Athletics Nick Kurtz Takes Home Major AL Honor
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After a slow start to the 2026 season, the reigning Rookie of the Year, Nick Kurtz, is starting to pick up where he left off last year. The slugging first baseman just had a huge month of May and has taken home the American League Player of the Month honors.
Last July, Nick Kurtz was also able to win the award, and this propelled him to win the American League Rookie of the Year. He shared the award last July with Marlins' slugger Kyle Stowers, who won the National League award.
Your AL and NL Players of the Month for May:
— MLB (@MLB) June 3, 2026
Nick Kurtz: .333 AVG, 1.025 OPS, 5 HR, 26 RBI
JJ Bleday: .301 AVG, 1.018 OPS, 8 HR, 25 RBI pic.twitter.com/hWVNVHUcKU
This year, Kurtz got to share it with a former teammate, JJ Bleday. Bleday played with the A's for three big league seasons from 2023 to 2025. In 2024, he actually missed just three games all year, appearing in 159 games for the Green and Gold.
Now that Nick Kurtz is returning to his Rookie of the Year form, expect some of the other colder bats in the A's lineup to start picking up, even starting this series in Chicago.
Nick Kurtz's Impressive May
From the beginning of the season until about mid-April, there was really no production out of Nick Kurtz. Towards the end of the month, the slugger was able to pick up some slack and finish the month of April with a solid .281 average and an impressive .964 OPS.
After getting some steam heading into May, the slugger never looked back. He would match his home run total of five from April, but had some big improvements in his AVG and OPS.
Second career Player of the Month award for Nick Kurtz. https://t.co/oIp7VwL88I
— Martín Gallegos (@MartinJGallegos) June 3, 2026
Kurtz has bounced around a few different spots in the A's order, 1-3, but more recently has made home in the second spot in the lineup. This is because of Carlos Cortes' ability to lead off and find his way on for Kurtz.
Kurtz would finish his impressive month with a .333 batting average, a 1.025 OPS, and five long balls. With the way he's been swinging his bat, he's playing his way back into a potential MVP race.
Current #Athletics slugger, Nick Kurtz has won the AL Player of the Month.
— Dylan Quinn (@dylanq_2) June 3, 2026
Former A’s outfielder, JJ Bleday, wins the award for the National League.
A Hot Kurtz Upgrades the A's Impressive Lineup
Heading into the season, everyone could expect this A's lineup to be one of the top offenses in all of baseball. Highlighted by Brent Rooker, Shea Langeliers, Tyler Soderstrom, Jacob Wilson, and Kurtz himself. However, Rooker and Soderstrom have been a little underwhelming to start the season, and the team lost Wilson to injury.
This meant the team would have to rely more on its pitching staff to keep games close if the offense underperformed. Things are looking like they will be changing now.
The A's rotation has taken some hurt, as Luis Severino has headed to the injured list. Now that Nick Kurtz is in full swing, Tyler Soderstrom's bat is getting hot, and even Brent Rooker is looking to break out of his slump, the team might get the offensive production we were looking for.
When that offense is hot, there's really nothing more fun to watch as a baseball fan. As soon as we see some of the other A's bats get in on the action, this offense will certainly rank in the top five in all of baseball.
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Dylan Quinn grew up playing baseball, and also enjoyed watching and writing about his favorite team, the A’s. Being a diehard A’s fan from New Jersey is certainly not common, but he loves the team and all of the current and former players so much. Quinn currently attends school at Penn State Scranton where he plays baseball.
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