While the Athletics entered Friday with the 13th-most quality starts (11) in baseball on Friday, the team continues to make moves to improve their rotation. After calling up top pitching prospect Sean Manaea to make his major-league debut on Friday, Jesse Hahn has now been called up to start Saturday.
Hahn will make his 2016 debut after he competed for a rotation spot in spring training and lost the job, which resulted in him being sent down to Triple-A. Over four starts for the Nashville Sounds, Hahn allowed four earned runs in 17 2/3 innings, a strong 2.04 ERA. Hahn did encounter some trouble missing bats however, allowing 16 hits and nine walks over that span.
The 26-year-old had a great season for the Athletics in 2015, registering a 3.35 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 16 starts last season for the Athletics. He also put up strong numbers before he was traded to the Athletics, as he registered a 3.07 ERA and 1.21 WHIP in 12 starts for the Padres in 2014.
Hahn will take the Saturday start from Kendall Graveman, who was coming off a rough outing Monday having allowed six runs in 4 2/3 innings. With uncertainty around Chris Bassitt's status in the rotation, it is a situation worth monitoring to see who emerges with a rotation spot.