WEST SACRAMENTO -- When legendary reliever Rollie Fingers visited the Athletics’ clubhouse before Saturday’s club Hall of Fame induction ceremony, he began asking around.
“Who’s the closer?” Fingers inquired of several A’s relievers.
“We all are!” each pitcher told Fingers.
Ever since the A’s dealt Mason Miller to the Padres in a Trade Deadline blockbuster, that has been the approach -- and it sure is working.
Sunday’s 7-4 win over the Reds at Sutter Health Park was further proof. The bullpen allowed just one run in four strong innings behind rookie starter Luis Morales, and seven straight runs powered the A’s to their sixth series sweep of 2025.
Bullpen dominance was the theme all weekend for the A’s, whose three starting pitchers in the series each went five innings or fewer. A’s relievers allowed only one run (a home run off Justin Sterner in the eighth inning Sunday) in 12 2/3 innings, good for a sparkling 0.71 ERA.
“Starters have been going a little bit shorter, but the bullpen has picked up the workload,” manager Mark Kotsay said. “Those guys have been special for a little while now.”
That has been the case for longer than it might seem. In September, the A’s bullpen has a 2.76 ERA, second in MLB behind only the Mariners (1.87). Dating back to July 31 -- the day they shipped Miller to San Diego -- the A’s have a 2.94 relief ERA that leads MLB.
What’s behind that smashing success, even without one of baseball’s elite relievers? For one, it’s the “we’re all the closer” mentality the A’s showed during Fingers’ recent visit.
“To look at what these guys have done over the course of the last two months since Mason’s been gone, they have that mindset,” Kotsay said. “It’s about getting outs. When you can create that in a bullpen, it seems to really help the confidence level of each guy.”
That means no set closer, no defined roles and a bullpen based on matchups -- traits that have become more and more common around MLB in recent years. The A’s have deployed it to perfection, with their sweep of Cincinnati a fitting example.
In Friday’s 3-0 win, the A’s were forced into their bullpen early when starter J.T. Ginn exited with a right calf cramp in the fifth inning. Tyler Ferguson picked him up with 1 2/3 scoreless relief frames, and three other relievers finished the shutout.
It took four relievers again Saturday behind Luis Severino, who allowed five runs in five innings. On Sunday, after Morales allowed three runs in five frames, five A’s relievers combined to take the game the rest of the way.
“The guys did a great job,” Morales said through team interpreter Ramón Hernández. “I have a ton of confidence in our bullpen.”
In three games, three different pitchers handled the ninth inning. Veteran lefty Sean Newcomb picked up the save Friday, southpaw Hogan Harris pitched the ninth in Saturday’s 11-5 win and right-hander Michael Kelly closed it out Sunday. It was the first career save for Kelly, who had made 81 previous relief appearances without one.
Kelly’s 1-2-3 ninth inning (aided by great plays from Jacob Wilson at shortstop and Lawrence Butler in center field) was a reminder that the A’s have plenty of options in their relief corps. Right-hander Elvis Alvarado -- and his triple-digit fastball -- has typically been deployed as a high-leverage arm, and lefty Brady Basso has been getting outs in important spots.
Sterner faltered Sunday by allowing a solo homer to Sal Stewart in the eighth, but Brent Rooker’s two-run homer the inning prior softened the blow. (Nick Kurtz’s titanic eighth-inning grand slam on Saturday achieved a similar goal, turning a close game into a comfortable win.)
“When you have the offense that helps add on runs, as we did there in the seventh, it provides more cushion and more room for error,” Kotsay said.
That’s crucial for a team that knows its bullpen won’t always be this dominant under such a heavy workload. The A’s promptly packed their bags for Boston to begin a three-game series with the Red Sox, but they’ll enjoy an off-day Monday first.
After a tremendous series, they’ve certainly earned a break.
“The bullpen’s pretty taxed right now,” Kotsay said. “We’ve been grinding. We covered a lot of innings this homestand.”