A's Land Three Top 100 Prospects

Sep 20, 2024; Oakland, California, USA; Oakland Athletics shortstop Jacob Wilson (5) throws to first during the eighth inning against the New York Yankees at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Bob Kupbens-Imagn Images
Sep 20, 2024; Oakland, California, USA; Oakland Athletics shortstop Jacob Wilson (5) throws to first during the eighth inning against the New York Yankees at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Bob Kupbens-Imagn Images / Bob Kupbens-Imagn Images
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With the 2025 season right around the corner, it's time for outlets to begin unveiling their top-100 prospect rankings, and that is just what Baseball America did this week. The Athletics, a team expecting to be playing meaningful games late in the season, landed three prospects on the list.

The first two should come as no surprise. At No. 34 overall is last year's No. 4 overall selection, Nick Kurtz. The first baseman was the top player on the team's board when preparations began for the MLB Draft at this time last year, and he remained in that spot when it was time to make a selection.

The 21-year-old is a non-roster invitee this spring, and while he didn't play in too many games in pro ball, he sure made an impression. Coming out of college, he was seen as an advanced bat that could move quickly. The A's started him off in A Ball with the Stockton Ports along with a number of other draftees to get his feet wet.

In seven games, he hit .400 with a .571 OBP and four home runs. The A's quickly moved him up the organizational ladder, skipping High-A Lansing entirely and sending him to Double-A Midland. He played in just five games with the RockHounds, hitting .308 with a .400 OBP, before an injury ended his season early. He recovered in time to get into 13 games in the Arizona Fall League, where he yet again mashed.

In his 12 games during the regular season, Kurtz walked 12 times and struck out on ten occasions, which is right in line with the type of performance he put up in college. In the AFL that switched up a little bit with nine walks and 16 strikeouts, so that will be something to keep an eye on in 2025.

There is a chance that Kurtz could be fast-tracked to the big leagues and end up in Sacramento in the second half of the season.

The other non-surprise here is Jacob Wilson, whom the A's took with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft. Baseball America has him at No. 38. While he is on the list now, he has made his MLB debut and it's only a matter of time before he plays enough to graduate from prospect consideration.

In his first full pro season, Wilson made brief appearances in both Midland and Triple-A Las Vegas, playing in a total of 48 games while hitting above .400 in that time, leading to his promotion to the big leagues on the other side of the All-Star break. He suffered an injury in his debut and ended up missing a little over a month.

When he returned in late August, he was the team's starting shortstop, which is going to be his role for the team in 2025.

With the A's, he ended up playing in 28 games and collecting 103 plate appearances, and by the standard he set in the minors, he struggled. Wilson hit .250 with a .314 OBP, with two doubles and two triples. His calling card has been his bat control, and that stayed true in his first taste of the bigs, striking out just ten times in his 103 plate appearances, good for a 9.7% strikeout rate.

This offseason Wilson has been tasked with adding some muscle to help him not only offensively, but also to help withstand a full 162-game season. He is also projected to be the A's top overall player this upcoming season, which is saying something given some of the talent on the roster.

The final top-100 A's prospect comes in at No. 86, and it's outfielder Colby Thomas, another non-roster invitee. Last season he slugged 31 homers while swiping 15 bags in the upper minors, putting himself in the conversation to be with the A's at some point this upcoming season. It would appear as though there could be room for him in left in the future, though Seth Brown and Miguel Andujar are currently slotted at the position.

The one knock on Thomas is that he struck out 142 times in 575 plate appearances, good for a 24.7% rate overall, but it was up to 30.3% in his 73 games with the Aviators. With a strong spring and a good start to the regular season, he could be in Sacramento sooner rather than later, especially if there's an opening due to injury.

The A's farm system is looking pretty good, and has lots of talent throughout, though these three are the best of the bunch entering camp.


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Jason Burke
JASON BURKE

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.