A's Option Starter After Recent Return For Simple Reason

Now his future is a little less clear

Feb 11, 2026; Mesa, AZ, USA; General view of the scoreboard during an Athletics Spring Training workout at HoHhokum stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images | Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images

The are in the process of trimming down their spring roster to get it down to a manageable 26 players ahead of Opening Day. With just over two weeks remaining, that number still stands at 45 players, with 23 pitchers in camp.

On Wednesday, the A's made another cut, optioning right-hander Joey Estes back to Triple-A Las Vegas. Estes is still just 24 years old, and made his spring debut in yesterday's game against the Chicago White Sox. He went 2 2/3 innings, giving up two hits, zero runs, walking one and striking out zero. He threw 43 pitches, 22 for strikes.

Last year at this time Estes was in a battle with Mitch Spence to be the team's fifth starter, and it was actually Estes that won the job out of camp. He made two starts with the A's—a disastrous home opener against the Chicago Cubs and another rough start against the Colorado Rockies at Coors—and was optioned to the minors where he'd spend most of 2025.

This year he hasn't really been in the mix for a spot in the rotation and he's seen more as a depth option for the time being. He's shown flashes of being a bulldog competitor on the mound, tossing a Maddux against the Los Angeles Angels in 2024, but a good amount of the success in his career has come at the Oakland Coliseum, which the A's moved out of after the '24 campaign.

Simple reason(s) for this option

The first reason is something we already touched on, and that's that Estes isn't necessarily in the club's plans for Opening Day. With camp closing up in less than two weeks, playing time becomes more precious, and there are fewer innings to go around. Those innings typically go to people under serious consideration for a roster spot around this part of camp.

The other reason is based off of a small sample size, but it's also something Estes struggled with in his initial stint with the A's last season: his control. Just 51% of the pitches he threw on Tuesday went for strikes, and he's not a huge "stuff" guy that can get you out with wicked breaking balls or high-octane heaters.

Estes is more methodical when he's on, and hitting his spots. When he's not getting ahead in the count and is all over the zone, that's when he gets into trouble, typically. Yesterday he was working against the White Sox, and not even their big leaguers for the majority of his stint, so he was able to get through unscathed.

Given the emergence of Jacob Lopez last season, and J.T. Ginn looking like a potential member of the rotation, in addition to Luis Severino, Luis Morales, Aaron Civale and Jeffrey Springs, cracking the rotation appears to be a fairly difficult task for Estes at this point. And that's not to mention Gunnar Hoglund (when healthy) or Jack Perkins in the immediate mix, or Gage Jump waiting in the wings.

Estes is likely either to become a long-man out of the bullpen, or a potential trade piece for this club this season.

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