A’s general manager David Forst announced on Friday that star designated hitter Brent Rooker underwent extensor repair surgery on his right elbow/forearm (X link via Martín Gallegos of MLB.com). Rooker, who had a partial tear in the tendon, is expected to be fully recovered by the start of Spring Training.
Forst indicated that the slugger was playing through elbow discomfort throughout the year. That makes Rooker’s monster season even more impressive. He blasted 39 home runs with a .293/.365/.562 slash through 614 plate appearances. It was his second straight 30-homer campaign and proved that his All-Star breakout in 2023 was no anomaly. Rooker tied for fifth in the majors in longballs. Among batters with 500+ plate appearances, he ranked 17th in on-base percentage and sixth in slugging.
Teams no doubt tried to pry Rooker from the A’s leading up to the deadline. The front office made clear they had no real interest in moving him. Rooker is only entering his first season of arbitration. The A’s control him through 2027. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects a modest $5.1MM salary for next year. Rooker is the only member of the A’s arbitration class who is a lock to be tendered a contract. They don’t have a single player on a guaranteed deal. There’s no financial pressure to deal him.
The A’s seem even less likely to trade Rooker on the heels of a somewhat encouraging second half. They played .500 ball after the All-Star Break. JJ Bleday, Lawrence Butler and Shea Langeliers join Rooker as part of an emerging group of offensive contributors. There’s still a lot of work to be done on the pitching staff, but there’s reason for optimism about the lineup as the team begins its three-year stint in Sacramento.
julyn82001
Rooker!!! So talented and overrated… A’s operations scouting team just unbelievable talent to work with little and yet have an eye for players almost no one else wanted them… And here is always a risk and yet rewards…
MLB Top 100 Commenter
Agree, Rooker is a key part of Sacramento’s team next year
Dock_Elvis
You mean the Athletics? They don’t have a city affiliation until they move to Vegas….or SLC..or Portland…or the Warriors owner buys them lol
MLB Top 100 Commenter
Elvis may be in Las Vegas, but it’s Sacramento A’s baseball!
Dock_Elvis
The troll job isn’t working as well as you think
zacharydmanprin
But he wasn’t an All Star this season despite having a better 1st half than last season. All Star games are ridiculous and pointless.
YankeesBleacherCreature
It’s always been a popularity contest so I don’t know why fans put so much stock into it. The worst MLB decision was making game results determine WS homefield advantage for their respective league. Glad that is over with.
LordD99
It still generates interest, more than any other sports All-Star games, but mostly it generates revenue that helps pay for the player’s retirement fund. It no longer has the meaning it once did, but the revenue generated means it still has purpose. MLB is a business.
LordD99
He crushed it on the road this year, hitting 24 HRs and slugging over .600. Put him in a minor league park, hot weather, in Sacramento in 2025? Mr. Judge, you might have a challenger for next year’s HR crown!
Warden of the North(acoss13)
Rooker is going to crush at least 50 bombs with that minor league park, I agree.