MLB Notebook: Oakland-Sacramento-Las Vegas A’s Preview

Our spring training tour begins with the team that has no home. The Athletics are beginning a three-interim journey between their old home of Oakland and the new one in Las Vegas. While the Vegas stadium is being built, the A’s will be playing in Sacramento. And, if recent history is any guide, not playing very well. They’ve had three straight losing seasons and last year’s 69-93 record was the best in that stretch.

Here’s a general overview of the A’s:

Power

Even playing in the vast expanse of Oakland Alameda-County Coliseum, the A’s had players who showed home run power. That starts with Brent Rooker. A DH who would likely have major trade value, Rooker hit 39 homers and drove in 112 runs in 2024.

Shea Langeliers has hit 51 homers over the past two seasons, giving the A’s power at the catching position. Centerfielder J.J. Bleday slugged .437 and popped 20 homers last year. Lawrence Butler got his first chance at regular duty in right field and responded with a 22-homer campaign.

The combination of natural career progression, along with playing in a better hitters’ environment in Sutter Health Park, offers the promise of even more productive numbers in 2025.

Getting On Base

The franchise that made on-base percentage famous with Billy Beane and Moneyball, has serious problems with table-setting. Rooker’s .344 OBP is the only notable figure and he can’t set the table for himself. No one hits for average with any effectiveness. What this offense could really use would be for third baseman Gio Urshela to return to the form he used to show in Yankee Stadium. But with his decline now ongoing since 2020, that seems like a longshot.

Starting Pitching

The flip side of moving to Sutter Health Park is that the pitchers won’t have the same advantages. This is a rotation with a lot of question marks, but there are some interesting possibilities. Osvaldo Bido, Jeffrey Springs and Mitch Spence are both young arms that could emerge. If they do, J.P. Sears is steady at taking his turn and at least producing ERAs in the low 4s. The A’s have also added Luis Severino as their ace, with the only question being whether he can stay healthy.

Bullpen

Manager Mark Kotsay has a respectable group to work with, as he seeks to funnel games to effective closer Mason Miller. Jose LeClerc has been acquired from Texas and Hogan Harris also has some possibilities.

Outlook

Betting markets have set the Over/Under on wins for 71.5, suggesting modest improvement. We won’t do final picks until closer to the end of spring training and those will come out on our Substack, but that seems reasonable. The AL West is not a particularly strong division, so if the pitching comes together, the A’s could surprise. But they’ve got to figure out how to get baserunners, or the chances of long offensive droughts are real.