Tuesday, August 05

Hello! Welcome to another edition of the A’s beat newsletter.

Perhaps a bit overshadowed by promotions of higher-profile Athletics prospects over the past couple of weeks was Brennan Milone reaching the precipice of the big leagues.

With the Major League callup of Drew Avans last Tuesday creating a roster opening at Triple-A Las Vegas, the A’s rewarded Milone by moving him up a level after a strong start with Double-A Midland, where he hit .271 with an .880 OPS, 10 home runs, 12 doubles and 35 RBIs in 43 games for the Rockhounds.

The fact that Milone has quietly but quickly worked his way up the system fits his profile. He went under the radar through most of his college career with two subpar seasons at South Carolina before transferring to Oregon and earning first-team All-Pac-12 honors as a junior. This led to the A’s selecting him in the sixth round of the 2022 MLB Draft. From there, he steadily climbed the organizational ladder from a rather unknown prospect to now ranking No. 23 on the A’s Top 30 Prospect list, per MLB Pipeline.

“We really felt like Brennan was a tremendous force last year at age 23 in the Texas League,” A’s Minor League hitting coordinator Jim Eppard said on A’s Cast last week. “The numbers he put up in any other organization would have granted a promotion to Triple-A, but we were pretty stacked in the outfield coming out of Spring Training this year. Now, with all the recent moves, he got hot at the right time.

“He struggled a bit early this year. I think part of it was the disappointment of having such a great year last year and then not going to Triple-A. But I think that’s all behind him now. He had a so-so April and a tremendous May. We hope to have him carry that on into Vegas and continue on his journey here.”

The only remaining question regarding Milone is his long-term position. The A’s moved him all around the infield earlier in his career. This season, he has split nearly an equal amount of time at first base and left field, along with several games as the designated hitter. But with an overall solid approach at the plate with solid bat-to-ball skills and consistent power numbers, Milone will eventually hit his way to the big leagues. 

“Brennan is a professional right-handed hitter with plate discipline and sneaky thunder,” A’s assistant general manager and director of player personnel Billy Owens said. “There are similarities in profile and production to Joey Meneses when he burst on the scene with the Nationals. He earned his promotion to Las Vegas and put himself firmly on the radar as officially one step away.”

Which pitcher served up A's slugger Reggie Jackson's home run that struck the light tower at Tiger Stadium in the 1971 MLB All-Star Game?

A. Don Wilson

B. Fergie Jenkins

C. Dock Ellis

D. Juan Marichal

“The beginning of the year, the success we had with this roster, that’s the level we expect to play at. This has been a tough stretch. To know that through the same amount of games, the record is the same as last year, it’s tough. We expect better of ourselves. The roster is a little bit different. Some of these guys are going through their first full seasons like Jacob Wilson, even Lawrence Butler, who spent time in the Minors last year, and Tyler Soderstrom. … [Brent] Rooker and [Shea Langeliers] are really the only two guys that have full seasons. … I think there’s still opportunity for us to be better than we were last year. The roster is better. Sometimes it just takes time to show that.”

-- A’s manager Mark Kotsay, on the A’s carrying a record of 23-36 through May 31, matching their exact record at that point from 2024

For the upcoming June 8 game against the Orioles at Sutter Health Park, every fan in attendance will receive a Rooker Home Run Counter Bobblehead. Presented by Red Hawk Resort & Casino, the bobblehead features Rooker swinging a bat in a gold A’s jersey and three turnstiles with numbers to update Rooker’s career home run total after every homer he hits. Random lucky fans will receive a special autographed silver edition of the bobblehead, commemorating Rooker’s 2024 Silver Slugger award.

• Denzel Clarke pulled off his best Spider-Man impression by scaling the wall at Rogers Centre for an amazing home run robbery in front of his hometown fans. More>>

• Clarke’s dream homecoming continued on Saturday, as the Toronto native bashed his first Major League home run in his home country. More >>

• Here’s a look at how the A’s could look to address their continued late-inning bullpen issues after another tough loss on Sunday. More>>

C. Dock Ellis

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