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On Saturday night, the A's Double-A affiliate, the Midland RockHounds, was no-hit by the Wichita Wind Surge. Midland was also without A's No. 1 prospect Leo De Vries, who has been out since Tuesday.
This weekend, the Athletics' Director of Player Development, Ed Sprague, joined A's Cast to talk about the farm system, and of course, De Vries was one of the main topics of discussion.
"He's been doing fine," Sprague said when asked how he's been performing in Midland. "Right now, he's got that banged up finger again that he had earlier in the year when he slid into second base."
He also noted that it's the ring finger on his right hand, saying that De Vries jammed up his finger again recently, so he has missed a few more games.
Every time the RockHounds pull him from a lineup this season, A's social media has gone wild with speculation that he's finally getting called up to Triple-A. This time around, it was fairly obvious that wasn't the case, since he was in the Midland lineup on Tuesday, a day after an off-day. If he were getting called up, he would have been in Vegas when Tuesday began.
That also figures to be how he'll be called up — to start a minor-league week, not in the middle of one. That is, unless there is an injury that pushes him up to the Aviators' roster.
"He's done fine, but he's 19 years old," Sprague continued. "That's what we gotta remember. There's not a lot of guys, historically, that have had as many at-bats as him as a 19-year-old in Double-A or above.
"I think the time will come. I'm not sure when that will be. I'd expect him at some point this year to get his feet wet in Las Vegas."
When the A's promoted Joshua Kuroda-Grauer to the big leagues and De Vries wasn't called up to replace him in Triple-A, it became apparent that the club is making sure that their prized prospect gets moved along at a pace that suits when he's ready instead of rushing the process.
Earlier this month, A's manager Mark Kotsay said that the organization is looking for more consistent higher exit velocities, sitting at 105 mph and above, before they promote him to Las Vegas.
"There's still a lot in his game that needs to be cleaned up," Sprague said. "He's a really good player with really good skills. But his pre-pitch and moving his feet on defense and getting himself in the right position to throw, those are things that we try to explain to him like, 'when you go to Triple-A, you're not coming back.'"
The biggest factor for the A's is that they know that he's ready for the next level, before they make that promotion.
"We're trying to teach big-league habits to a 19-year-old kid in Double-A who's had success — so it's not like he's failed," Sprague said. "A lot of times you get their attention when they start to fail. He's had success, but he hasn't dominated."
This season De Vries has hit .290 with a .386 OBP, an .838 OPS and 12 home runs. He's also added an impressive 33 stolen bases on 38 attempts, showcasing another aspect of his game.
To Sprague's point, however, he's hit 12 home runs in 79 games this season, while he notched five in 21 games after his promotion to Double-A late last year. He's had success this season, but he just hasn't dominated like he did in that short span in 2025.
"He's gonna be a good player for a long time in this league," Sprague said. "You just gotta understand that he's 19 years old."
Continue reading...
This weekend, the Athletics' Director of Player Development, Ed Sprague, joined A's Cast to talk about the farm system, and of course, De Vries was one of the main topics of discussion.
"He's been doing fine," Sprague said when asked how he's been performing in Midland. "Right now, he's got that banged up finger again that he had earlier in the year when he slid into second base."
He also noted that it's the ring finger on his right hand, saying that De Vries jammed up his finger again recently, so he has missed a few more games.
Every time the RockHounds pull him from a lineup this season, A's social media has gone wild with speculation that he's finally getting called up to Triple-A. This time around, it was fairly obvious that wasn't the case, since he was in the Midland lineup on Tuesday, a day after an off-day. If he were getting called up, he would have been in Vegas when Tuesday began.
That also figures to be how he'll be called up — to start a minor-league week, not in the middle of one. That is, unless there is an injury that pushes him up to the Aviators' roster.
"He's done fine, but he's 19 years old," Sprague continued. "That's what we gotta remember. There's not a lot of guys, historically, that have had as many at-bats as him as a 19-year-old in Double-A or above.
"I think the time will come. I'm not sure when that will be. I'd expect him at some point this year to get his feet wet in Las Vegas."
When the A's promoted Joshua Kuroda-Grauer to the big leagues and De Vries wasn't called up to replace him in Triple-A, it became apparent that the club is making sure that their prized prospect gets moved along at a pace that suits when he's ready instead of rushing the process.
Earlier this month, A's manager Mark Kotsay said that the organization is looking for more consistent higher exit velocities, sitting at 105 mph and above, before they promote him to Las Vegas.
"There's still a lot in his game that needs to be cleaned up," Sprague said. "He's a really good player with really good skills. But his pre-pitch and moving his feet on defense and getting himself in the right position to throw, those are things that we try to explain to him like, 'when you go to Triple-A, you're not coming back.'"
The biggest factor for the A's is that they know that he's ready for the next level, before they make that promotion.
"We're trying to teach big-league habits to a 19-year-old kid in Double-A who's had success — so it's not like he's failed," Sprague said. "A lot of times you get their attention when they start to fail. He's had success, but he hasn't dominated."
This season De Vries has hit .290 with a .386 OBP, an .838 OPS and 12 home runs. He's also added an impressive 33 stolen bases on 38 attempts, showcasing another aspect of his game.
To Sprague's point, however, he's hit 12 home runs in 79 games this season, while he notched five in 21 games after his promotion to Double-A late last year. He's had success this season, but he just hasn't dominated like he did in that short span in 2025.
"He's gonna be a good player for a long time in this league," Sprague said. "You just gotta understand that he's 19 years old."
Continue reading...
