BASEBALL

Opinion: The two best rising stars in the American League are on the Athletics

5 months ago - Sportingbase

The Oakland Athletics are not making the postseason. At 71 wins and 80 losses, they have a winning percentage of .470, which is 44 more percentage points than their .426 winning percentage in 2024 when they had a regular season record of 69 wins and 93 losses.

There are two reasons why the Athletics should be optimistic. That is because the American League’s two best rookies this season are both on the Athletics.

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Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz of Lancaster, Pennsylvania is the clear favourite to win the American League Rookie of the Year. He leads all Major League Baseball rookies in home runs (32), runs batted in (80), and runs scored (80). Kurtz did a lot of his damage in one particular game. On July 25, Kurtz hit four home runs, and had six hits, eight runs batted in, and 19 total bases in a 15-3 Athletics win over the Houston Astros. He became the first rookie ever with four home runs in a game, and tied the MLB record for most total bases in a game. Kurtz is also batting .296 with 24 doubles, two triples, two stolen bases, 59 walks, 236 total bases, three sacrifice flies, an on base percentage of .391 and a slugging percentage of .623.

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Meanwhile, Athletics shortstop Jacob Wilson of Los Angeles, California is second in the American League and the Major Leagues with a .317 batting average (only nine percentage points back of Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge at .326). He also leads all rookies with 116 hits. Wilson has scored 59 runs, and has 23 doubles, 13 home runs, 59 runs batted in, five stolen bases, 24 walks, 205 total bases, two sacrifice bunts, one sacrifice fly, an on base percentage of .359, and a slugging percentage of .455. Both bunts came in Athletics wins. The first came in a 2-1 Athletics win over the Texas Rangers on April 28, and the second came in an 11-3 Athletics win over the St. Louis Cardinals on September 1.