Expected Pitchers on Deck For A's Tilt Against Cleveland Guardians

Luis Severino will get the ball first for the A's, but plenty of interesting pitchers are scheduled to follow him, looking to make an impression on the coaching staff

Feb 20, 2026; Mesa, AZ, USA; Athletics pitcher Luis Severino (40) poses for Photo Day at HoHoKam Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images | Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

Spring training is officially underway, and the A's are currently 0-1 after an 11-2 opening loss to the Chicago White Sox on Saturday. The Cleveland Guardians, Sunday's opponent, won both sides of their split-squad games against the Milwaukee Brewers (9-6) and Cincinnati Reds (4-2).

The A's began their schedule by using Jack Perkins as the starter to their spring season, and followed him up with Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang (1.1 IP, hit, ER), who was added to the 40-man roster this winter, and left-hander Wei-En Lin (1 IP, 3 hits, 2 ER, K). Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang is ranked as the A's No. 28 prospect on MLB Pipeline, while Wei-En Lin comes in at No. 19.

As for who will be on the bump for the A's in their home opener at Hohokam, the first guy on the bump will be expected Opening Day starter Luis Severino.

How the A's line up on Sunday against Cleveland

The A's will be led by Severino, but given that this is just his first outing, he's not expected to be on the bump for too long. That said, he is one of the A's players that will be joining the roster of his home country for the World Baseball Classic. Reliever Elvis Alvarado is also slated to join Team Dominican Republic during camp.

Because of his inclusion in the WBC, the A's may be using him a little longer than they typically would at this point, given that he needs to ramp up for the tournament. Jack Perkins threw 26 pitches on Saturday, so we should expect Severino to be above that figure.

Behind Sevvy, the A's will be rolling with Luis Morales, Michael Kelly, Brady Basso, Kade Morris. This is a very interesting mix of arms for the A's to be using.

First up, Morales is potentially another starter for the A's to open the year. He made his MLB debut last season, holding a 3.14 ERA (4.68 FIP) across 10 appearances (nine starts), spanning 48 2/3 innings. His slider is by far his best pitch, and if he's made gains with his heater and changeup this winter, he should be looking good to enter the season in the rotation, as expected.

Michael Kelly is expected to make the A's bullpen, as he's been pretty consistent the past two seasons with the Athletics. Brady Basso dealt with injuries most of last year, but finished with a 2.31 ERA (4.08 FIP) in 11 2/3 innings. He could be in the mix for one of the final spots in the bullpen, as he may be the best left-handed option for the team to consider outside of Hogan Harris.

Kade Morris was acquired from the New York Mets in the Paul Blackburn trade in 2024, and has moved his way up to Triple-A the past two seasons. Morris finished last year with a cumulative 4.38 ERA (4.71 FIP) between Double-A Midland and Triple-A Las Vegas.

Mark Kotsay mentioned earlier in camp that this is the younger guy's chance to leave an impression on the coaching staff, and Sunday against Cleveland will be Morris's opportunity to do just that. If he's pitching well, he could turn into a depth option for the starting rotation over the course of the season. Morris will also be Rule 5 eligible after the season, so this could be a big spring for him.

Some of the other pitchers that are scheduled for a look for the A's are Henry Baez, who was part of the Mason MIller deal, and veteran relief pitcher Joel Kuhnel, whom the A's signed to a minor-league deal this offseason.

Who's on deck for Cleveland?

Sep 13, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Parker Messick (77) throws a pitch against the Chicago White Sox during the first inning at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images | Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

The Guardians will begin Sunday's contest with Parker Messick, who is expected to be followed by Codi Heuer, Will Dion, Franco Aleman and Tommy Mace.

According to the projections over at Roster Resource, none of these arms are projected to crack Cleveland's Opening Day roster as things stand right now. Messick and Aleman are the only two on the 40-man roster, while Heuer is a NRI relief pitcher, and the duo of Dion and Mace are both NRI starting pitchers.

Messick made his MLB debut last season and was terrific at limiting hard contact, finishing with a top-tier hard-hit rate of 29.8%, coupled with a barrel rate of 5.8% and an expected ERA of 3.06. His actual ERA was even lower, at 2.72 over seven starts and 39 2/3 innings.

Fraco Aleman has a 60 grade fastball and slider combo according to FanGraphs, but his command is iffy, and ranked below average (35/40). While the command may not be there, he has struck out 36.6% and 32.6% of the hitters he's faced in Triple-A the past two seasons. The only caveat is that the innings sample was a little small at 22 2/3 in 2024, and then 36 2/3 last year.