Monday night J.T. Ginn was three outs away from tossing a no-hitter against the Los Angeles Angels on the road, but in the span of six pitches he went from chasing history to walking off the field in defeat. 

The journey to this point hasn't exactly been a straight line. Ginn was acquired by the A's along with Adam Oller from the New York Mets in the Chris Bassitt deal back in 2022. The 26-year-old right-hander made his MLB debut in 2024 — a season that included getting the start in the final game at the Oakland Coliseum — and has been looking to establish himself in the A's rotation since. 

While he was on the A's Opening Day roster for the first time in his career, he was a member of the bullpen for the team's first two turns through the rotation. When the A's sent Luis Morales down to Triple-A, Ginn earned his spot in the starting five, and he's been pitching like the ace A's fans have been waiting on. 

In eight starts, Ginn has racked up 44 1/3 innings while posting a 2.64 ERA with a 1.06 WHIP and a .204 batting average against. In his last three starts, Ginn has gone eight innings twice, totaling 22 innings and a 1.23 ERA. 

Last year, Ginn struggled at home in Sacramento, holding a 6.85 ERA at Sutter Health Park, and a 3.14 ERA on the road. When asked about those splits earlier this season, he mentioned that away ballparks in general just have a natural energy to them, and he's always thrived in those environments. 

"Throughout my whole career, even in college, I've pitched better on the road," Ginn told Athletics Roundtable. "I think that's just a part of me. I like to compete, and that brings out the best in me."

Last season J.T. Ginn was relying heavily on his sinker, throwing it 51.5% of the time overall. This year, that sinker is down to a 36.8% rate, and the righty has introduced a four-seamer that has earned a decent-sized role, up to 13.2%. 

The big change though is that he's not relying on one pitch so heavily, and is letting all five of his pitches get plenty of use. His four-seamer, changeup, slider and cutter all have usage rates between 13.2% and 17.2%, which will keep batters on their toes. 

"I think the biggest thing was how lefties approached me last year, and then trying to adjust and combat that," Ginn said of his decision to switch up how he uses his pitches. "Obviously my sinker is my best weapon, but just using it in the right situations — and not necessarily like saving it, but just knowing when is the best time to use it and then knowing that my other pitches are good too and that I can compete with those in the zone and I'll just keep hitters off-balance.

"Hitters are really good in this league, and if they can zone-in on one pitch, it makes it a lot easier on them." 

Ginn also credits his work in the winter helping to develop his confidence in both the cutter — which he started throwing in 2025 — and the changeup. 

"[The changeup is] the pitch that I've worked on for a while. But going into the offseason, I knew that the four-seam, cutter and changeup were going to be really big for me, so I spent a lot of time focusing on those, and focusing my command with those." 

After Monday night's near no-no that ended in heartbreaking fashion, Ginn took the loss in stride. 

"Just a crazy game we play. I fell behind 2-0, threw a good sinker, and he was waiting on it. He put a good swing on it. Tip your cap to him." 

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