How Lawrence Butler's Injury Could Shake Up A's Outfield

On Friday, the Athletics announced that their outfielder, Lawrence Butler, had a successful surgery to repair his right patellar tendon. It was announced that Butler played through the injury during the 2025 season and will now undergo a lengthy rehab this offseason, in hopes of being ready for the 2026 season.

Here is the full press release from the club this afternoon: "Lawrence Butler underwent successful surgery on his right patellar tendon today with Dr. Mike Banffy at the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopedic Center in Los Angeles. Dr. Banffy performed a partial tendon tear repair and debridement of chronic scar tissue. Lawrence also received a PRP injection into his left patella tendon, under ultrasound guidance, to address chronic tendonitis.     

"Butler will rehab throughout the off-season in preparation for Spring Training 2026."

The outfielder cashed in last off-season, after he agreed to a 7-year deal with the A's worth $65.5 million. This came after he posted a .943 OPS with 20 home runs in the second half of the 2024 season.

Although the 2025 season didn't go as well for Butler, he still quietly posted a 20-20 season with 21 home runs and 22 stolen bases. His other stats were a little bit underwhelming, but after this surgery and his long rehab ahead, the hope is that he'll be feeling 100% again during the 2026 season.

The press release did not say that Butler is expected to return for Spring Training, which is typically something they'll add in when it's the case. This likely means that the timeline for his return is just uncertain at this point. If the team is without one of their everyday bats in Butler, they'll have to find a way to replace his production.

The team deployed rookie outfielder Colby Thomas in center field for 16 games, and he also accrued 23 games in right field. Denzel Clarke is good to go heading into this offseason, so he should be the team's centerfielder, and the team could have Thomas platoon with someone like Carlos Cortes in right until Butler is healthy.

Notably, Thomas posted a .894 OPS against southpaws. The team expected him to hit well against lefties, but nobody expected him to have an OPS just shy of .900 against them in his rookie season.

Cortes was great for the team when he was given his opportunities. He batted .309 with an .866 OPS in 94 at-bats, and only really got looks against right-handed pitchers. A's manager Mark Kotsay only gave Cortes five at-bats against left-handed pitching, meaning the team really only viewed him as a platoon bat with the way their roster was constructed.

If the A's could match up Cortes' .866 OPS against right-handed pitching and Thomas' .894 OPS against left-handed pitching, the team would actually have some really good production in the spot. The team also has Tyler Soderstrom, JJ Bleday, and Brent Rooker as potential options to man the corner outfield spots.

If the A's decide they need more help than what they have in-house, they could explore the trade markets, or enter free agency, looking to bring back someone like Miguel Andujar. A's GM David Forst has talked about potentially getting him back this off-season, and if they think Lawrence Butler could miss some of the 2026 season, there's a chance Miguel Andujar could be back in Sacramento.

The team is obviously hoping to have Butler back in the lineup for the start of the season, but it's good to know they'll have solid options if he isn't quite ready to go.