A's Nick Kurtz Having Nearly Identical Rookie Campaign as Houston Astros Slugger

Both players are/were in their age 22 campaigns, but the big difference is that Alvarez had spent four seasons playing in the minor leagues, while Kurtz was in college. The biggest difference there is just getting used to the day-to-day grind of a full season.

Heading into his 87th game, Kurtz had a slight lead in wRC+ with a 181 to Alvarez's 177 his rookie year, and yesterday in Minnesota, Kurtz went 2-for-4 with a walk, a strikeout, and a solo home run, so his wRC+ figures to increase by a bit when the update happens.

Given the numbers, it's impossible to say that one player has been hands-down the better rookie, and your preference will likely be dictated by which team you root for, but here is one more note that could tip the scale in Kurtz's favor.

Since July 26, the day after his four-homer performance in Houston, the A's first baseman has hit just three home runs. He's also been primarily hitting first or second in the lineup since then, as A's manager Mark Kotsay has been trying to get him to see more fastballs. Once he announced himself, pitchers started working around him, and he's seen many fewer pitches to hit.

That has led to a 20.9% walk rate in the 21 games since that breakout performance, and in that span he's hitting .347 (26-of-75), is getting on base at nearly a 50% clip, and is still just outside of a top-5 hitter in baseball. He's so much more than the home runs that he's hit, which is part of why he's so similar to Yordan Alvarez when he's at his best.

Both are players that can collect hits in bunches, and punish a pitcher when he makes a mistake. If you're an A's fan looking for a comp for Kurtz, it may just be Yordan Alvarez.