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Elephant Rumblings: Athletics select Carlos Cortes, immediately option him

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Morning everyone!

The Athletics’ made a low-key move yesterday afternoon, selecting the contract of outfield prospect Carlos Cortes from the Triple-A Las Vegas Aviators while transferring right-handed reliever Grant Holman to the 60-day injured list:

It’s not the selection of Cortes to the 40-man roster that’s strange. It’s the fact that he was then immediately optioned back to the Aviators, essentially just taking the 40-man roster spot of Holman. That’s not something you see everyday, and Cortes remains with Las Vegas as of this morning.

Now 28, Cortes’ professional career began back in 2018 after being selected by the New York Mets with the fifth pick in the 3rd round (83rd overall). The Mets were clearly enamored with the South Carolina outfielder after drafting him in the 20th round just two years prior. His first couple of years in the low minors were decent, if unspectacular. He displayed his strength in the strike zone but saw his power drop off considerably in pro ball.

After six seasons in the Mets’ minor league system (plus one season overseas during the 2020 COVID crisis), Cortes finally found himself hitting minor league free agency, and he ended up signing with the A’s on a minor league deal way back in November, hoping to work himself into the crowded Athletics outfield mix. He’d have some big names to leapfrog and outperform but the rebuilding A’s were as good a spot for him to land as anywhere.

Cortes’ first season in the Athletics’ pipeline has been nothing short of spectacular. The lefty-swinging outfielder has slashed an incredible .321/.418/.603 with 16 home runs and 73 RBI’s in just 299 plate appearances. Perhaps even more impressive when looking at his stat line this year is his identical 41 walks and 41 strikeouts. Even when considering the ballpark he’s played his home games in this season, he’s still sporting an incredible 140 wRC+, which as a reminder takes into account both the league he’s been playing in and the hitters haven that is his home ballpark.

Any way you slice it, Cortes has been one of the Aviators’ best offensive players this season down on the farm. He’s been strong against both left-handed and right-handed pitchers this season so a platoon role wouldn’t be the most obvious fit. He’s not especially fast so a pinch-running role is out of the question, and by all reports he’s merely average in the field. He’s going to need to hit if he wants to stick in the majors, and that’s what he’s been doing down in Triple-A all season long.

He’s been especially hot as of late, hitting like a man determined to make his big league debut before the 2025 season is over. He’s now on the cusp of realizing that dream as the selection to the 40-man roster indicates that the team is prepared to call him up at a moment’s notice if needed.

That promotion doesn’t seem to be imminent though. The club strangely immediately optioned Cortes back to the Aviators, adding him to the 40-man roster but not the active 26-man roster. That sort of shuffling would seem to indicate that Cortes either had an opt-out date in his contract, or an upward mobility clause that would have found him on a different team’s 40-man roster. Either way, the move sure is a vote of confidence from the higher-ups that they expect to see him don the Green & Gold this season.

How he fits into the Athletics’ current roster has yet to be determined. His primary position of left field is occupied by fellow lefty hitter Tyler Soderstrom, so there’s no obvious platoon opportunity there. And right field is the sole possession of Lawrence Butler so there’s not much room for at bats in the outfield corners. This could be a preemptive addition to the 40-man roster in case a trade involving someone like Miguel Andujar comes together quickly. Cortes and Andujar share a few similarities: right-handed, left fielders, and both are fairly young. If the A’s do make a trade involving a veteran, they’ll have someone waiting in the wings to take his place on the roster ready to go.

Holman meanwhile will see an extended time on the shelf with the move to the 60-day IL. One of the organization’s top relief prospects, Holman has spent parts of the past two seasons with the big league club, making 40 appearances and posting a 4.66 ERA to start his big league career. He’s been much stronger in the minors and with relievers being so volatile having an interesting arm like Holman is always intriguing. Losing him for a while is not going to help the bullpen and its depth going into the second half, and all we can do is hope this rotator cuff tendinitis isn’t a season-ending injury. It’s ominous sounding enough but fingers crossed it’s not a terrible injury.

The weekend is right around the corner. Have an excellent Thursday everyone!

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