It's not too often that A's No. 2 prospect Nick Kurtz strikes out, but on Saturday in the Arizona Fall League he was K'd three times, which got us to go down a quick rabbit hole.
The A's had Wake Forest first baseman Nick Kurtz at the top of their draft board from January all the way until it was their turn to make a selection with the fourth overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. Part of the reasoning for the team having him ranked at the top was his advanced approach at the plate. In each of his three seasons with the Demon Deacons, Kurtz managed to walk more than he struck out, totaling 189 free passes to just 130 punch-outs in college.
This was Kurtz's return from a hamstring injury and he hadn't faced live pitching since August 24, which was roughly two months ago. And even then, he only got into a total of 12 games in the minor leagues, which were the only games he'd played since June. So there may have been a little rust involved.
Ross Dunn, who was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the tenth round of last year's Draft, turned in a 14 strikeout performance against Wake Forest in '22, and Kurtz accounted for two of those K's. The other Florida State pitcher to strike him out twice was Jamie Arnold in 2024. The final pitcher from these games was left-hander Brennen Oxford in 2024, though he'd spent three years at Wake Forest from 2020-22, and was a teammate of Kurtz's during that final year. He transferred to FSU for the 2023 season, and after going undrafted in 2024, he ended up signing with Staten Island in the Atlantic League, getting into 12 games.
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