Why is Tyler Nevin the Featured A's Number for Player's Weekend?

Jason Burke | Aug 14, 2024

Jun 24, 2024; Anaheim, California, USA; Oakland Athletics right fielder Tyler Nevin (26) hits a solo home run in the second inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Gather round, boys and girls! Player's Weekend is nearly here, and as a way to join in from the stands, MLB is offering you the chance to purchase team hats with a top player's number on the side. Yankees, you get Juan Soto AND Aaron Judge! Pirates, c'mere, you get Paul Skeenes! And the A's, well, you get Tyler Nevin.

Scrolling through the caps that are currently on sale at MLB Shop, there are so many awesome designs for hats with many of the numbers representing the best players in baseball. Then you scroll to the A's hat and it has the number 26 on the side, and it's listed as a Tyler Nevin hat. He's not even the most famous player to wear the number 26 in the past few seasons.

The question is why Nevin's number was chosen.

No offense to Tyler Nevin, but how is his number the one being used for A's player's weekend hats? Mason Miller was the team's All Star. Brent Rooker is one of the best hitters in baseball (again). Why Nevin? pic.twitter.com/PPKooDJ4X6

— Jason Burke (@ByJasonB) August 14, 2024

Nevin has been okay for the A's this season, but he's really cooled off since his arrival. He has an 89 wRC+ overall, and has racked up -0.2 fWAR on the year. He was claimed off waivers at the beginning of the season, DFA'd by the A's at the end of May only to report to Triple-A Las Vegas, and has been back with the club since the middle of June. Since the beginning of July he has started nine games.

Obviously these hats were ordered awhile ago, but even when he was on his hot stretch, there were other guys that were gaining more headlines than Nevin. Why not Mason Miller, who made a name for himself by shutting down the Yankees in New York? Why not Brent Rooker, who was the team's All Star last season, and has gone on to be one of MLB's best hitters this year?

The answer is likely pretty simple, and it's why A's fans can't have nice things: There was no guarantee that Miller or Rooker would be around past the trade deadline. Either that, or MLB figured A's fans would all have Tyler Nevin fever by this point after his scorching start. "Where is my Tyler Nevin merch?" they would shout.

It would appear that how the A's have operated for decades has now led to a little oopsie daisy.

Baseball fans will point and laugh because the A's have a Tyler Nevin hat while literally every other club has at least a replacement level player representing their team, but they'll be missing the larger point. A's fans have become tired of the roster churn year in and year out, which is part of the reason why they have not been going to games. This is an ownership problem.

Yet, in true Oakland A's fan fashion, they will rally behind Nevin and support the decision that was made, because this isn't Nevin's fault at all. He is just caught in the middle of a game that has been played long before his arrival in Oakland. One that is likely to continue long after he has departed the A's.

Tyler Nevin may not be the best player on the Oakland A's, but he is a grinder, and that is a pretty good representation of what it means to be an Athletic.