WEST SACRAMENTO -- The bright future the Athletics have been talking up over an arduous rebuilding period in the previous few years is shifting into the present.
It can be difficult to see that hope sometimes, especially when you go through a stretch as rough as the A’s were on, entering Thursday on a 1-20 skid that matched the worst record over a 21-game stretch in franchise history.
Days like Thursday’s 14-3 blowout victory over the Twins at Sutter Health Park, however, serve as a reminder that, no matter how bad things have gone as of late, the A’s still have good reason to look forward to what’s ahead with this talented young roster.
The offense exploded for a season-high 14 runs to snap a nine-game losing streak, and leading that charge was the trio of A’s first-round Draft picks in Tyler Soderstrom (2020), Max Muncy (2021) and Jacob Wilson (2023). As part of a starting lineup that featured six homegrown players -- all age 25 or younger -- the three combined to go 7-for-15 with four home runs, 10 RBIs and six runs scored.
“I looked out on the field and we had a rookie shortstop, a rookie third baseman, a rookie center fielder,” manager Mark Kotsay said. “It’s a good sign that you have to sometimes step back from the losing and understand what we’re trying to do with this roster. How long it takes for young players to develop and become Major League players on an everyday basis. Those three kids today helped contribute to a big win.”
Two of those big flies came off the bat of Soderstrom, who now leads the club with 14 on the year. One inning after clobbering a two-run blast in the third, the 23-year-old first baseman launched his first career grand slam, sending a 98.6 mph fastball from Jorge Alcala the opposite way to left field.
“It couldn’t have come at a better time,” Kotsay said of Soderstrom’s first grand slam. “It opened the game up. We talk a lot about the bullpen and the pressure they’ve been under. We’ve probably had a chance to win seven or more games [in this stretch] with the bullpen, but there’s never been a margin for error. Today, the offense gave them that margin.”
For Soderstrom, it was his fourth multihomer effort of 2025, harkening back to the early days this season when the A’s were making noise as a potential darkhorse playoff team. His first three multihomer performances came in the A’s first 17 games of the season. Then came a bit of a lull on the power side, as Soderstrom entered Thursday batting .125 (5-for-40) over his previous 12 games.
Regaining that power stroke, Soderstrom is now just the fifth player in A’s history to record four or more multihomer games in the team’s first 64 games of the season.
The list is filled with A’s legends and Hall of Famers:
1. Reggie Jackson (7) in 1969
2. Gus Zernial (5) in 1951
3. Mark McGwire (4) in 1990
4. Reggie Jackson (4) in 1974
5. Jimmie Foxx (4) in 1934
6. Tyler Soderstrom (4) in 2025
“When he gets going, he’s really a spark for this team,” Muncy said of Soderstrom. “We saw it in the beginning of the year when he was hitting a bunch of homers and we were winning. That’s how it is. When he’s playing well, it’s fun to watch.”
Muncy, who returned from Triple-A Las Vegas on Wednesday after hitting .325 with a .901 OPS in 31 games, set the tone early with a three-run blast in the first that easily cleared the left-field wall at a Statcast-projected 410 feet.
Then came Wilson, who belted a solo shot in the third as part of his 10th three-hit game this season, tied with Brendan Donovan of the Cardinals for most in the Majors. At 86 total hits, Wilson only trails Aaron Judge (88) for the Major League lead.
Even more needed than the offensive outburst was a strong pitching performance, which the A’s also received. It started with Mitch Spence, who filled in for an injured Gunnar Hoglund and fired five solid innings of one-run ball. The bullpen, which has been maligned over the past few weeks for its late-inning deficiencies, allowed just two runs the rest of the way.
“A win like that shows us that we can do it and we are a good team,” Muncy said. “I’m hoping that’s really a momentum thing and we just keep it going.”