Jeff McNeil Trade Has Transformed the A's Lineup

The A's have mashers in their lineup that get plenty of attention. Nick Kurtz smashed 36 homers in less than a full season. Brent Rooker has hit at least 30 homers for the third straight season. Shea Langeliers topped 30 for the first time in his career, putting up 31. Tyler Soderstrom broke out for 25 of his own. Even Lawrence Butler, in a down year, had 20 bombs.

The point is that these A's can bash.

McNeil has some power, but not like those guys. His main skill is more from the Jacob Wilson school of hitting, which is making lots of contact.

While those rates don't look terribly close on the surface, it's more about where they rank among all players. Wilson's whiff% ranked in the 99th percentile, while McNeil's was in the 89th. When it came to strikeouts (or the lack of them) Wilson was in the upper upper echelon, ranking in the 100th percentile. McNeil isn't too far back in the 94th.

Having these two guys in the lineup for the majority of the season should make it incredibly difficult for opposing pitchers most days. Both of these guys can spoil pitches at will, which will drive up pitch counts, and perhaps even lead to some frustration on the mound that could end up helping the sluggers in the middle of the order.

Contact and Power Bats

There will also be days where Ibáñez is in the starting lineup, and his whiff rate was 18.5%, while his strikeout rate was 13.5%. Those are each a slight step back from McNeil, but remain in the upper tier of all big-league hitters.

Those three bats combined could give manager Mark Kotsay some interesting lineup decisions to make, with how he wants to disperse his contact guys mixed in with the power bats. McNeil being a left-handed bat also gives the A's a little more flexibility with how to distribute those bats with a righty-heavy roster.

While it's looking as though Max Muncy is the clear frontrunner for the A's third base opening this spring, another option for the team to consider is Darell Hernaiz, who has taken big steps forward with his game the past two seasons. His whiff% (in 197 plate appearances) was 19.3%, with a strikeout rate of 12.2%.

There isn't necessarily a way to get all four of these players in a starting lineup together, unless McNeil travels to the outfield, but this type of batter being in the A's clubhouse isn't by mistake. This could also lead to the A's offense causing a lot of headaches for the opposition this season.

For more comprehensive Athletics coverage, follow us on X, @InsideTheAs or head on over to our Facebook page and give it a like!