SB Nation • 10 min read

Elephant Rumblings: A’s close out first season of post-Oakland era

Happy Monday, Athletics Nation!

Yesterday’s season finale was a bit of a dud, but at least Nick Kurtz sent fans off with one last dinger in his final plate appearance of 2025—which happened to be just enough

to give Big Amish an OPS above 1.000 in his rookie season. Kurtz will be collecting his AL ROY award soon.

Despite capping the season with two straight losses to the Royals, the A’s played winning baseball in September, posting a 13-11 record to build on winning months in July and August and tie a bow on a successful second half. The league has definitely taken notice of the A’s powerful young bats, and many of us expect the A’s to be winners in 2026—and possibly even make it to the postseason.

What the A’s need to worry about most this offseason may prove the greatest determinant of their success next year—starting pitching. AN’s own Nico has some thoughts on how the A’s might shore up the rotation via trade, and I’m sure he’ll have plenty of ideas to share on how else the A’s might develop pitching that will stack up to the bats as their window of contention widens.

2025 has been a year of big changes for the A’s. Not only does it feel like an inflection point between losing and winning: on a sadder note for many of us, it feels like the page has turned more definitively on the franchise’s storied Oakland era. The A’s will bear Sacramento on their jerseys in some games next year, and construction is underway on the team’s future home in Las Vegas. This inertia towards a future in Nevada has me fairly well convinced that it is truly happening.

I thought the A’s leaving Oakland might be the last straw for me as a fan, but I still feel connected to this team. I may have “rooted” for Billy Beane when Moneyball was thriving—he seemed like a folk hero, a Robin Hood of baseball showing the way to level the playing field between rich and poor teams. That was a lot of fun while it lasted. But by and large, I’ve never rooted for the team’s owner, or management. I root for the team itself, and I still love this team and look forward to seeing how they progress in 2026.

I look forward to continuing to share this love of the A’s as a part of this community, too. However, It saddens me to say that today’s post is my last as a contributor at Athletics Nation. I’ve really enjoyed serving up your Rumblings for…however long I’ve been doing it, but my life is such now that I need to reclaim a bit more time for other things.

My thanks to Nico, Connor Ashford, Frank Polito, Kris Willis—and Alex Hall, wherever he may be—along with other contributors of the past and everyone in the community. You’ve all been a joy to work and talk about Athletics baseball with. I sincerely hope that the site will reach out to new recruits, and I know that there are many here who are well capable of picking up the baton. Hope to be reading your posts soon.

Have a terrific post- and offseason, AN!