Elephant Rumblings: Gelof x-rays negative ahead of Opening Day

MLB news roundup

Happy Friday, Athletics Nation!

Well, pie in my face. I thought Mitch Spence would be filling out the A’s Opening Day rotation, but it was Joey Estes that ended up getting the nod. Joey pitched a full five innings yesterday without allowing any home runs, which would be a lot more encouraging were it not for the 11 hits and eight runs he gave up.

Later in the game, Spence followed Estes and Jose Leclerc with two innings in relief and managed to hold the Diamondbacks’ run total to the 11 yielded by his snakebitten teammates. Mitch demonstrated his swing-and-miss capabilities with four strikeouts.

Opening day is less than a week away! The A’s rotation and bullpen are looking pretty set at this point, as is the starting lineup assuming that second baseman Zack Gelof is still good to go after this week’s injury scare. Gelof took a Jack Sewald fastball to the hand on Wednesday, but his x-rays came back negative and manager Mark Kotsay said he thinks Gelof will be fine. Whew.

Gelof could be a bellwether for the A’s this year. He looked like a future All-Star in his 2023 rookie campaign, slashing .267/.337/.504 with a wRC+ of 132, but fell into a deep slump in 2024 with a slash line of .211/.270/.362 and a below-average wRC+ of 82.

If Zack can return to form it will be a huge boost for the A’s, potentially even the difference maker between finishing above or below .500, which some see as a realistic goal for the team to strive for in 2025. The 25-year-old is showing some promise this spring with a 133 wRC+ through 43 plate appearances. However, his K rate is even higher than usual at 37.2%, a clear sign of potential danger.

Fingers crossed for a healthy and productive Zack Gelof in 2025. Have a wonderful weekend, AN.

A’s Coverage:

• A’s drop spring matchup with Diamondbacks 11-3
• A’s Second Baseman Suffers Injury Scare Against Cleveland Guardians
• For Myles, playing against the brothers Naylor a ‘surreal moment’
• Former Kansas City Royals Infielder Optioned By Athletics
• Who Should Start A’s Home Opener in Sacramento Against Chicago Cubs?

MLB News & Interest:

• How MLB’s Top 100 position players stack up, from Juan Soto to Shohei Ohtani ($)
• 36 Veteran Players With Looming Opt-Out Dates
• Braves Sign Alex Verdugo
• Blue Jays’ Shapiro On Guerrero Jr.: “I Think We’re Going To Extend Him”
• The Phillies paid an analytics company millions. Now they’re suing it over ‘loss of competitive advantage’ ($)
• Spring Training hat rankings: Mr. Met in high demand, but do pinstripes work on a hat? ($)
• Today in Baseball History

Best of X:

Roster moves.

The horror (for pitchers).

Oopsie.