With less than two weeks until the MLB Trade Deadline, the Oakland Athletics and Baltimore Orioles made a one-for-one swap of left-handers. Oakland sent relief pitcher Shintaro Fujinami to the Orioles, in exchange for Minor League reliever Easton Lucas. Here’s a closer look at the deal.
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The Orioles’ Return
- RHP Shintaro Fujinami (8.57 ERA, 1.66 WHIP, 51 K over 49.1 IP (MLB))
When the Athletics signed Shintaro Fujinami in the winter of 2022, the rap on the right-hander was that he had really good stuff, but command would ultimately be the sticking point. That proved to be the case with the 29-year-old.
Fujinami had a disastrous first four starts in Oakland, as he yielded 19 hits and 12 walks across 15 innings, and sported a 14.40 ERA in that span. The A’s quickly pivoted and shifted him to a relief role, and limited to one-two inning appearances.
The 29-year-old ran into some rough patches in May, but the bullpen has been much kinder to Fujinami. While he does have a 5.40 ERA as a reliever, Fujunami owns a 3.26 ERA, 3.66 FIP, and a 20:6 K:BB ratio since the start of June (19.1 IP).
Fujinami has seven pitches up his sleeve, but his three primary weapons are his four-seamer that sits in the high-90s, a low-90s split-change, and a cutter that has a Whiff% rate of 42.9%. His splitter, in particular, can be a devastating weapon when commanded down thanks to its vertical drop.
This is the second notable trade between the Orioles and Athletics, as Baltimore acquired LHP Cole Irvin earlier this year. The Orioles designated infielder Josh Lester for assignment as a corresponding move.
The Athletics’ Return
- LHP Easton Lucas (2.93 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 38 K over 30.2 IP in 2023 (AA and AAA))
The Athletics get back a left-hander in Easton Lucas. The 26-year-old was originally drafted in the 14th round of the 2019 MLB Draft by the Marlins, and acquired by the Orioles in December 2019 for Jonathan Villar.
The former Pepperdine product is what one would expect from a lefty specialist: fastball and slider hurler with average stuff. Based off of game footage, he does have fine command of the fastball and the breaking ball can be a decent weapon against left-handed hitters. He can lose the slider on occasion.
Across two levels, Lucas sported a 38:13 K:BB rate, and opposing hitters had a .174 average against him.
The Verdict
While the Orioles do have two effective left-handers in Danny Coulombe and Cionel Perez and a couple of good righties, the addition of Fujinami brings something different to the Baltimore pen. Now, the O’s can trot out another hard-throwing right-hander that has three really effective pitches to go along with the crafty Coulombe, the four-seam/sinker/slider combo of Perez, and righties Yennier Cano, Mike Baumann, and closer Félix Bautista,
As for the A’s, Oakland picked up a lefty that could be a potential asset in the Majors. Lucas did show solid command and could be a middle-reliever at the MLB level. It’s not a bad return.