Coming into the weekend series with the Colorado Rockies, the Athletics didn't have a starter announced for Saturday's game. After Friday's 6-4 win extended their win streak to three games, manager Mark Kotsay announced that right-hander Joey Estes will take the mound for the A's in Las Vegas. 

For Estes, this will be his first start with the A's since a three-inning outing in Colorado sent him to Triple-A Las Vegas, where he stayed for most of the 2026 campaign. This outing will provide him another chance against a similar Rockies lineup, but in a (slightly) less run-friendly environment. 

The A's brought Estes up on June 9 after the wild 15-14 game against the Milwaukee Brewers to begin the homestand. The team needed a fresh arm, and with Estes slated to start on Tuesday anyway, he was both rested and ready. 

Turns out the A's haven't needed him yet, so he'll be the one tapped to fill the open spot in the rotation. In the minors this season, Estes has gone 2-6 with a 5.95 ERA in 12 starts. He's also posted an 8.27 ERA when pitching at Las Vegas Ballpark. 

For the A's, this is likely more of a scenario where the righty has about 100 pitches for them to deploy, and using them at the beginning of a game instead of waiting for the perfect situation to deploy him is likely what led to this decision. With the off-day on Thursday, the A's could have chosen to just skip the open spot. 

With the return of Civale, in addition to Jeffrey Springs, Gage Jump, J.T. Ginn and Jack Perkins in the rotation already, this would appear to be a one-and-done start for Estes. 

One of the A's most consistent arms this season has been veteran righty Aaron Civale, who is 5-2 with a 4.20 ERA on the year. His last two starts before landing on the IL bumped his ERA from 2.70 to where it is now, though he was dealing with some right shoulder tendinitis at that point.

His biggest asset for the A's has been that eight of his 11 starts have lasted between five and 5 2/3 innings. That's consistency, and the ability to eat enough innings without taxing the bullpen too much. 

With Elvis Alvarado looking like a closer candidate along with Hogan Harris, the relief arms should start falling into their natural roles shortly. Having a guy like Civale that can limit the exposure of those arms every fifth day is an important role on a team hoping to contend. 

He'll be a welcome addition back to the rotation on Wednesday when he takes the mound in Sacramento against the Pittsburgh Pirates. 

The next four weeks include a series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at home at the end of June, but otherwise, this is a stretch of schedule that the A's could make their move in the American League. Having those steady innings out of the rotation will be crucial to keeping the bullpen fresh, and giving the green and gold its best chance at collecting wins.