Alex Wood has been named the A's Opening Day starter according to Martín Gallegos of MLB.com. This will be Wood's first Opening Day start in what could end up being the last year the team plays at the Coliseum.
The 33-year-old left-hander holds a career 3.74 ERA in his 11-year career, which is part of the reason why the A's targeted him in free agency this winter. Another is that he has a career 6.9% walk rate, which is well below the league average in his time in the big leagues, and a significant drop from the 10.9% that the A's held as a team last year.
The focus for the team this year is going to be on throwing strikes, something that eluded A's pitchers at times in 2023. This spring Wood has walked one batter in 11 1/3 innings while striking out 13. In his last outing against the White Sox, Wood went five innings, gave up four hits, two runs (one earned), struck out six, and didn't allow a free pass.
He has been a veteran presence in camp and seems to be taking a role as a leader in the clubhouse.
It's also worth noting that Wood chose to sign with the A's. Sure, he wanted an opportunity to start and there was a fit with Oakland. But he played right across the Bay last season and was very aware of the noise the fans were making all summer. Under normal circumstances, fans would love the new lefty in the rotation for choosing their team.
Earlier in camp it looked like fellow southpaw JP Sears was lined up to get the Opening Day nod, but this makes sense in terms of setting a tone for the season. Sears was the A's best pitcher last season, and rewarding him was definitely an option. Yet, with the fan's planned boycott of the opener on March 28, it may be a shrewd move to give the start to a veteran that's been named to the All-Star team, has pitched in three separate World Series, and won one.
Manager Mark Kotsay likely wants to avoid the horrific start the team got out to last season, when the club was 6-23 after the first month and was 10-45 in late May. Having a veteran on the mound is likely the right call.
As far as how the rest of the rotation shakes out, the club will presumably switch from righty to lefty, and according to how the arms are lined up after Wood, that would mean Ross Stripling, then JP Sears, and finally Paul Blackburn as the four that have a spot lined up. Each would get a start in the opening series against the Cleveland Guardians.
Joe Boyle is the presumed fifth starter, but has had some command issues of late. Rule 5 draftee Mitch Spence and left-hander Kyle Muller have also been in the mix for that final spot. All three will likely make the team, with Spence and Muller being used as bulk guys out of the bullpen.
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