The A's manager says firsthand experience at altitude changed how he evaluates Triple-A arms — and hinted at potential development detours ahead
Ahead of Jeffrey Springs' start on Friday, A's manager Mark Kotsay was candid before the game, saying that the struggles he witnessed from his big-league arms at Las Vegas Ballpark has made him completely change course on how he judges the performances of the Triple-A guys.
"Being there and watching it, experiencing it firsthand, I realize there's a lot of challenges to that ballpark that they encounter."
Following that statement, Athletics Roundtable mentioned that this could be a hint at a potential change of course from the team's philosophy on how to bring along minor leaguers.
One course of action could be to have pitchers skip Triple-A entirely. It's also given data that may not be completely accurate closer to sea level with those velo spikes.
Matt Krook, who was called up on Sunday, said before the game, "it seemed like guys were throwing a lot harder there versus on the road for whatever reason." He also mentioned that he had to adjust his arsenal when he was pitching at home.
"Some of my pitches just don't move the same. So you gotta not pitch around guys, but be a little more fine with stuff when you're there for sure."
Krook held a 2.12 ERA in home games in Las Vegas this season, while on the road he had a 5.54. A deeper look under the hood suggests he was pitching into and out of trouble consistently with a higher WHIP (1.47 to 1.31) at home, and a much higher batting average against (.254 to .170) at home as well.
I asked Kotsay whether this new in-person intel would impact the pipeline for prospects, perhaps going from Double-A Midland to Sacramento and skipping Vegas entirely. He joked, "that's a David question," referring to A's GM David Forst.
Kotsay then laid out some other ways this data could end up being represented.
"There's obviously discussions that take place about the pitching development and things that we can do to help improve results in Vegas. The biggest thing that I noticed while we were there is the velo spikes, which, if you've got velo guys, that might be a benefit to have them there.
"The cutter plays better than a riding fastball, so there will obviously be things that we look at. One of those things could be, like you said, pitching in Double-A and keeping them out of Triple-A. But that's not something that this organization has done traditionally, and it would be a big challenge, I think, to get the decision makers on board, which is fine.
"There is something about pitching in AAA and going through the development process step by step that guys benefit from as well, getting to the big leagues."
This is all very useful intel, but the one problem here is that the A's could develop guys with tremendous velocity and a great cutter at altitude in an open-air facility, but what happens when those same pitchers get called up to the big leagues and they lose a couple of ticks on the heater, or the cutter isn't moving like it typically does?
This is the balancing act that the A's front office is going through now, and the looming question is what kinds of impacts could this data have when the A's arrive on The Strip in 2028? They'll be a little below the level of the current Vegas Ballpark in the new facility and it will be domed, so how much of that information will even be useful at home in two years?
The A's know that there is an issue here, and the answer may not have one cookie-cutter solution. Some pitchers (velo guys) could use the extra time in Triple-A to gain more experience. Other types of pitches may be better served not trying to figure out how to make their breaking balls move at altitude when it's a skill that could only be useful at that ballpark.
The A's won't know how the new ballpark will play until they get some games in there, and given what we all witnessed during the Las Vegas Series, this has to be a big question for the front office.
I also asked Kotsay if there are some positive effects that can come out of moving along the route they're currently on and promoting their top arms to Triple-A to have them struggle a little bit and have to overcome the elements.
"It builds a stronger person, right? Any type of adversity, any type of challenges make you stronger. It's not easy to go through those at the time, but I think when you, when you do experience adversity and you get through it, there's a greater sense of accomplishment at the end of the day."
Some adversity can be useful, but adversity just for the sake of it can also derail a career.
JOIN Athletics Roundtable to discuss the latest news with our staff, and fans like you!
