Oakland Athletics’ Newest Starter Aaron Brooks Has A Lot To Prove

The Oakland Athletics acquired a handful of top-tier prospects leading up the July 31 trade deadline, but they also received a starting pitcher who has already been inserted into the A’s rotation. Even though he is just 25 years old and has only started one game in the major leagues, the Athletics believe that this player is ready to be their fifth starter in the rotation. Let’s take a look at Oakland’s newest starting pitcher Aaron Brooks.

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Brooks came to Oakland from the Kansas City Royals in the Ben Zobrist trade on July 28. Even though he was the lesser prized player gained in the deal, Brooks was one of the only A’s acquisitions that has experience pitching in the MLB. This Saturday will be his first start with the Athletics as well as the second start of his major league career.

Unfortunately, Brooks is not as exciting as some of the other players acquired by Oakland prior to this year’s trade deadline. He was a ninth round pick in 2011 out of Cal State San Bernandino. He is an average four or five starter who has four pitches under his belt. Even though Brooks has a strong arm, some believe that he could find more success as a relief pitcher.

After five years in the minor leagues, Brooks has an average ERA of 4.21, which is not that impressive. One upside is that Brooks does throw a lot of strikes. This season in Triple-A, Brooks has struck out 92 batters in 106.2 innings pitched. However, when he is not throwing strikes, Brooks does also tend to give up a lot of home runs and multi-base hits.

Brooks definitely has a lot of prove on Saturday. Oakland Athletics’ fans have been extremely skeptical about GM Billy Beane’s recent trade moves and this is the first opportunity to see one of these new acquisitions perform. If Brooks is not effective on the mound, there is a strong possibility he could be booed off the field.

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