A's Fire Pitching Coach Scott Emerson Heading into Second Half

The Athletics announced on Monday that they have dismissed pitching coach Scott Emerson. Bullpen coach Dan Hubbs will serve as interim pitching coach for the remainder of the 2026 season. A new bullpen coach will be announced after the break.

It was obvious the A's needed to make a change somewhere. They rank 29th in MLB in team ERA with a 5.24 (4.95 FIP), ahead of just the Colorado Rockies. The team as a whole has also dropped nine straight and 17 of 20. 

"It's been tough in all facets, really," manager Mark Kotsay said before Sunday's game. "We'd like to be closer in the division than we are, but we haven't killed ourselves through this. But we've definitely made it more challenging."

Part of the reason for those struggles is that they are now playing not in Oakland, where the foul territory was a pitcher's best friend, but in Sacramento, where the ball flies. Pitchers have said it feels like if they make a mistake, it turns into a home run. 

The combination of a 21.5% strikeout rate that ranks 20th and a 37.5% ground ball rate that ranks 30th is just one reason the pitching staff has struggled so much this season. Batters are making contact, and when they do, it tends to be in the air.

Add in a 9.8% walk rate that ranks 24th, and the picture gets worse. Not only is more contact turning into fly balls, but the pitching staff is also putting extra runners on base for those fly balls to drive in.

To start July, the A's hold a 7.07 ERA (6.49 FIP) and have gone 1-9. They had to make a change of some sort after last season's 1-20 stretch, and it was Emerson who was dismissed. 

Emerson took over the role midseason from Curt Young on June 15, 2017. That A's team ranked 25th in ERA with a 4.83 (at the spacious Coliseum) and a 4.41 FIP and was just 27-38 at that point. They would go 48-49 the rest of the way with a similar 4.57 ERA (4.67 FIP) that ranked 18th. 

Emerson was named the A's bullpen coach after the 2014 season, and had been in the organization since 2002 when he joined as the pitching coach for the Modesto Nuts. He was with the Stockton Ports in 2005 when Dallas Braden was coming up through the system. The A's broadcaster shared his thoughts on today's dismissal on social media. 

The A's season will resume on Friday, July 17 at home against the Washington Nationals. So far this month, the Nationals have been the best-hitting team in baseball, posting a 148 wRC+ with 24 home runs while batting .279 with a .366 OBP. 

The A's have not only ranked last in pitching this month, but also in offensive performance, posting a 65 wRC+ (100 is league average). 

Their first series out of the break will be a big test to see which direction the team will be heading in the second half.