On April 1st, the Oakland Athletics sent down outfielder Esteury Ruiz to the minors. The reason for? He needed to get on-base more, cut down on strikeouts, and because they wanted him to get more plate appearances.
Well, in regards to the first two “bogus” reasons, he’s proved that the A’s made a mistake sending him down. In eight games for the Las Vegas Aviators (AAA affiliate for the A’s), he’s been nothing short of outstanding. Ruiz is batting .344, has an OBP of .462, and has recorded a total of 19 bases. In 32 at-bats, he’s recorded 11 hits, two home runs, and four RBIs. Add in the five walks he’s drawn plus striking out just six times, and what do you have? A player that doesn’t deserve to be in the minors.
Just this past season, we saw Ruiz break the American League record for stolen bases by a rookie. He was an exciting player due to his speed and defensive potential, and he wasn’t batting that bad in 2023 (.254 BA).
Now, he’s rotting in a triple-A ballpark. which is something he should get used to considering the A’s will be playing where in 2025? A triple-A ballpark in Sacramento. Thank you, Sutter Health Park.
Anyways, at this rate, why should Ruiz even remain there in the minors? The A’s are two games back (yes it’s early) in the AL West, and you might as well play the young guys more like him.
Service Time, Team Control, And Manipulation
So, I won’t sit here and act like an expert when it comes to service time and team control in Major League Baseball. Here’s why Ruiz remaining in the minors is impactful for the A’s organization.
“Depending on the length of his stay, it could have repercussions for his path to free agency and/or arbitration. He came into this season with one year and 29 days of service time, meaning that he could come up shy of the two-year mark if he’s down for a significant period of time. Players need six years of service to reach free agency and three years to automatically qualify for arbitration, though some can reach arbitration earlier as Super Two players.”
MLB Trade Rumors On Esteury Ruiz Being Sent Down To Triple-A
So, the A’s will delay Ruiz’s ability to test free agency by an extra year and his arbitration value will be lowered in the process.
In a way, it makes sense for the Athletics. He’s a talented player, and if the team wants to contend down the line, they likely want him to be part of the process becuase of his skillset.
But, why couldn’t you just kept him in the minors from the beginning? Well…
This is wild. Mark Kotsay says Esteury Ruiz wouldn’t have even made the A’s for Opening Day if not for the Miguel Andujar injury. pic.twitter.com/TCeOoT6pL7
— Karl Buscheck (@KarlBuscheck) April 2, 2024
So, why am I defending the A’s? I’m not. But, we can’t sit here and say that it doesn’t benefit the team at the end of the day.
From a player’s perspective, it’s messed up. Ruiz was playing well to start the season, batting .429 and getting on-base. Being sent down to the minors as his reward? Questionable plus it ruins the morale of the player. No one ever wants to be in the minor leagues.
Esteury Ruiz Deserves To Be Here In The Big Leagues
At the end of the day, Ruiz deserves to be with the A’s organization. You can’t keep this type of talent in the minor leagues for so long. If I am the GM of the other 29 teams in the league, I’m calling Oakland to trade for him. He’s an exciting player with his speed and potential, and if the A’s aren’t going to play him consistently, then he deserves to be somewhere else.
Out of the guys on the roster (Tyler Nevin, Lawrence Butler, JJ Bleday), none of them are better than Ruiz right now.
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Featured Image: Michael Zagaris/Oakland Athletics/Getty Images
2 Comments
I don’t know if true but I heard Ruiz was one of two players wearing owner protest bracelets that fans were wearing who got sent down.
You’re correct! A lot of us think that’s one of the reasons behind him getting sent down. Now, whether it’s a joke or not, it should be considered!