Athletics Decline Club Options On Jeffrey Springs, Jeff McNeil

The Athletics announced that they have declined club options on left-hander Jeffrey Springs and infielder/outfielder Jeff McNeil. Both players are now free agents.

Neither decision is too shocking. Both players are 34 years old and coming off disappointing seasons. The A’s acquired Springs from the Rays in December of 2024. At the time, their rotation was mostly young and inexperienced. The A’s signed Luis Severino and acquired Springs in the hopes of providing some veteran stability.

Springs was fine enough in his first season with the A’s. He logged 171 innings and posted a 4.11 earned run average. Considering that the club was playing in a hitter-friendly minor league park, that wasn’t too bad. His 19.4% strikeout rate was subpar but his 7.6% walk rate was good. He got a bit of help from a low .255 batting average on balls in play.

Just about everything went in the wrong direction in 2026. His BABIP ticked up closer to average, landing at .278. His strikeout rate dropped to 17.8% and his walk rate climbed to 9%. The dimensions at Sutter Health Park became a problem. He allowed 35 home runs on the year, 23 of those at home. The 35 number was seven more than the previous season despite pitching almost 30 fewer innings. The end result was a 6.18 ERA.

Springs had signed an extension while still with the Rays. That deal ran through 2026 and contained a $15MM club option for 2027. That option had a $750K buyout, making it a $14.25MM decision. The A’s need arms but that would be a hefty price to pay for a 34-year-old who just posted an ERA over 6.00. He will head to the open market in search of a deal elsewhere, ideally in a more pitcher-friendly setting.

The A’s will look for other arms. They project to have a rotation featuring Severino, J.T. Ginn, Gage Jump, Jacob Lopez and Luis Medina. It’s not a strong group. The A’s have trouble signing free agent pitchers because of their current home park, so perhaps they will focus more on the trade block.

McNeil was acquired from the Mets in December of last year. The A’s went into the season with openings at second and third base. There were some internal options for those spots but McNeil had experience at those positions as well as the outfield. The plan was seemingly for him to bounce around based on how the other players were doing.

He ended up being close to an everyday option at second, making 88 starts there and appearing in 104 games in total. But he hit just .264/.313/.368 at the plate. That production translated to a wRC+ of 83, or 17% below average.

Like Springs, McNeil signed an extension with his previous club before joining the A’s. McNeil’s deal also ran through 2026 with a 2027 club option, his valued at $15.75MM. The option had a $2MM buyout. As part of the trade sending him out of Queens, the Mets agreed to cover that $2MM buyout if it were turned down, so perhaps the A’s never really anticipated keeping McNeil for more than a year. His lackluster season only made that more likely.

He will head out into free agency in search of his next club. He will turn 35 in April and his offense has been hovering below league average for most of the past four years. His glovework at second wasn’t rated highly this year either. He might struggle to get major league offers this winter.

For the short term, the A’s still have an opening at second base. In the long term, it’s possible shortstop Jacob Wilson gets moved there once prospect Leo De Vries takes over at short. However, De Vries is only 20, hasn’t yet reached Triple-A, and recently underwent a shoulder surgery that will likely keep him sidelined until the middle of the 2027 season. The A’s could give an internal option like Joshua Kuroda-Grauer a chance to play second in the meantime or could sign a stopgap like McNeil, Jonathan India, Gavin Lux or Isiah Kiner-Falefa.