On May 12, the Athletics are expected to call up outfielder Henry Bolte to the big-league roster. The move comes after what’s been a fantastic stretch for the 22-year-old, who is currently the Pacific Coast League home run leader.

A Look at Bolte

The Athletics made San Francisco-born outfielder Henry Bolte a second-round pick in 2022. It was a bet on upside, as Bolte, a UT commit, has turned into one of the more dynamic prospects since joining the A’s system.

Bolte hit 14 home runs in Low-A in 2023, then cracked 15 more, along with 46 stolen bases and 55 total extra-base hits the year later. Last season, in Double-A, he slashed .278/.378/.424 with seven home runs and 41 walks over 80 contests. He played well in Las Vegas before what’s been a fantastic year with the Aviators.

As of May 12, Bolte was the Pacific Coast League leader in home runs (12). Ten of those home runs came in the hitter’s paradise in Las Vegas. Overall, he slashed .348/.418/.658 with 17 stolen bases and 22 extra-base hits.

Most recently, Bolte had a week to remember in the Minors, as the A’s prospect picked up five home runs and had a stretch of hits in 12 straight plate appearances.

When Bolte makes solid contact, the ball goes far. It sounds incredibly simple — but there’s not much more that needs to be stated. Strong hitter with good bat speed and power that played to all fields. However, the big concern with Bolte is the swing-and-miss.

Last season in Double-A, Bolte posted a swing-and-miss rate of 32.9%, a notable blemish on his 2025 campaign with Midland. However, things have much improved for him in the whiff department this season.

Over the last two weeks, a stretch in which Bolte slashed .518/.550/.911 with five home runs, the outfield prospect posted a very respectable 19.6% Whiff%. And when looking at his overall swing-and-miss numbers by pitch, one can see that he can hit fastballs with regularity.

What gave him problems was the soft stuff, more specifically, sliders and sweepers. Bolte will expand out of the zone often. Circling back to these past two weeks, his Chase% was 31.8%. That figure is not shocking when taking into account that he walked three times in that span, and 17 overall over 37 contests.

One other note: Bolte gets on top of balls a lot. His 2.56 GO/AO ratio is very high for a power hitter, while his 55.3% GB% over that aforementioned two-week stretch was in the top 10% of Triple-A.

Defensively, Bolte spent his time between center and right field, with the majority of those contests being at center.

The Athletics will need to add Henry Bolte to the 40-man roster before he can be added to the active roster.

Analysis

The Athletics’ outfield situation has been interesting this year.

Denzel Clarke is on the IL, while Lawrence Butler has had a very down year at the dish. Zack Gelof has seen a good amount of time in center field this season, while Colby Thomas is currently hitting over .300 in brief time. Now, Bolte will get a shot to fill out the puzzle.

Now, how well will it go? Well, Major League pitching isn’t exactly Minor League pitching, and there are some obvious concerns. However, the skill set can’t be ignored. And given that, arguably, no hitter in Triple-A was hotter than Bolte, now seems like a good time.

Check out more of our MLB coverage, including a look at Mets outfield prospect A.J. Ewing.