The A's Most Underrated Signing This Off-Season

Among the A's moves this winter, landing this reliever could be the most underrated of the bunch.

Apr 7, 2025; Detroit, Michigan, USA; New York Yankees baseball hats and gloves in the dugout out in the eighth inning against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: David Reginek-Imagn Images | David Reginek-Imagn Images

Although it's still January with plenty of time to make more moves, the A's have had a bit of a quiet offseason. The team made a small splash in the trade market when they landed veteran second baseman Jeff McNeil from the Mets. The move gave the A's a good name to add to a stacked infield that already includes two superstars in Nick Kurtz and Jacob Wilson.

Earlier in the offseason, the A's made another smaller move when they signed veteran right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. to a one-year deal. The 34-year-old will join a relatively inexperienced bullpen, and could have a big role for the club in the upcoming season.

On the surface, it seems like a small depth addition to the team's bullpen. His 4.84 ERA in 2025 certainly won't get people excited about the signing, but his advanced stats suggest he could have a good year in 2026.

The A's will be playing their 2026 season in a minor league site in West Sacramento, as they did last year. The stadium proved to be fairly hitter-friendly, and the team will be looking for pitchers to keep the ball on the ground to reduce the many long balls given up.

Not only was Mark Leiter Jr. extremely efficient at keeping the ball on the ground, he was also one of the best pitchers in the league at limiting hard hits. His hard hit percentage of 33.3% was in the 94th percentile of all MLB pitchers, and his 87.2 miles per hour in average exit velocity was in the 92nd percentile.

Interestingly enough, in 2024, he was still a groundball pitcher, but struggled with hard hit percentage, where his 40% put him in the 38th percentile of all pitchers. Because he was a bit unlucky and was able to limit damage, he should still be a solid arm for the A's bullpen.

Another reason that he could prove to be one of the more underrated signings this offseason is due to the innings he'll get. The A's arm barn features Hogan Harris, Michael Kelly, Elvis Alvarado, and Tyler Ferguson, among others. There's not much big league experience in those players, and because of that, there's going to be a chance for Leiter Jr. to earn himself high leverage innings.

As mentioned, the offseason is still young. The team could still bring on one of the many veteran starters still looking for homes in free agency. Chris Bassitt, Justin Verlander, Zack Littell, and even Framber Valdez are among the top names available, and as spots on other teams fill, their asking prices could become more reasonable for the A's to sign.

Assuming the A's don't add another veteran arm to the staff, Leiter Jr. will certainly have a big job in mentoring the younger players and using his MLB experience to help the young staff this upcoming season.

What seemed like such a small depth signing could pan out into a solid arm in the league if he continues pitching how he did last season and gets a little luck on his side.