Fastball

Oakland Athletics Teammates Join Shohei Ohtani in Rare Company, Make History

The Oakland Athletics have not had a great season, but the play of Brent Rooker and Lawrence Butler has been inspiring.

Brady Farkas

Oakland Athletics outfielder Brent Rooker (25) celebrates with teammates after hitting a two-run home run against the Chicago White Sox during the fifth inning at Guaranteed Rate Field on Sept 15.
Oakland Athletics outfielder Brent Rooker (25) celebrates with teammates after hitting a two-run home run against the Chicago White Sox during the fifth inning at Guaranteed Rate Field on Sept 15. / Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images
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The Oakland Athletics enter play on Tuesday at 65-86 on the season, good enough for fourth place in the American League West.

Despite the A's poor record, they have received inspiring play from a multiple sources; namely Brent Rooker and Lawrence Butler. The outfield duo has made some baseball history - and joined Shohei Ohtani on a very short list.

Per @JayHayKid of the "Baseball is Dead" podcast:

3 players in MLB this season have had 63-game stretches featuring .300+ BA, 1.000+ OPS, 19+ HR and 8+ SB.

Brent Rooker, Lawrence Butler and Shohei Ohtani.

Lawrence Butler and Brent Rooker are the first pair of teammates to have 63-game stretches featuring .300+ BA, 1.000+ OPS, 19 HR and 8 SB in the same season since Francisco Lindor and José Ramírez did so for Cleveland in 2018.

The 29-year-old Tennessee native is hitting .302 this season with a .371 on-base percentage. He has popped 38 home runs and driven in 109 runs.

As for Butler, he has burst onto the scene this year. The 24-year-old, who was a sixth-round pick of the A's in the 2018 draft, is hitting .270 with a .326 on-base percentage. He's got 21 homers and 55 RBI in just 371 at-bats.

The A's will take on the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday night at Wrigley Field. First pitch is scheduled for 7:40 p.m. ET as Mitch Spence (Athletics) pitches against Jordan Wicks (Cubs).

Spence is 7-9 this year with a 4.33 ERA while Wicks is 2-3 with a 5.27 ERA.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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