Roman Anthony was one of the most exciting young players in baseball going into the 2025 season. However, his promising year came to an end on September 2 when he hurt his oblique and was unable to play again, costing him the American League Rookie of the Year award. Instead, the award went to Nick Kurtz, the first baseman for the Oakland Athletics, whose record-breaking power display throughout the season was too big to miss.

Bradford Doolittle, an ESPN analyst, strongly supported Kurtz, saying that the Athletics’ seven-million-dollar acquisition would win “in an AXE rout.” This prediction matched what most voters thought about Kurtz’s incredible accomplishments.

Even though Anthony’s season was cut short, there was no doubt that he influenced Boston’s season. The Red Sox went 45-46 without their young slugger, but they went 44-27 in the 71 games Anthony played, showing how much he helped the team right away. He hit eight home runs and drove in 32 runs with a .292 batting average, a .396 on-base percentage, and a .859 OPS before getting hurt and having to sit out.

The team’s struggles after that were telling. Without Roman Anthony, Boston lost to the Yankees 2-1 in the AL wild card round, which showed how much the team relied on his contributions. Still, the Red Sox showed they believed in Anthony by giving him an eight-year, $130 million contract extension. They were betting a lot on his long-term potential even though the season ended early.

At the same time, Kurtz’s accomplishments went beyond what is normal for a rookie. Kurtz got off to a slow start, going 16 games without a home run and having a .327 slugging percentage. But then he got hot and hit 36 home runs in 101 games, which is more than 58 home runs per 162 games. During this hot streak, he had a .293 batting average, a .392 on-base percentage, and a  .660 slugging percentage.

His final slugging percentage of .619 was the third-highest ever recorded by a rookie with at least 480 plate appearances. Kurtz’s season came together on July 25, when he played against the Astros and became the first rookie ever to hit four home runs in a single game. He also hit a single and a double, tying the all-time single-game total base record with 19. He had the most home runs among AL first basemen and a 1.002 OPS, which made him the clear choice for the award.

Kurtz’s arrival makes the Oakland Athletics’ future more exciting, but the Athletics are in a different kind of trouble right now: they need pitching help badly this winter.

Can Shota Imanaga be the answer for Athletics’ pitching void?

The team is interested in left-handed pitcher Shota Imanaga, who just became available after the Cubs let him go. Imanaga turned down Chicago’s $22 million qualifying offer, which made him a free agent. However, he might change his mind since free agency would only pay him about $20 million a year. FanGraphs says that if he goes to the open market, he could get a two-year, $40 million deal.

This is why the A’s want Imanaga. He pitched for the Cubs for two seasons, going 24-11 with a 3.28 ERA and only walking 4.3% of the time, which is less than the 8.3% average for baseball. Mark Kotsay, the manager, saw something very important: Sutter Health Park is almost exactly like Wrigley Field. That means Imanaga has already pitched in this stadium before.

But getting him comes with a hidden cost. Oakland loses their draft pick between 66 and 74, which hurts because it’s been doing so well lately. Gage Jump was picked 73rd in 2024 and became a top-three prospect. Steven Echavarria was picked 72nd in 2023 and became a top-12 pick. The Athletics are very good at finding hidden gems late in the draft.

Management has a tough choice to make: Is Imanaga worth giving up future draft picks after a poor season in 2025?