Inside The As

Nick Kurtz May Have Just Had the Best Offensive Game in MLB History

Nick Kurtz just announced himself to the baseball world
Jason Burke|
Jul 25, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Athletics designated hitter Nick Kurtz (16) hits his third home run of the game during the eighth inning against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
Jul 25, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Athletics designated hitter Nick Kurtz (16) hits his third home run of the game during the eighth inning against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

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Just days ago we said that Nick Kurtz was well on his way to becoming the best offensive first baseman in baseball. Turns out the A's 22-year-old rookie was tired of that being a question, as he smashed four home runs against the AL West-leading Houston Astros on Friday night.

Not only does the four-homer performance tie the MLB record for most home runs in a single game, one that now has 20 members, but he also went 6-for-6 with four homers, a double and a single, driving in eight RBI and scoring six runs. The 19 total bases that he collected in this outburst also tied Shawn Green's total of 19 from back in 2002 when he was with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

While a four-homer game is rare, it was actually the six runs that he scored that was the rarest feat he accomplished on Friday. Scoring six runs in a single game has been done just nine times in the history of baseball, with Green being on that list as well.

Nobody in baseball history has ever hit five home runs in a single game, but if this game had been played in Boston, Chicago, or at Citi Field where the New York Mets host games, then Kurtz would have had the first-ever five home run game. He hit a double in the fourth inning that hit off the top of the wall in left field, mere feet from being out of the park.

That double would have been a home run in six parks, but Baltimore, Los Angeles and Milwaukee were crossed off the list because a separate homer wouldn't have cleared the fence in those parks.

These are the all-time stats that really stood out from this insane performance. But if we focus back in a little bit to the nearer term, Kurtz also moved himself into a tie with Detroit's Spencer Torkelson for the home run lead among first basemen. Both now have 23, and Kurtz has put up 11 this month, and 15 over his past 30 games.

Not only is Kurtz tied with Torkelson, but he has also played 33 fewer games than the Tigers slugger. In his 66 games in the big leagues, Kurtz has already become one of the best power hitters in the game over the course of the entire season. His 23 home runs are tied for 12th among all players, and only five of those players are above the 30 home run threshold.

Chicago's Pete-Crow Armstrong ranks sixth with 27 home runs, well within Kurtz's reach over the course of the rest of the season. The top five players range from 36-39 bombs on the year, which may prove to be too many to overcome, given the A's first baseman's absence at the beginning of the year.

But his home run rate over the course of the entire season is one in every 11.79 plate appearances. That is a touch behind than Seattle's Cal Raleigh, who is averaging one per every 11.49 PA's and is the Home Run Derby champion.

While all of this is absolutely remarkable, it's also important to remember that at this time last year, Kurtz had just been drafted by the A's with the No. 4 overall selection, and was still two weeks away from playing in his first professional baseball game in Stockton. When the A's took him in the draft, they said he was the top guy on their board the whole time.

They seemed to have also hit a home run with that pick.

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Jason Burke
JASON BURKE

Jason has been covering the A’s at various sites for over a decade, and was the original host of the Locked on A’s podcast. He also covers the Stanford Cardinal as they attempt to rebuild numerous programs to prominence.

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