Nick Kurtz seen rounding the bases on Tuesday night after hitting his first career grand slam. (Photo: Athletics on X)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

WEST SACRAMENTO — The Athletics needed a breakout game. Since clawing their way out of a disastrous May—where they lost 20 of 21 games—the A’s have been stuck in a middling purgatory. Wins have been hard to come by. Since the first week of May, they’ve only claimed series victories against the Orioles, Royals, and Rays. It’s been tough sledding, to say the least.

Still, there have been bright spots: encouraging moments and emerging players who give fans hope for the future. Many of those standouts were on full display Tuesday night when the A’s routed the Braves 10-1 at Sutter Health Park.

Lawrence Butler’s Home Run Prowess

The A’s offense struck early and often, starting with Lawrence Butler. After a slow start to the season, Butler has become one of the top 10 right fielders in baseball and remains a hopeful All-Star replacement candidate. On Tuesday, he opened the game by launching an inside-the-park home run off the right-center field wall, where the ball caromed toward right, allowing him enough time to circle the bases. It was the A’s first regular-season inside-the-parker since Nick Swisher on June 11, 2006.

“I saw it bounce, and that’s when I was like, ‘maybe I’ve got a chance to get all the way around the bases,’” Butler said postgame.

Manager Mark Kotsay praised Butler for setting the tone early.

“It’s great when the offense gets going early,” Kotsay said. “Obviously for Law, he’s the spark plug, really. I mean, he set the tone tonight with the first at-bat and got the energy going… It’s always great to witness an inside-the-park home run.”

Butler wasn’t done. After walking in his second plate appearance, he crushed a Jesse Chavez 90 mph sinker 423 feet over the center-field wall for a traditional home run, giving the A’s a 10-0 lead in the third. The blast came off the bat at 105.5 mph.

Kotsay believes Butler is worthy of All-Star recognition—especially in his hometown of Atlanta.

“I think for Lawrence and the type of year he’s having right now, he definitely deserves that recognition,” Kotsay said. “What I’ve been impressed with is, yeah, he’s had some slides, but for the most part, he’s been pretty consistent around that .250 area. He’s taking his walks—that shows growth, that shows maturity. And then again tonight, he shows you the ability to go dead center, and that tells you a lot about where he’s at as a hitter.”

A’s Bats Don’t Relent

Butler wasn’t the only one swinging a hot bat Tuesday.

Brent Rooker and Max Schuemann each launched two-run homers in the first inning to stake the A’s to a 5-0 lead. Schuemann’s shot left the bat at 106.7 mph and landed on the clubhouse roof in left field. Rooker’s was a line drive over the left-field wall.

The A’s poured it on again in the second, chasing Braves starter Didier Fuentes after he loaded the bases with no outs. Jesse Chavez came in to relieve him, but he was no match for Nick Kurtz, who crushed a 3-2 changeup 403 feet to right-center for a grand slam. It was Kurtz’s first career slam and his 14th home run since debuting April 21. The ball left his bat at 108.5 mph.

Kotsay praised Kurtz’s development and readiness for the big leagues.

“I think the development is in line with why he was promoted, really—why he didn’t spend a ton of time in the minor leagues,” Kotsay said. “We talked about his approach being advanced, and it really is. His preparation is unbelievable. The focus that he has when he gets here to the field on his routines—it takes younger players some time to understand that. But Nick walked right in and understood it from day one… The power is real.”

Nick Kurtz appears to be a special talent—and one A’s fans have the privilege of watching develop at the big-league level night after night.

Springs Effective Without Best Stuff; Bullpen Finishes the Job

Jeffrey Springs didn’t have his best stuff, but he battled through six innings and held the Braves to just one run on six hits while striking out two.

“I think it went pretty well overall,” Springs said. “Honestly, mechanically and stuff, I wasn’t too happy with how I was moving. Not executing to strike very well from the deep counts. Just one of those nights where you’re kind of fighting yourself from pitch one.”

The bullpen finished things off with three scoreless innings. Justin Sterner handled the seventh and eighth, striking out two.

The ninth belonged to Elvis Alvarado, who has bounced between Triple-A and Sacramento this year with mixed results. On Tuesday, he turned in a crisp, seven-pitch scoreless inning.

“It’s one thing to pitch well at Triple-A,” Kotsay said. “When you get here, the roles are different. His role in Triple-A was more of the back end. You get here, you’ve got to earn that… I want to see an inning like that tonight, and that builds confidence for me as well as for Elvis. I think he’s growing into that… Every pitch matters, and we saw that tonight. That inning is going to continue to show me—and build confidence in having him get that opportunity [in the ninth].”

Wilson Avoids Serious Injury

The A’s also received good news postgame: X-rays on Jacob Wilson’s left hand came back negative.

“We did the X-rays. X-rays were negative, which is a great sign,” Kotsay said. “He did get squared up pretty good, so he’ll probably go day to day, and we’ll just evaluate him tomorrow.”

It’s a huge sigh of relief for both the A’s and Wilson, who is set to start at shortstop for the American League in next week’s All-Star Game in Atlanta.

“Big relief. Sigh of relief for sure,” Wilson said. “Just going into that moment, just the anxiety of waiting the 15, 20 minutes after it happened to just wait to see what it was going to be. Obviously, like I said, nothing’s broken, and it could’ve been a lot worse. So everything’s good.” 

Whether you’re pre-gaming with the Kings or celebrating an A’s win, Cyprus Grille at the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena is your downtown go-to.

⚡Craft cocktails? Check.
🔥Game-day bites? Oh yeah.
🏟️Steps from Golden 1 Center? You bet.

Open daily, Cyprus Grille is serving up local flavor with a front-row seat to the action. Stop by before or after the game—or make it your new downtown hangout.

Cyprus Grille—where fans fuel up.

📍Located inside the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena @ 300 J Street

Happy Hour – 4pm-6pm

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