The Butler Did It

 

You think about glittering instances of players joining a team before something about the team changed and it became the era the player is more commonly associated with. Jose Altuve spent 2 seasons in Houston before they went back to orange and joined the AL, so thinking of him as an NL 2nd Baseman is odd. Nick Johnson and Chad Cordero were members of the 2004 Expos before they'd become better known as Washington Nationals. Frank Thomas had a few years in the navy-and-red White Sox uniforms before they famously went back to black in the early 90s. 

I think about the A's rookies that are joining the team now that might be with the team for a while, especially when they move to Las Vegas. Esteury Ruiz, Zach Gelof, and now Lawrence Butler and Joe Boyle, who've joined in the last month. Boyle went three innings strong today without allowing any runs [Ken Waldichuk ruined that], and he's one of those guys that the A's could build on if they want to start something in the next few years. 

And then there's Butler, who was seen as a major prospect in the last couple years. So far in the majors, the main asset that Butler's scouting reports were right on is his outfield play. He's already completed several eye-popping plays in center field, and even if Ruiz is similarly slick out there, Butler makes less errors. Butler's also hit 4 homers and 9 RBIs in 30 games, and he's beginning to get the hang of things. 

The young core that's succeeding in Oakland right now, consisting of Ryan Noda, Zach Gelof, Nick Allen and Esteury Ruiz, is something that could just need a more supportive roster. If all of them are still around in 2025, and if the A's keep bringing up strong prospects like Boyle who don't fold when given the opportunity, we could be looking at them a lot differently. Really, what's weighed this team down has been the amount of pieces from other farm systems that were let go for a reason. Veterans and younger players alike are struggling to flourish in a more open playing space, and once-promising careers like Ken Waldichuk, Aledmys Diaz, Kyle Muller and Tony Kemp are well in jeopardy. 

Then again, what's also likely is that this team could arrive in Vegas and it could still take a while for them to build on anything. These guys could either not be the answer at all or be the answer and still not stick around [thanks to ownership]. As we've seen in the early 2010s, as well as in 2017, all it takes is just some really nice pieces to make a team watchable again, and there are a few of those that intrigue me. It's just never certain if that means the A's will be any good anytime soon.

Coming Tomorrow- Man, I don't know if any of us predicted the amount of goodwill this guy would lose with just one contract.