Jacob Lopez's Struggles Put A's Rotation in a Tough Spot
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The A's have scored 62 runs this season, good for an average of 4.42 runs per game. 23 of those runs have been scored in Jacob Lopez's last two starts, with the A's putting up 12 runs on Sunday against the Houston Astros, and then another 11 yesterday against the New York Mets.
Through three starts the left-hander has racked up 13 1/3 innings of work to the tune of a 7.43 ERA. In that span he has given up 16 hits, 13 walks and struck out 11, landing him with a .291 batting average against and a 2.18 WHIP. The A's are still 2-1 in his starts thanks to the offense.
But if the A's bats weren't clobbering the ball in his last two starts, would a roster move be more imminent? Luis Morales was similarly struggling, and last Saturday he gave up eight hits and five earned runs across three innings and walked six in the process. He also didn't record a single strikeout.
There are reasons why Morales' demotion to Triple-A Las Vegas made sense, like manager Mark Kotsay saying that he wasn't attacking the zone after getting hit a little bit early. His emergence last season also had a couple of signs that caused a little doubt that he'd be ready to go heading into 2026.
While he posted a 3.14 ERA across 48 2/3 innings, he also held a 4.68 FIP and an 85.2% left-on-base rate, which were both signs that pointed towards some regression this season.
Is Lopez next?
Given that the A's want pitchers that will attack the zone and limit the traffic on the bases, Lopez holding a 2.18 WHIP with a 19.11% walk rate and throwing strikes at a 56% clip early on aren't great signs. If these trends continue, then it's certainly fair to expect another move to be made in the A's rotation, perhaps swapping Lopez with Jack Perkins on the roster.
The one difference for Lopez compared to Morales is that he's still be able to provide some innings, and has been progressing further into games each time out. He started with four innings against Atlanta, then upped it to 4 1/3 versus Houston, and finally five frames against the Mets.
On Saturday he was also fairly effective, giving up a single run in the first, and working out of a bases loaded jam in the third. In the fifth he gave up a single to Francisco Lindor and then Bo Bichette's first homer as a Met, which made it 7-3 A's.
Still, given the lead the A's had, Kotsay sent him back out for the sixth, and he gave up a deep fly that Denzel Clarke nearly made a terrific play on, but ended up knocking it just over the fence for a solo homer. Lopez then walked Carson Benge and was pulled from the contest. Benge would come around to score.
If he'd been pulled after five without starting the sixth, he would have still finished with five innings of work, but with just six hits, three earned runs and two walks allowed, along with five strikeouts. That line looks a lot better than seven hits, five earned runs and three walks in the same span.
Part of his early struggles could be because of his late start to spring, giving him less time to tinker ahead of the season. He's sort of figuring things out on the fly.
The A's could also be more patient with him given the dominance he showed over a longer stretch last season (92 2/3 innings), and know that they have the offense to weather some storms on occasion. If Lopez is able to provide five to six frames consistently, but at the same time is giving up three or four runs, that may be a deal the A's are willing to live with.
Getting those innings out of the fifth starter is important, because it'll keep the bullpen fresher, and not have a lasting effect where guys have to pick up extra outs every fifth day.
For now, it would appear as though Lopez is safe in the rotation, as long as he keeps making those minor improvements each time out, and continues to eat up enough innings.
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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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