An A’s fan favorite who threw his last game in the green and gold in 2024
Day five of our 2024 player review series takes us to our first starting pitcher, Paul Blackburn. Blackburn dazzled early in the season and looked to be the ace of the A’s staff but just as he slowed down the injury bug also deteriorated his season. Blackburn would then end the season in New York as he was dealt at the trade deadline ending his seven-year tenure with the team.
How was he acquired?
Blackburn was acquired on November 12, 2016, in a trade with the Seattle Mariners that sent first baseman Danny Valencia to the Pacific Northwest. Blackburn entered 2024 as the longest tenured Athletic.
What were the expectations?
An impactful starter when healthy and a former all-star for the A’s back in 2022, Blackburn was expected to help lead the A’s staff which consisted of young arms and new faces early. Blackburn took a minor step back in 2023 as he dealt with injuries and the birth of his child but it was still enough to land him amongst the A’s pitching staff behind veterans like Alex Wood and Ross Stripling. Blackburn wouldn’t waste much time early in the season proving he deserved to pitch over both, however.
2024 Results
Blackburn’s 2024 campaign had a little bit of everything. His first four starts saw no earned runs allowed over 22 1⁄3 innings but as soon as that streak broke on April 17, Blackburn would allow 18 earned over his next four starts shooting his ERA up to 4.11. Blackburn then suffered a stress reaction on his right foot that landed him on the 60-day injured list on May 11th and sidelined him for two full months.
Blackburn returned from the IL on July 26th but it’d be his last start as an Athletic. He was traded to the New York Mets during the deadline in exchange for 22-year-old righty Kade Morris. Blackburn made just five starts with the Mets as he dealt with more injuries and as a result, he never made a roster in the Mets improbable National League Championship Series run.
Blackburn finished the season a combined 5-4 with a 4.66 ERA, 59 strikeouts and 76 hits in 75.1 innings. His better days were certainly in the green and gold as he posted a 4-2 record and .233 opponents average in his nine starts.
2025 Outlook
After signing a one-year deal to avoid arbitration with the A’s back in January, Blackburn is still under contract with the Mets and won’t become a free agent until after the 2025 season. And with proven arms like Luis Severino, Jose Quintana and Sean Manaea all hitting free agency in Queens it’s likely that Blackburn could be apart of the Mets starting staff come April 4, 2025.
With a rich injury history, however, and a smaller team margin for error now that the Mets took the eventual World Series Champion Los Angeles Dodgers to six games in the NLCS, the pressures on for Blackburn if he can’t piece together a healthy and solid 2025.