Oakland A’s: Determining the ideal starting rotation

The front line of the Oakland A’s rotation

Second starter – Jesus Luzardo

One day soon, Jesus Luzardo will be the Oakland A’s Opening Day starter. That time just has not yet come.

Luzardo did show flashes of his potential. He had outings where he was utterly dominant, but also struggled at times. His 4.12 ERA and 59 strikeouts were second on the A’s, but those numbers do not truly capture his inconsistency from throughout the season.

That will be the key for Luzardo going forward. As he continues to progress, he will need to be more consistent from start to start in order to be the ace that the A’s envision. This will happen with experience and coaching, as Luzardo has the raw talent to get there.

Eventually, Jesus Luzardo will be the Oakland A’s ace. That time just has not yet come.

Staff ace – Sean Manaea

Based on his statistics, Sean Manaea may seem to be a strange choice to be the Oakland A’s staff ace for 2021. However, he performed much better as the season progressed.

Manaea was one of the many players to struggle at the beginning of the abbreviated season. While some never found their footing, Manaea was able to after his first four starts of the year. He closed out the season with a 2.77 ERA and a 0949 WHiP in his final 39 innings, striking out 32 batters with just four walks.

That production is similar to how he fared in his return from his shoulder injury in 2019, which leads to the hope that this is the pitcher he can be. A regular offseason, and a relatively normal training camp, could allow Manaea to find that other gear that he seems capable of reaching. It is a bit of a leap of faith, but he has displayed the potential to be a staff ace, albeit in small sample sizes.

Sean Manaea should be the Oakland A’s ace to begin the 2021 season. However, like anything else, these spots can change as the season goes on.