A’s Notes: Langeliers, Honeywell, Rotation
The A’s could welcome one of their top prospects to the big leagues before the 2022 season is out. General manager David Forst said on the club’s pregame show this evening that he anticipates Triple-A catcher Shea Langeliers will make his MLB debut over the next two months (h/t to Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle). “Shea’s done an outstanding job. … I hope to see him here, get him some (at-bats), some time behind the plate, and see what he can do sometime this season,” Forst said. Langeliers is not yet on the 40-man roster, but he’d have to be added early next offseason to keep him being taken in the Rule 5 draft.
One of four minor leaguers acquired from the Braves in the Matt Olson blockbuster, Langeliers was arguably the headlining piece of the return. The former No. 9 overall pick is a well-regarded defender, and he brings a fair bit of power potential offensively. The 24-year-old has spent the entire season at Triple-A Las Vegas, hitting .281/.362/.513 with 19 home runs across 381 plate appearances. The Pacific Coast League’s extreme hitter-friendly nature has no doubt aided that production, but Langeliers’ strong defense means he’d be a very valuable performer with even adequate production in the batter’s box. Baseball America recently ranked the Baylor product the No. 2 prospect in the Oakland system and the sport’s No. 84 farmhand overall.
Langerliers’ forthcoming arrival coincides with a down cycle for the A’s, who stripped down the roster and payroll over the offseason. They’ve fallen to the bottom of the American League as a result, and there’s been some speculation they could move primary backstop Sean Murphy as part of the organizational overhaul. Murphy, who is controllable through 2025, drew interest before last week’s trade deadline but ultimately remained in the Bay Area. It stands to reason his name will be floated in rumors again this winter.
Some more out of Oakland:
- Right-hander Brent Honeywell Jr. has yet to throw his first pitch as a member of the A’s. Acquired from the Rays last November, Honeywell suffered an olecranon stress reaction in his elbow during Spring Training. He’s spent the entire season on the injured list, but the club isn’t ruling out the possibility he makes a late-season return. Martín Gallegos of MLB.com tweets that Honeywell is likely to throw a simulated game this week. Skipper Mark Kotsay suggested the club hasn’t yet determined whether there’ll be enough time for the 27-year-old to build back as a starting pitcher this season. A former top prospect, Honeywell has only managed 4 1/3 career big league innings because of a brutal series of elbow injuries. He’s out of minor league option years, so he’ll have to stick on the major league roster once he’s healthy or be exposed to waivers.
- The starting rotation is a broad area of uncertainty for the A’s, as Melissa Lockard of the Athletic explores. The trade that sent Frankie Montas to the Bronx subtracted the club’s highest-octane arm and dropped them to three rotation locks: Cole Irvin, Paul Blackburn and James Kaprielian. Among those competing for the final two spots are Zach Logue, Adam Oller, Adrián Martínez and Jared Koenig. All four hurlers have gotten at least five starts on the year, but they’ve each posted an ERA of 4.98 or higher with a well below-average strikeout rate. Lockard suggests that two of the pitchers acquired in the Montas deal — JP Sears and Ken Waldichuk — could factor into the big league rotation down the stretch. Sears started two of seven MLB appearances with the Yankees this season, his first taste of big league action. Waldichuk has yet to make his big league debut and isn’t yet on the 40-man roster, although he’ll have to be added this offseason. Both Sears and Waldichuk have started their organizational tenures in Las Vegas.
A’s Release Gabe Klobosits
June 14: The A’s have released Klobosits, per their transactions log at MLB.com.
June 8: The Athletics announced Wednesday that they’ve designated right-hander Gabe Klobosits for assignment and optioned righty Domingo Tapia to Triple-A Las Vegas. That pair of moves creates space for lefty Jared Koenig, whose contract has been formally selected. A’s skipper Mark Kotsay announced earlier this week that Koenig would be selected from Triple-A to start today’s game.
Acquired on a waiver claim from the Nationals back on April 11, Klobosits has spent the entire season with Las Vegas, where he’s posted an unsightly 7.59 ERA in 10 2/3 frames. The towering 6’8″ righty fanned nearly a quarter of his opponents but also issued a walk to 11.8% of the batters he faced.
Klobosits made his MLB debut with the Nats in 2021, pitching to a 5.56 ERA in a small sample of 11 1/3 innings. He averaged 94.8 mph on his heater during that time and induced chases on pitches outside the strike zone at a gaudy 35.6% clip. The former 36th-round pick also posted a 1.64 ERA with a 28.9% strikeout rate against a respectable 8.8% walk rate in a combined 38 1/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A last year, so despite his struggles in a brief stint with the A’s, he’s had some success in the upper minors.
Notably, Klobosits does not appear on the minor league injured list but also hasn’t pitched in a game for the Aviators since mid-May. The reason for that layoff isn’t clear. Regardless, the A’s will have a week to trade Klobosits, attempt to pass him through outright waivers (assuming he is in good health; injured players cannot be outrighted) or release him.
A’s To Select Jared Koenig For Wednesday Start
The Athletics are planning to start rookie left-hander Jared Koenig on Wednesday against the Braves, Oakland manager Mark Kotsay told reporters (including The San Francisco Chronicle’s Matt Kawahara). Koenig will be making his MLB debut, and the A’s will need to make at least one roster move before the game in order to add Koenig to the 40-man roster.
A start against the World Series champions is quite the culmination of a long journey for Koenig, who hadn’t even played affiliated baseball until 2021. A 35th-round pick for the White Sox in the 2014 draft, Koenig opted for college ball but then went undrafted after two years of NCAA action. From there, Koenig spent the 2017-19 seasons pitching in the indy leagues and in the Australian Baseball League before catching on with the Athletics on a minor league deal.
After pitching well in Double-A in 2021, Koenig has done even better at the Triple-A level in 2022. The southpaw has a 2.21 ERA, 29.5% strikeout rate, and 7.2% walk rate over 53 innings (starting eight of nine games) for Triple-A Las Vegas. With a 3.43 FIP and 4.20 xFIP, Koenig is perhaps a little fortunate to have such a low ERA, though his numbers certainly stand out in the hitter-friendly Vegas environment.
Koenig will become the ninth different pitcher to make a start for Oakland this season, as the Athletics are still looking for consistency in the rotation in the wake of trading Chris Bassitt and Sean Manaea during the offseason. Zach Logue was optioned back to Triple-A last week, opening the door for Koenig to get a shot at age 28. With the A’s in the midst of a rebuild, an opportunity exists for Koenig to grab a rotation spot if he proves he can handle MLB batters.