Former Los Angeles Dodgers Prospect Called Up by A’s For MLB Debut
At the beginning of April, the Athletics sent outfielder Esteury Ruiz, the AL stolen base leader in 2023, to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for right-handed relief pitcher Carlos Duran. The 23-year-old is the Athletics No. 29 prospect, and he was recently called up to the big leagues for what will be his MLB debut when he takes the mound.
To make room for Duran, the Athletics optioned left-hander Jacob Lopez to Triple-A Las Vegas, and moved veteran righty José Leclerc to the 60-day IL. Earlier this week, Athletics on SI had an opinion piece saying that it didn’t look good for Leclerc returning soon, and this move seems to solidify that theory.
Lopez went just 2.2 innings in his start against the Texas Rangers on Tuesday, and manager Mark Kotsay needed to use long-man Hogan Harris to help bridge the gap to the rest of the bullpen, so the team needed a fresh arm just in case.
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Kotsay told reporters in Arlington before the game that Duran will be used as the long man out of the bullpen. In his five relief outings in the A’s organization since the trade, he has gone at least two innings in all five. His last appearance came on April 25 where he went three scoreless innings, didn’t allow a hit or a walk, and struck out two. Duran needed just 29 pitches for those three innings of work.
