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Elephant Rumblings: JT Ginn Could Join Athletics Soon

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Good morning A’s fans and welcome to Thursday!

The Athletics made their first notable roster move on Tuesday, announcing the demotion of right-handed starting pitcher Joey Estes back to the minor leagues after just two starts with the big league squad. After getting shelled a couple times against major league pitching, the club clearly felt it was time for a change, even if it seemed quick. Estes can continue to refine his game in a low-stress environment like Triple-A, and the A’s can get another look at a different arm as they continue to try to piece together a long-term starting rotation while remaining competitive.

Well while there haven’t been any official updates from the team regarding plans for the pitching staff without Estes, there have been signs that point to another promotion incoming. Fellow right-hander JT Ginn is an option for the Athletics in the next coming days, possibly as soon as Saturday:

The club has an opening in the fifth starters role and the team has yet to announce Saturday’s starting pitcher. After Monday evening the smart money would have been on Mitch Spence reclaiming a spot in the starting rotation after being relegated to the bullpen to begin the year, but the club may have other ideas in mind for the fifth starter’s spot.

The 25-year old Ginn finally made it to the big leagues last year and impressed over five starts in the month of September. Even with the encouraging results from his first taste of the big leagues, the organization needed to add more depth and push Ginn down the depth chart. That’s not a bad thing, as we are only two weeks into the regular season and Ginn is already an option to be called up to the major league team to help. The righty still entered camp as a contender for an Opening Day spot on the roster but ultimately was sent to Triple-A to begin the year and prepare for an inevitable callup.

He’s done everything in his power to make that happen sooner than later. While Estes has been struggling for the Athletics, Ginn has been serving for the Aviators. The righty has made two starts and looked dominant in both contests. The first saw him pitch five shutout innings in the Aviators’ season-opener, collecting eight strikeouts against just one walk and one hit allowed. He likely would have been allowed to go deeper if it wasn’t the first game of the season and he’d built up more. His second start wasn’t as perfect but just as impressive as he allowed two runs in six innings but also racked up 11 K’s with just one walk allowed.

That start was all the way back on April 3rd so he’s fresh. The Aviators have not announced any starting pitcher during the coming weekend, another sign that Ginn is under serious consideration at the very least. It would also be fitting for Ginn to make his season debut against the Mets, the organization that traded him to the Athletics. Is now the right time to turn to Ginn, or should the A’s give Spence a chance to earn his rotation job back? These are the questions that A’s fans should be asking and we should be getting an answer sooner than later.

Have an excellent day everyone!

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