Oakland A's Top Pick Nick Kurtz Has the Tools and the Mindset for Success

Jason Burke | Jul 15, 2024

Jun 19, 2023; Omaha, NE, USA; Wake Forest Demon Deacons first baseman Nick Kurtz (8) celebrates after defeating the LSU Tigers at Charles Schwab Field Omaha. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports / Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports

Wake Forest's Nick Kurtz was the first person on the Oakland A's prep list when the team met in January to begin discussing this year's Draft. A's Director of Scouting Eric Kubota told reporters following Day 1 of the MLB Draft, "[Kurtz] was the No. 1 pick on out board then, and he was still number one on our board [today]."

It's not tough to see why. The 6-foot-5, 21-year-old first baseman has a knack for controlling the zone and has some significant pop in his bat, giving him a unique combination of skills in this year's class that landed him atop the A's board. Kurtz hit .306 with a .531 OBP this season, along with 21 home runs. Arguably the most impressive skill was his ability to draw walks, racking up 78 of 'em, compared to just 42 strikeouts.

Another trait that really stood out to Kubota and the A's was that Kurtz has "advanced baseball knowledge." In all of the A's talks with draft prospects, only a handful of the top hitters in this class could talk about hitting the way that Kurtz was able to talk about his approach and what he's trying to do at the plate. Kurtz reminded Kubota of former A's first baseman, and fellow lefty bat, Matt Olson. "That's the easy comparison for us to make."

The way Kurtz described his approach was simple, "I hate to strike out. I take it personally when I do strike out."

While his strikeout rate isn't quite as low as last year's number one, Jacob Wilson, it's still pretty impressive for a guy that has power and controls the zone as well as he does.

MLB Pipeline grades out Kurtz's tools like this: His hit tool got a 60, power rated at 65, his running ability was slightly below average at 40, his arm was a touch above average at 50, and his fielding was also a solid 60, giving him an overall score of 60.

Shortly after he was selected by the A's, we asked him what he felt his best tool was, given that he excels in a few different areas.

"I wish there was a tool but that mixes contact and power. I think that's what I do best. I can do a little bit of both. I don't lose too much contact when I do try to hit for power. That's one thing that's really important to me. I mean, you can't just hit a bunch of home runs and not be able to make contact otherwise. I think you need to do a little bit of it all. You don't gotta be absolutely great at both of them, it's just really hard to do in baseball. It's a hard game. But to be able to do both of those pretty good and have a little bit more power is probably where I think I'm at in what I do best."

As for his plate discipline, he's obviously worked at it during his time at Wake Forest, but it was also something that came naturally to the A's first rounder.

"I don't like hitting pitches that aren't what I like to hit. But when you think about it in very simple terms, what they're trying to do is throw strikes and get you out, and what you're trying to do is hit the strikes. So if you're gonna swing at balls, you're only helping them out. Another thing on top of that is the whole goal is to get on base and score runs and help your team win. Walking is an easy way to do that.

"And sometimes you get to [walk] for free, so I'm always gonna take those when I get the chance."

You can see why the A's were so impressed with Kurtz, not only by the numbers he's put up in his time at Wake Forest, but also with how he approaches each plate appearance.

Kurtz underwent shoulder surgery at the end of his freshman year two years ago, but he said that he's all good now.

The first baseman also spoke about having a consistent approach each and every day, knowing that he'll have some 2-for-20 streaks followed by a 12-for-20 streak. "You just gotta stick with it and be consistent."

This is something that has been preached in the A's clubhouse the last two seasons, and one current Oakland player that sticks out for preaching consistency is Brent Rooker, who just so happens to be having a second consecutive monster season.

Some guys have the right tools, and some guys have the right mindset. Kurtz definitely has both. He should be a very interesting prospect for the A's moving forward.