Henry Bolte starred at Palo Alto High School, just across the bay from Oakland, before the team he grew up idolizing took him in the second round of the 2022 Draft.

¡°It was kind of a surreal moment at the Draft," said the A's No. 5 prospect, who is currently getting more reps in as an outfielder for the Mesa Solar Sox in the Arizona Fall League. "I knew it was a possibility, and then when it happened, it¡¯s kind of fun to reflect with my dad and some of my family members, old pictures of me at A¡¯s games and I¡¯m 10. Being able to have the opportunity to go play on that stage, now unfortunately not in the Coliseum, but for the A¡¯s, is something that¡¯s awesome because I was going to those games. It¡¯s an unbelievable opportunity.¡±

Bolte can recount favorite A¡¯s memories with ease, detailing Ramon Laureano¡¯s 2018 mad dash home to tie the game against the AL West-leading Astros, followed by Matt Olson¡¯s walk-off homer to win it, as if it happened yesterday. Now donning that very A¡¯s uniform in the AFL, Bolte feels closer to taking the field for his favorite team, though he knows there¡¯s still work to do

The A¡¯s went over slot to sign Bolte¡¯s impressive raw tools, giving him $2 million to keep him from heading to Texas for college. He¡¯s made strides in using those tools on the field, hitting 14 homers and stealing 32 bases in his first full season in 2023, then smashing 15 more long balls and swiping 46 bags this past season while reaching Double-A before he turned 21. That resulted in a wRC+ of 138, tied for second among all qualified A¡¯s Minor Leaguers, impressive as he had to adjust to more advanced pitching along the way.

¡°They¡¯re going to make less mistakes, and so it¡¯s more on you to have a good approach and execute that approach and get the pitch you¡¯re looking for and not miss it,¡± Bolte said. ¡°That¡¯s the biggest thing I noticed, if you miss the pitch as you go up that you¡¯re looking for, you might not get another one that at-bat.¡±

One thing Bolte must continue to improve is how often he swings and misses. The young outfielder was third among all Minor Leaguers with 189 strikeouts in 2024 and now has a 34.6 percent K rate in his pro career. He¡¯s offset that somewhat with an 11.9 percent walk rate, but he knows he can be guilty of trying to do too much and is working on just letting things happen this fall.

¡°I think it¡¯s just the thing of refining that approach,¡± Bolte said. ¡°With a good approach, that power will come. It¡¯s just a question of making good contact, squaring up the ball and getting to that more consistently. I think it¡¯s part of learning. They¡¯re going to execute their pitches better and have a better plan the higher you go up. As you adjust to that, trying not to focus on the power¡­ I know that¡¯ll come with a good approach and making more contact.¡±

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One thing that never slumps is speed, and Bolte is an easily plus runner who has had a lot of success taking extra bases, with 78 total steals in 100 attempts so far. Even if he¡¯s not swinging the bat so well, he knows he can impact the game with what he can do on the basepaths.

¡°It¡¯s so fun. Some of the most fun I think I have on the field is being able to, I think of it as causing havoc,¡± Bolte said. ¡°I can create runs. If you walk me or [I get] an infield single, I¡¯m going to get on second, get in position to score, maybe take third. That¡¯s the fun part for me, trying to run wild and I try to utilize that when I can.¡±

A¡¯s hitters in the Fall League

Denzel Clarke, OF (No. 10): This is Clarke¡¯s second-go-round in the AFL, having played here in 2022. His overall approach still needs refinement (29.9 percent K rate; 8.2 pct BB rate), but his power and speed are intriguing. He was largely healthy in 2024 after missing a lot of time the previous two seasons with shoulder issues, and he¡¯ll work this fall on cutting down on chasing pitches out of the zone.

Daniel Susac, C (No. 11): The A¡¯s first-round selection out of the University of Arizona in 2022, Susac hit .300 with a .793 OPS in his first full season, reaching Double-A in the process. He spent all of his 2024 season back with Midland, but wasn¡¯t as productive (.257/.300/.434). He also had two stints on the injured list, playing in just 88 games for the year. A strong Fall League could put him in position to impact the big league club in 2025.

A¡¯s pitchers in the Fall League

Tyler Baum, RHP: A former second-round pick back in 2019, Baum has had to persevere through some serious command issues that led to him throwing just 39 2/3 innings combined in 2021 and 2022. He started finding his footing a bit in 2023 with 11.5 K/9 and 4.7 BB/9 in High-A and Double-A, then kept missing bats this year (10.8 K/9) while reaching Triple-A for the first time.

Micah Dallas, RHP: Dallas spent three years at Texas Tech, then one at Texas A&M, before being taken by the A¡¯s in the fourth round of his 2022 Draft. His first full season didn¡¯t register much, but he¡¯s coming off a very solid 2024 campaign. The reliever had a 2.94 ERA, .228 BAA and 1.11 WHIP and throws a ton of strikes (2.4 walks per nine), relying on his slider more than anything to miss bats.

Wander Guante, RHP: Signed for just $10,000 in March of 2019, Guante in many ways has exceeded expectations by reaching Triple-A in 2024. Command has always been an issue (4.0 BB/9 in 2024), but he can run his fastball up to 95 mph and has good spin rates on his slider that is his main bat-misser, while utilizing a spin-killing changeup at times.

Mitch Myers, RHP: A 12th-rounder out of Pitt in 2021, Myers has started and relieved for the A¡¯s since signing and had a little more success out of the bullpen this year, mostly with High-A Lansing. The 25-year-old has always thrown strikes (2.6 BB/9 in his career; 2.0 in 2024). He doesn¡¯t light up the radar gun but has missed a decent amount of bats with a fastball that tops out at around 90 mph and he¡¯ll fold in a curveball, too.

Jake Walkinshaw, RHP: Originally drafted as a fifth-year college player who had Tommy John surgery in 2017, in the 36th round of the 2019 Draft, Walkinshaw had an additional elbow surgery in 2023, but did return to throw well for Double-A Midland in the second half of this season. The 28-year-old has a low-90s sinker that gets ground-ball outs to go along with a full complement of secondary offerings.