A's targeting ground balls in Sacramento

Jason Burke | Nov 17, 2024

Sep 7, 2024; Oakland, California, USA; Oakland Athletics pitcher T.J. McFarland (48) throws a pitch against the Detroit Tigers during the seventh inning at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Robert Edwards-Imagn Images / Robert Edwards-Imagn Images

The Athletics have made a few signings since free agency opened up, bringing back T.J. McFarland on a one-year deal, and then adding Jared Johnson in the Nick Allen trade, and signing Tanner Dodson, Matt Krook, and Jason Alexander to minor league deals. All five of these pitchers have one thing in common, and that is that they induce an elite amount of ground ball outs.

With the A's set to embark on a three or four year journey in Sacramento while they wait for their proposed Las Vegas ballpark to get built, there is some uncertainty to how Sutter Health Park will play. The team's pitchers are expecting to give up a few more long balls thanks to it being a minor-league facility.

When asked if the club is taking any precautions to counteract the ballpark factors that will be in play, A's GM David Forst said that how the ballpark is going to play is "in the big bucket of things that are uncertain." Their initial read on the factors is that it's not quite the hitter's park that it has the reputation of being, but they don't expect to have a hard conclusion on how it will play until they are in Sacramento playing games.

Hence, ground ball pitchers to help just in case. One way to limit a potential surge in homers is to keep the ball on the ground.

McFarland, on top of producing a 57.3% ground ball rate, also held a 3.81 ERA and appeared in 79 games with the A's while being a veteran clubhouse leader. Bringing him back for those three reasons made a lot of sense. That ground ball rate was also a top-15 mark among relievers in 2024, ranking in the 97th percentile among all pitchers.

31-year-old Jason Alexander, whom the A's signed recently, made 27 starts in the minor leagues in 2024 in Boston's system, held a 4.42 ERA across 138 1/3 innings, and produced a 50.6% ground ball rate. Anything at or around 50% is elite, and Alexander represents a depth option for the club with some ground ball and innings upside.

Dodson, 27, has struggled with his command in the upper minors, producing a 15.1% walk rate in 2024 while with the Dodgers Triple-A squad. He held a 3.32 ERA with a 4.96 FIP and a 63.2% ground ball rate in 62 1/3 innings. If the A's can help him figure out his command just a little bit, the righty could be a huge weapon out of the bullpen.

Jared Johnson, 23, has some solid pitches to work with, but his command has been rough, leading to double-digit walk rates in the lower minors every year since 2021. On the bright side, he also held a 62.6% ground ball rate in High-A last season across 52 innings. This was a bit of a departure from previous seasons, but is certainly something to keep an eye on as he progresses towards the big-league club.

Finally, there's lefty Matt Krook, who was most recently in the Baltimore Orioles system and has made brief appearances with the Yankees and O's the past two years. This past season the 30-year-old posted a 3.92 ERA with a 4.49 FIP in 43 2/3 innings while also hanging up a 53.1% ground ball rate.

As you can see, the A's are building out their depth with guys that put the ball on the ground at an elite rate, and the fact that the A's are targeting so many of these types of guys so early in the offseason should signal that they're definitely after a certain type of player this winter.