WEST SACRAMENTO -- Around this time last April, Nick Kurtz was taking classes as a junior at Wake Forest. One year later, he found himself at Sutter Health Park preparing for his Major League debut.
To describe Kurtz¡¯s path to the big leagues as a fast track would be an understatement. Drafted fourth overall by the Athletics in the 2024 MLB Draft, Kurtz -- ranked as the club¡¯s No. 1 prospect and the No. 35 overall prospect in baseball by MLB Pipeline -- reached the big leagues just nine months after beginning his professional career, barely 32 Minor League games under his belt. So, you can understand the disbelief when he groggily answered a phone call from Triple-A Las Vegas manager Fran Riordan on Monday morning informing him of his callup.
"I was half-asleep, so I still thought it was a little bit of a dream,¡± Kurtz said. ¡°It¡¯s pretty awesome to be here.¡±
That dream turned to reality in Wednesday's 5-2 win over the Rangers. In what was one of the more anticipated debuts for an A¡¯s prospect in quite some time, Kurtz donned a white No. 16 Athletics uniform for the first time in the Majors, and it didn¡¯t take long for him to make an impact. The 22-year-old first baseman clubbed an RBI single off Rangers starter Kumar Rocker in the first inning for his first Major League hit in his first at-bat.
"That¡¯s a big league at-bat right there,¡± said right fielder Lawrence Butler, who led off the first with his fourth home run of the year and second in as many days. ¡°He got two strikes and battled with runners in scoring position. What was it? Like 112? That¡¯s just a protect swing 112 [mph] up the middle from a big guy. That¡¯s huge. He¡¯s going to be a great player.¡±
The exit velocity on Kurtz¡¯s first hit was 112.2 mph to be exact -- the hardest-hit ball by either team on the night -- showing exactly why he became the sixth-fastest player in franchise history to reach the big leagues in terms of days from the date he was drafted, at 283 days.
He is considered to have an advanced approach that led to his off-the-charts offensive metrics throughout his domination of the Minor Leagues, and that showed through in his first hit as he tagged the 1-2 96 mph fastball from Rocker past a diving Marcus Semien and into right-center.
"You saw the joy, right?¡± manager Mark Kotsay said. "It was a great moment. You saw his teammates all excited for him. ¡ You could feel that energy in the stands as well.¡±
Kurtz¡¯s helmet came flying off his head as he took a turn around first base before excitedly high-fiving first-base coach Bobby Crosby and soaking in a standing ovation from the Sutter Health Park crowd. Shortly after, Kurtz looked toward the A¡¯s dugout at section 118, where about halfway up the stands sat a large group of friends and family members, including his mother Marie and father Jeff, who played the role of third-base coach from his seat, waving home Shea Langeliers from second base as he watched his son¡¯s hit reach the outfield.
"Him and my whole family being here was awesome,¡± Kurtz said. ¡°It¡¯s not just my dream, it¡¯s our dream. It¡¯s what we¡¯ve worked together for my whole life. After the countless things they¡¯ve done for me to get me to this point, it was awesome to share that moment with them.¡±
For as special as the first hit was, that might not be the most memorable moment of the night for Kurtz. There were also the two tumbles the 6-foot-5, 240-pound slugger took while on defense, first tripping over the mound while tracking a high popup by Jake Burger before recovering and recording the out at second base.
"Honestly, that kind of settled me in,¡± Kurtz said of his fall. ¡°I got the hit an inning before and then looked stupid and fell on the ground next inning, so I had the best of both worlds. Being able to laugh about that stuff is something I take pride in doing.¡±
Above all, Kurtz was most satisfied with the end result: An A¡¯s victory. His hit capped a four-run first handed to starter JP Sears, who limited Texas to two runs in five-plus innings. The win finished with Mason Miller firing a scoreless ninth with two strikeouts for his seventh save.
"I love to win, and even more than that, I hate to lose,¡± Kurtz said. ¡°We can hit. We can throw it. We¡¯ve got a great bullpen and great starters. We¡¯ve got all it takes to win ballgames. That¡¯s what I came here to do.¡±