Athletics' Lawrence Butler: Swats pair of doubles Wednesday
Rotowire
Butler went 2-for-3 with two doubles and two runs in a loss to the Twins on Wednesday.
The rookie produced the only multi-hit effort of the night for the Athletics and the second multi-extra-base-hit tally of his nascent career as well. Butler's productive night snapped a brief 0-for-10 skid that had encompassed his previous three games, but he's picked up the pace at the plate since mid-September by producing a .259 average in his last nine contests (30 plate appearances) despite the aforementioned mini-slump.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: On bench Thursday
Rotowire
Butler is absent from the lineup Thursday against the Tigers.
Aledmys Diaz, Esteury Ruiz and Brent Rooker will start across the outfield as the Athletics roll with an all-righty lineup versus left-hander Tarik Skubal. The left-handed-hitting Butler has gone 4-for-27 (.148) with 11 strikeouts over his last 10 games.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: Resting Tuesday
Rotowire
Butler isn't in the Athletics' lineup Tuesday against the Mariners.
Butler will get a chance to clear his head Tuesday after going just 3-for-18 with nine strikeouts across his last six games. Esteury Ruiz will get the start in center field and bat ninth while Butler sits.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: On base thrice in loss
Rotowire
Butler went 2-for-3 with a walk in a loss to the Padres on Saturday.
The rookie's pair of singles represented his first hits since returning from the bereavement list Sept. 8. Butler had been mired in an 0-for-15 funk since that point, and despite Saturday's production, his season line sits at a paltry .218/.253/.379 across his first 91 plate appearances, albeit while partly comprised of a pair of doubles and four home runs.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: Sitting against lefty
Rotowire
Butler isn't in the Athletics' lineup Friday against Texas.
With left-hander Jordan Montgomery on the mound for the Rangers, the lefty-hitting Butler will take a seat. Esteury Ruiz will take over in center field and bat ninth.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: Homers twice Monday
Rotowire
Butler went 2-for-4 with two homers and three RBI in Monday's 6-5 extra-inning loss to Toronto.
Butler got Oakland on the board with a solo homer off Jose Berrios in the fifth inning before cranking a two-run shot off Jordan Romano in the 10th. It's the first multi-homer effort of Butler's career, as he's up to five long balls in his rookie campaign. Overall, he's batting .246 with a .717 OPS, nine RBI and six runs scored through his first 71 plate appearances. Butler certainly has intriguing power potential, and he should see a fairly regular role with the A's down the stretch.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: Idle versus lefty
Rotowire
Butler is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Angels.
Butler will be joined on the bench by fellow left-handed-hitting outfielders Tony Kemp and Seth Brown in the series finale. Oakland will roll out a starting outfield trio of Aledmys Diaz, Esteury Ruiz and Brent Rooker from left to right.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: On bench Sunday
Rotowire
Butler is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the White Sox.
Butler will head to the bench for the series finale after he started in each of the previous three games while contributing two hits, an RBI and a run over his 11 at-bats. Esteury Ruiz will spell Butler in center field Sunday.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: Taking seat Wednesday
Rotowire
Butler is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's game versus the Royals, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
The Athletics have faced a lot of lefties lately and the left-handed-hitting Butler has now been out of the lineup for two straight games. He appeared in Tuesday's win over Kansas City as a pinch hitter, so perhaps he'll be summoned off the bench again Wednesday. Esteury Ruiz will man center field Wednesday in Butler's stead.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: Not starting versus lefty
Rotowire
Butler is not in the lineup Tuesday versus the Royals.
Butler will not start with lefty Angel Zerpa on the mound for the Royals. Butler has appeared in every game since Aug. 11, drawing nine starts over that 10-game span. Esteury Ruiz will shift to center field and Brent Rooker will play in right, with Jonah Bride slotting into the lineup as the designated hitter and hitting out of the leadoff spot.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: Out of lineup
Rotowire
Butler will be on the bench for Saturday's game against Baltimore.
The Athletics presumably want to see what Butler can do down the stretch as they think about building their roster for 2024 and beyond, but so far, they haven't been interested in seeing what he can do against same-sided pitching. He owns a .760 OPS through his first 25 big-league plate appearances but has sat against both lefties the A's have faced since his call-up, including Saturday's starter Cole Irvin. Esteury Ruiz will be the center fielder Saturday.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: Possible waiver wire pickups
Rotowire
Typically, power/speed prospects, unless they're in the top echelon, are as high-risk as they are high-reward, and for most of his minor-league career, Butler fit into that category. But he had a more-than-respectable 18.9 percent strikeout rate between Double- and Triple-A this year, which helped fuel his rapid rise to the majors Friday. So far, he's 2 for 12, but with as many doubles as strikeouts (two), and on a team with nothing doing offensively, he'll get every opportunity to sink or swim. He did have an uninspiring 79.5 percent zone contact rate in his brief stay at Triple-A, so it's possible the higher-quality stuff in the majors brings him down to size. But nothing is guaranteed with prospect call-ups these days, right? The point is that Butler has both upside and opportunity and deserves more attention than he's getting in five-outfielder leagues right now.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: Hitless in big-league debut
Rotowire
Butler, making his major-league debut, went 0-for-4 in a loss to the Nationals on Friday.
The promising prospect, who started the season at Double-A Midland, completed his meteoric rise through the ranks by donning an Athletics uniform Friday. While Butler failed to reach safely in his first four plate appearances, he made contact on each occasion -- an extension of the sub-20.0 percent strikeout rates he posted in both minor-league stops this season -- and should have plenty of opportunity to acclimate to big-league arms for what remains of the 2023 campaign.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: Batting eighth in MLB debut
Rotowire
Butler is starting in right field and batting eighth in his MLB debut Friday versus the Nationals.
Butler was called up Wednesday after delivering a .284/.350/.475 slash line with 15 homers, 70 RBI, 21 steals and 67 runs scored in 89 games between Double-A Midland and Triple-A Las Vegas. The 23-year-old outfielder could get regular playing time down the stretch as the A's look ahead to 2024.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: Headed to majors
Rotowire
The Athletics called Butler up from Triple-A Las Vegas on Wednesday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
Butler started the season with Double-A Midland before reaching Triple-A in mid-July, and he's now set to get his first taste of major-league action Friday during Oakland's next series against the Nationals. The 23-year-old outfielder is slashing .281/.347/.473 through 412 plate appearances between Double-A and Triple-A this season with 15 homers, 70 RBI and 21 stolen bases. Butler provides an interesting power/speed combination that could earn him regular playing time on an Athletics team that seems motivated to get its top prospects some reps in the majors to close out what has been a rough season.
... See More... See Less
Athletics' Lawrence Butler: Solid start in Vegas
Rotowire
Butler, who was promoted to Triple-A Las Vegas on Friday, is 5-for-19 with a double, a home run, six RBI, a walk, three steals and three runs across his first four games with the Aviators.
The promising 23-year-old has struck out just once in 20 plate appearances as well, certainly an encouraging early sign against the higher caliber of arms and following a significant improvement in his contact rate during a 318-plate-appearance sample at Double-A Midland. Butler's intriguing mix of power and speed has earned him a brisk climb up the organizational ladder thus far, and a strong finish down the stretch of the minor-league season would almost certainly lead to Butler's first opportunity in the majors in 2024.
