A's Closer-by-Committee is Creating a Late-Game Problem
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Coming into the season, the A’s pitching staff looked like the roster’s biggest weakness, even with a lineup that has top-five potential. The bats are starting to wake up, but the pitching staff has been cooling down after a decent start.
With these two facets of the team not working cohesively, that has put more focus onto the bullpen, where the A's are going with a closer-by-committee after trading away Mason Miller at last year's Trade Deadline. Mark Kotsay's bullpen posted a 2.99 ERA after Miller's departure, raising expectations they could replicate that process again in 2026.
Last night's loss against the New York Yankees was just a symptom of a larger problem for the A's, and it's going to take some tinkering to ultimately figure out.
Tuesday's loss to the Yankees was a snapshot of the issue
Last night, after Aaron Civale put forth his personal best outing at Yankee Stadium, throwing five innings and allowing just one solo home run, the A's entered the bottom of the eighth inning with a 3-1 lead. Mark Leiter Jr., who had been with the Yankees dating back to 2024, got that pivotal inning.
Coming into the game, Leiter had recorded the team's only save of the season and held a 2.45, but he also had a 4.27 FIP (5.78 xFIP), and had as many hit batsmen as strikeouts (1) in his 3 2/3 innings of work. There were reasons to be a little concerned about his start to the season, despite the nice ERA.
The inning began with three straight singles, though the third was one that got through the infield because Jacob Wilson was leaning to his right, and it landed just out of reach to his left. After the three singles brought the game within a run, it may have been time to go get the righty.
Kotsay stuck with him, and while he got Jazz Chisholm to fly out, Leiter surrendered the go-ahead three-run homer to Amed Rosario that made it 5-3, and that would end up being the final score.
Kotsay's conundrum
Because the A's don't have a set closer, the early returns haven’t inspired confidence. Elvis Alvarado, Michael Kelly, and Scott Barlow have all been hit hard, while Mark Leiter Jr.’s underlying numbers suggested an outing like Tuesday's was coming.
It's still early and those ERAs will come down, but they just show that it's almost impossible to know where to turn in a big situation if you're the A's manager.
Joel Kuhnel was called up on Tuesday and recorded an out to get the A's out of the eighth inning, but he's not likely the answer in leverage spots. Luis Medina (2.08 ERA) is coming off of Tommy John surgery, and while he has the arm to be a leverage guy, the timing may not be there just yet as the A's look to bring him along somewhat slowly to get him used to pitching in relief.
That would leave Hogan Harris (3.68), the lone left-hander in the bullpen, and Justin Sterner (1.50) as the two main options at this point in time. With Harris, the A's have to pick his spots carefully since he's the only lefty in the bullpen right now, which we've said repeatedly could be an area of weakness. Adding a second lefty could help alleviate some of this stress, too.
Sterner pitched the bottom of the ninth against the Blue Jays on Opening Day, and after a pair of quick outs, the Jays used a single, double, RBI single combo to walk-off the A's. He was also warming up in a key spot later that series, but has also been pitching in the early innings somewhat frequently of late. Perhaps he'll be the closer the next time the A's get an opportunity.
Until someone claims those big innings consistently, every late lead is fragile—and the A's can't afford to keep waiting for answers if they hope to make a postseason push.
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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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