As the A’s June-Swoon evolves into a deeper July collapse (the Athletics won on July 1 and have not tasted victory since then) it would make sense to think about salvaging the season and looking forward to 2027. Three major MLB events will take place in the next thirty days, two of which will have a strong impact on the A’s future. Of course, next week is All-Star week. American League starters Shea Langeliers and Nick Kurtz will likely have the experience of a lifetime, rubbing elbows, taking swings
with and against the best the league has to offer and spending times with those they admire in the game; past and present.
The two events with the most impact will, of course, be the MLB draft and the trade deadline. The draft begins this Saturday, July 11 and continues through Sunday, July 12. As always, teams will have the ability to build their minor league systems in hopes of honing talent to be major league ready. As we know, for every Mike Trout and Nick Kurtz there are equal numbers of players such as Mark Appel and Brien Taylor; can’t miss prospects that missed badly!
This year’s trade deadline in August 3. With a core of players that should not be touched, the A’s will likely try to clear out some veteran (read: expensive) contracts and open some roster spots for promising minor leaguers to get some MLB playing time.
This could be a fun time for those of us who are addicted to the sport… thinking about what’s next for our team. But this year it’s different. The specter of an ownership lockout remains too strong of a possibility to make the dream of a better season carry us through the tough times. In a recent poll of MLB players, 101 current major leaguers were asked the simple question, “Do you believe there will be a lockout at the end of the season?” Eighty respondents said “yes,” two respondents said “no,” and nineteen said they were “not sure” Many players elaborated to say the bigger question was not whether or not there would be a lockout, but more importantly will games be cancelled.
It’s hard to argue with the players inside knowledge and their understanding of ownership’s motivations, but the best way for me to get through the challenging times that lay ahead is to think about what next year may bring for A’s Nation.
A’s Coverage:
- Kurtz the 3rd sidelined as stomach bug moves through A’s clubhouse
- A’s fall to Tigers 6-2
- Trade Deadline Outlook: Athletics ($)
- A’s Release Michael Kelly
- Three Things To Watch For The Athletics In July
- Julyeball Scout Report As Hopes, Like The Sun, Sink Slowly In The West
- Thoughts And Well Wishes For A’s Prospect Ryan Lasko
- The Athletics and the Cost of a Bad Extension
- A’s Late Rally Falls Short as Marlins Complete the Sweep
- A’s Take Series Finale, Beat Dodgers 7-1
- A’s roster moves: Massive Shakeup
- A’s To Trade Brett Harris To Red Sox
- A’s Fans Want Tommy White in Sacramento, But Is He Ready?
- Two Pitching Options in Draft for Athletics This Weekend
- It’s Harder To Win When You Don’t Understand Your Own Personnel
- Fun Parallels To 2012 Emerging
- What Kade Morris’ Role Will Look Like for A’s in Future
- Some Easy Fixes Rocket Science Aren’t
- Athletics’ Devin Taylor Emerges As All-Around Talent
- From celebratory pool dip to the A’s, Meneses’ journey back to Majors a memorable one
- Athletics Could Deal Hottest Triple-A Bat This Summer
- Status Report: Uncertainty Persists In 5 Places On The Diamond
MLB News and Interest:
- Handing out 2026 midseason grades for all 30 MLB teams
- 2026 MLB draft: One big question and intel for all 30 teams
- MLB stars share draft-day stories: Kurtz, Misiorowski, more
- Rice joins Home Run Derby field, looking to be Yankees’ first winner since ‘17
- Here are the 2026 All-Star Game roster replacements
- 3 homers, 10 RBIs … by the 6th inning!? What a night for O’Hearn
- Brewers To Promote Luis Lara
- Torn finger tendon could sideline Griffin for several weeks (source)
- Dodgers’ Evan Phillips back 13 months after Tommy John surgery
- John Mozeliak Discusses Angels’ Draft, Deadline Plans
- 10 non-All-Stars poised for a big second half
- Max Kepler hits first homer since 80-game suspension ended
- Today in Baseball History
