Athletics left-handed hitting first baseman Nick Kurtz will likely be in a battle with his teammate, shortstop Jacob Wilson, for the American League Rookie of the Year.
The Athletics have a lot of reasons to be excited about their young infield corps, with both players making it to the Major Leagues just a year after they were drafted.
Kurtz, 22, won American League Player of the Week on July 21. He went 7-for-12 with a .571 batting average and had one home run, four RBIs, four doubles and one triple last week from July 14-20.
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He followed this up by hitting another home run against the Rangers on July 21. So far, he has 19 home runs, 49 RBIs, and a slash line of .281/.355/.620 in 221 at-bats with the Athletics in 2025.
“Being consistent, controlling the strike zone, and taking what the pitchers are giving me,” Kurtz said of his approach at the plate, where he has the highest OPS in MLB since May 20th at 1.195 in 144 at-bats. He also has 18 home runs, 43 RBIs, and a slash line of .319/.404/.792 in 144 at-bats in the same span. “Not every pitch is a home run pitch so I either take them or do what the pitch requires.”
“My favorite home run of the year was the one off Josh Hader, especially since it was a walk-off and it was left-on-left,” Kurtz told World Baseball Network before the Athletics played the Yankees on June 28 at Yankee Stadium. “I’ve been watching him for 10-years so that was really cool.”
He had two game-ending home runs in a four game span from June 16-19 against the Houston Astros at Sutter Health Park in Sacramento.
Kurtz was a standout at Wake Forest and he was drafted in the first round with the fourth overall pick by the Athletics in the 2024 MLB Draft, and was called up from the Athletics Triple-A affiliate, the Las Vegas Aviators, on April 22. He was optimistic about making his MLB debut quickly once he was drafted.
Wilson is the son of former MLB infielder Jack Wilson, who spent the majority of his 12-year career with the Pittsburgh Pirates. The younger Wilson was drafted by the Athletics in the first round with the sixth overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft.
“I saw Jacob Wilson get drafted the year before and make it to the MLB quickly, so I thought it was possible for me to do the same, but I was surprised it was this quick, ” Kurtz told World Baseball Network “I was playing really well in Triple-A. I took advantage of the opportunity and they thought that I was ready.”
Kurtz also broke down his former college teammate, right-handed pitcher Chase Burns, who was drafted with the sixth overall pick in the first round of the 2024 MLB Draft. Both of them played in one of the best college games of the 2024 season, a 9-5, 12-inning Demon Deacons win at the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament over North Carolina. Kurtz had the game-tying double in the ninth and the game-winning home run in the 12th. Burns pitched six scoreless innings with 15 strikeouts. Kurtz referred to the win as, “One of the coolest game of my life.”
He expanded on Burns’ abilities on the mound and some battles they had in practice, saying, “I went 2-for-4 off him in live batting practice and I got him with a home run. He’s doing exactly what I expected him to be doing when the Reds drafted him. I knew that was the one guy that they didn’t miss on.”
His father, Jeff Kurtz was a very important influence in his life along with support of his entire family, which has traveled to a lot of his games through his entire baseball journey.
“It’s awesome my family is always there when I need them to be and it’s great to have them around,” Kurtz said.
Photo: Nick Kurtz (16) looks on after hitting a game-tying solo home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Thursday, July 10, 2025, in West Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Scott Marshall)
