Elephant Rumblings: Boyle demoted, two Alexander’s back, Ruiz done for ‘24

MLB news roundup

Good morning everyone! Happy Thursday to you all.

The A’s announced a few notable roster moves yesterday evening right before their contest with the Mariners:

The biggest news from that is hard to pick. Outfielder Esteury Ruiz was one of the team’s most electric players on last year’s squad but things have been the exact opposite for him in his sophomore year. While Ruiz broke the 60-steal mark as a rookie he only managed to swipe five bags, and even more worryingly was caught four times. He’s still got options for next year and should be around in the organization, but whether that will be with Oakland or the Aviators is yet to be seen.

The other major news concerning the major league roster was the demotion of starting pitcher Joe Boyle. The rookie right-hander started the year in the big league rotation but things haven’t been smooth for him. An injury and ineffectiveness have plagued Boyle in his first season as he has an ugly 7.12 ERA on the year. It’s unknown if this injury will cost Boyle the rest of the year but if it does it’ll put a bad end on a tough year for the 25-year old.

The other piece of roster news concerning the major league team is Scott Alexander. The veteran lefty will return from the IL after missing the past couple of weeks with a left rotator cuff injury. Those can be serious issues so it’s a great sign to see Alexander activated off the IL so soon. This’ll probably be the final month Alexander pitches in the Green & Gold but his stint will go down as a positive one. Over 34 appearances Alexander pitched to a very impressive 2.51 ERA, showing interested teams that he still has gas left in the tank. Whether the 35-year old elects to come back for an 11th season is still to be determined.

And finally, the A’s had an open spot on the 40-man roster with Ruiz on the 60-day IL and they quickly filled that spot with infielder CJ Alexander. The 28-year old rookie comes over from the Royals after making his MLB debut earlier this season. He’s a third baseman by trade but his batting profile doesn’t profile much at that position. It’ll be interesting to see if the club tries him out at different positions in the final few weeks of the season. Welcome aboard CJ!

A’s Coverage:

• Law breaks record, Mariners break A’s
• Killer B’s Demonstrate How Development Isn’t Linear
• Athletics Prospects: Gunnar Hoglund placed on development list
• Athletics claim CJ Alexander
• The A’s Position Player Core is Emerging

MLB News & Interest:

• Boone: Yankees to get ‘creative’ with closer role
• Dodgers to activate Yamamoto next week
• Rangers’ Corey Seager placed on IL, season could be over
• Kyle Schwarber toes MLB record for most leadoff home runs in a season
• Cubs place Jorge Lopez on IL
• Cubs’ Steele placed on IL, vowa to return this season
• Nine veterans who could be saying goodbye after 2024
• Today in Baseball History

Best of X:

This afternoon’s starting pitcher:

Woo hoo!

Swag:

Ruiz’s