers, Christian Pache again Ryan Cusick in shipping trade Matt Olson in Atlanta. Estes has now pitched parts of three big league seasons but posted a 5.51 ERA (matching last year’s Triple-A) with a 16.3% strikeout rate in 148 1/3 big league innings. He has good command (walk rate is 5.4% of career), but is an extreme fly ball hitter who doesn’t throw hard or miss bats. Therefore, he was more vulnerable to home runs. Estes has been used primarily as a starter so far in his career, but he is entering his final minor league option year, so perhaps the A’s will want to see how he looks in the bullpen role.
Heading into camp, there were two spots up for grabs in manager Mark Kotsay’s rotation. Kotsay agreed when the strikers and fishermen reported that Luis Severino, Jeffrey Springs and a free agent signing Aaron Civale the spots are confined to the ground, and other areas will be sorted in the camp. A hard throw is fine Luis Morales hasn’t been great this spring (eight runs on 16 hits and seven walks with 10 strikeouts in 12 innings), but MLB.com’s Martin Gallegos writes that Morales is the key to opening the season in the rotation.
Morales’ average spring game hasn’t found that spot yet, but he’s coming off a rookie showing where he’s thrown 48 2/3 innings with a 3.14 ERA. He averaged 97.3 mph with his four-seamer, struck out a respectable (though slightly below average) 21.6% of his opponents and issued walks at a 9% clip. Before those strong performances, he had pitched in 23 games (14 starts) between Double-A and Triple-A and posted a combined 3.73 ERA, a 29.2% strikeout rate and a 9.6% walk rate.
Morales still has a full three years of major league options remaining, so if he struggles in the final weeks of camp or is hit hard early in the season, he could be cut without first being released. The A’s can control him for at least six full seasons.
Gallegos writes so on the left Jacob Lopez may be the favorite for the first fifth and last gig for Kotsay’s crew. The 28-year-old southpaw was acquired in the same trade that brought Springs to the A’s. He threw 92 2/3 innings of 4.08 ERA ball with a solid 28.3% strikeout rate and 9.3% walk rate last year. 17 of his 21 games have been starts.
Lopez was sidelined with an arm problem early in camp but made his spring debut a few days ago. It hasn’t been particularly good (three runs in two innings), but he’ll still have two more weeks to prove he can be trusted in the bullpen to start the season. Lopez still has one minor league year remaining, though the A’s are opting not to burn that unless his performance warrants it.
One word you shouldn’t completely sleep on: high hopes Gage Jump. The 22-year-old lefty has yet to pitch in Triple-A, but Baseball America’s Ian Cundall writes that Jump has already seen his fastball climb 1.6 mph this spring. He sits at 96 mph and tops out at around 98.5 mph – up from last year’s average of 94.4 mph and a maximum of 97 mph.
Jump, who turns 23 next month, was the No. 73 pick in 2024. He dominated in High-A and Double-A last season, spanning 112 2/3 frames with a 3.28 ERA, 28.4% strikeout rate, 7.4% walk rate, 41.8% groundball rate and 0.56 homers in nine frames. He is widely regarded as one of the best 100-game prospects and in particular is one of the best left-handed hitting prospects in the sport.
Although Jump has yet to make the 40-man roster, he faces stiff competition. His ceiling is as high or higher than anyone else in the Athletics rotation right now, and the last two spots have yet to be satisfactorily claimed. Jump pitched 6 2/3 spring innings and allowed two runs on five hits and three walks with four strikeouts. The A’s technically don’t have to add him to the 40-man roster until the 2027-28 season (when he would need to be selected to be protected in the Rule 5 Draft), but a 2026 debut seems likely, provided Jump can stay healthy and pick up where he left off last season. It would be a surprise if he breaks camp and the club, but doing so would position the A’s for future draft picks through MLB’s prospect promotion program.
