Following the Tyler Soderstrom Deal, Who Will the A's Extend Next?
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Athletics general manager, David Forst, has made it very clear this offseason that the team will look to lock up its young stars as they prepare for their planned move to Las Vegas in 2028. Last offseason, the A's extended key bats in Brent Rooker and Lawrence Butler.
On Thursday, yet another extension was reported, and this time it was 2025 Gold Glove finalist and former 2020 first-rounder, Tyler Soderstrom.
Soderstrom has been a big part of the A's team since he debuted, not only offensively, but also with his versatility. Since he was drafted, he spent his time in the minors as a catcher, but as he got closer to the big leagues, the team realized Shea Langeliers would be a huge roadblock. This led to him picking up first base and ultimately debuting in the big leagues as a first baseman.
The California native would be the everyday first baseman heading into the 2025 season, before Nick Kurtz would debut for the team at the end of April. Soderstrom once again switched positions and picked up left field. In the same season, he'd be a finalist for the American League Gold Glove award in left field.
Obviously, Tyler Soderstrom was a huge contributor to the team's improvement last season, but there were also a handful of other guys that also played a huge role in their overall success. Now that the A's have Soderstrom locked up, they will look to extend some of the other young contributors to keep this core group together.
Let's look at who the team could lock up next.
Jacob Wilson
The next player the A's could look into locking up is their star shortstop and 2025 All-Star starter, Jacob Wilson. Wilson finished his 2025 campaign with a .311 batting average, tied for the highest among AL Shortstops, and an OPS of .800.
He not only started the All-Star game at shortstop midseason but also finished second in Rookie of the Year voting at the end of the season, as well as finishing 18th in MVP voting.
Locking up a franchise shortstop is always nice, and Jacob Wilson has proven he can be a star in this league. Having his bat in the lineup and a solid glove at the premium shortstop position for the team's start in Vegas is a must. However, extending Wilson could come at a hefty cost.
Last offseason, the Rockies locked up Ezequiel Tovar on a 7-year $63.5 million contract. This probably would look similar to a possible Wilson extension, but with Wilson's accolades, it might be closer to $100 million.
Because Wilson plays a premium position, the team could look to give him the team's next big extension. Leo De Vries, the A's number one ranked prospect, is also a shortstop, but he could make the move to another infield position if Wilson ends up getting extended.
Future Star Pitching Duo: Luis Morales and Jacob Lopez
The A's now already have Brent Rooker, Lawrence Butler, and Tyler Soderstrom all locked well into their planned time in Las Vegas. However, all of them are bats, and the team could also look to hand their next big extension to a rotation guy. Both Luis Morales and Jacob Lopez are coming off impressive 2025 campaigns and have shown flashes of potential stardom.
Morales looks like he could be the more likely option for the A's in terms of an extension, however. The right-hander was a top-ranked A's prospect before his debut, and was quite impressive during his nine big league starts.
The 23-year-old tossed 48 2/3 innings for the green and gold and posted a 3.14 ERA with a 1.15 WHIP. Since he was a highly ranked prospect with a super high ceiling, and now has some MLB experience, he could be a super attractive name for an extension.
Jacob Lopez on the other hand had spent a couple of seasons with the Rays where he struggled. Clearly, the A's saw something in him, and included him in the deal that also brought Jeffrey Springs to West Sacramento.
The crafty left-hander is 27-years-old, and coming off a strong season with the A's. The club could consider a 3-5 year deal, and they likely would not have to break the bank. Surely Morales is the more attractive name to extend, but Lopez could be a cheaper option, and still be a solid arm in their rotation for the next bunch of years.
The one issue with extending either of these pitchers would be that they already come with six years of team control, so there is no rush to get a deal done whatsoever. If the A's were looking to extend a pitcher, however, these would be the two most likely candidates, with Jack Perkins being another option.
The one issue with Perkins is that his long-term role has yet to be determined, which would make an extension difficult. Would he be paid like a late-inning bullpen arm, or a starting pitcher?
The Unlikely: Nick Kurtz and Shea Langeliers
Arguably the two most attractive names of them all, Nick Kurtz and Shea Langeliers, were among the two best hitters in a very stacked A's lineup. Both of them have their own reasons that make them strong candidates for extension, but even bigger signs that point to the A's not getting the job done.
Nick Kurtz is coming off his Rookie of the Year campaign and should be a staple of the A's lineup for a very long time. However, it could be a very real option for Kurtz to continue betting on himself and playing for an even bigger contract in the future, as opposed to getting locked up this offseason.
If he signed now, he could be looking at a deal around $150 million. Earlier this offseason, we pegged him at eight years and between $140-160 million as what it would take to get a deal done. The big hangup in this equation could be whether the A's are willing to commit that much to a player. The Soderstrom deal, at $86 million, is the largest contract in franchise history.
The projected Kurtz deal would blow right past that one.
Shea Langeliers could be even tougher to extend currently than Kurtz. This won't necessarily be because of money, but instead because of his agent. Langeliers is a client of super-agent Scott Boras, who usually has his clients hit the open market to try and get the biggest amount of money possible. This could mean it would be very difficult for the club to extend Shea.
At the same time, Boras has always said that he will do what his client wants, so if Shea is adament that he wants to stay, then perhaps a deal could be reached. The biggest roadblock to this deal wouldn't be the money, but instead the reputation of his agent.
Obviously, both are very important pieces in this A's lineup, and the team will have interest in extending them. While it's unlikely, it's not impossible for the team to strike a deal with at least one of the two.
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I grew up playing baseball, and also enjoyed watching and writing about my favorite team, the A’s. Being a diehard A’s fan from New Jersey is certainly not common, but I love the team and all of the current and former players so much. I currently attend school at Penn State Scranton where I get the opportunity to play college baseball.
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