Opening Day rotation is finally taking shape

Oakland A’s Opening Day rotation is taking shape, firstround picks shine, Matt Chapman goes yard.

MESA, ARIZ. >> The Oakland A’s next stop this spring was to Sloan Park to play their Mesa neighbors, the Chicago Cubs. The A’s maintained the lead throughout until late, culminating with a Cubs walk-off grand slam off Nik Turley to hand the A’s a seven-inning 9-8 loss.

Here are some takeaways from Tuesday’s game.

Can we guess the Opening Day rotation?

Chris Bassitt will start Wednesday’s game against the Milwaukee Brewers with Jesús Luzardo, Daulton Jefferies, and Sean Manaea to follow as the A’s venture into the rotation’s first turn, manager Bob Melvin said Tuesday morning. This looks like the framework for a starting rotation for the regular season — with a few considerations.

Jefferies has had a nice spring, with three scoreless innings over two outings with four strikeouts. But his third go-around as a starter is to keep that spot in the rotation warm for Frankie Montas as the right-hander rebounds from COVID-19, and a late arrival. Expect Jefferies to start the year with Triple-A Las Vegas, but he is viable depth as a spot starter or long reliever.

So, how is this for a rotation: Chris Bassitt — Opening Day starter

Jesús Luzardo

Frankie Montas

Sean Manaea

Mike Fiers/A.J. Puk

That fifth spot in the rotation is up for grabs between

Mike Fiers and Puk and will depend primarily on how Puk progresses from shoulder surgery. They want to build Puk up as a starter, but there’s no promise he’ll start the season in the rotation. Where he’ll squeeze in remains to be seen.

Puk and Montas threw two innings in a simulated game on Tuesday. Puk is expected to throw again on the 13th and, if all goes well, will pitch in games sometime next week.

Lowrie plays a game

Lowrie has officially returned to the field in green and gold, starting at second base Tuesday for his first game action since he played a handful of games with the New York Mets in 2019.

Lowrie said he felt good at the plate, adding he thought he was seeing the ball well and his body felt good. He would have had a hit in his second and final at bat into shallow left field, but the Cubs were in a shift.

Cole Irvin

Even though the A’s pitching staff is overflowing, we know the organization values depth. Irvin came to the A’s with notso-pretty big league experience under his belt — a 17.18 ERA with the Philadelphia Phillies — but has looked sharp in his two spring starts. Tuesday he had four strikeouts in three innings with one run allowed.

Irvin is being built up as a starter. And though the 27-year-old doesn’t have a clear-cut space on the roster, he’s turning into a solid depth option — especially given the health concerns with the regulars right now.

First-round picks shine

Tyler Soderstrom, the A’s 2020 first-round pick, hasn’t played much organized baseball since he played for his high school team in Turlock before the coronavirus-induced sports shutdown.

His first hit in green and gold proved why, not even a year into his A’s career, he’s one of the organization’s most promising prospects. Soderstrom, 19, took a twostrike pitch the other way for a clean go-ahead double into the left field gap.

Logan Davidson, the A’s 2019 first-round pick, topped his inside-the-park home run from Sunday with a loud two-run RBI double of his own.