After eight seasons in the minor leagues, including a mid-career position change to pitcher, Bay Area native Lucas Erceg is set to make his major league debut with the Oakland A’s.
The A’s on Friday announced that Erceg, 28, was joining the team in Houston for the start of a weekend series against the defending World Series champion Astros. The A’s needed another reliever because Zach Jackson went on the 15-day IL with a flexor strain in his right elbow. To make room for Erceg on the 40-man roster, the A’s designated right-hander Zach Neal for assignment.
The A’s just added Erceg to the organization on Wednesday night in a trade with the Milwaukee Brewers, and he had yet to appear in a game with the A’s Triple-A team in Las Vegas. Erceg is an intriguing addition for the A’s. Erceg has a strong arm, he can hit nearly 100 MPH, but is relatively inexperienced as a professional pitcher, turning to the mound in 2021 after his ascent as a power-hitting third baseman stalled out at Triple-A.
Erceg, who was born in San Jose and attended Westmont High School in Campbell, made a splash in his first two seasons at Cal and was first-team All-Pac-12 in 2015. But he was ruled academically ineligible in 2016 and transferred to Menlo College. After hitting a program-record 20 home runs that season — as the team’s closer and third baseman — he was drafted by the Brewers in the second round.
Erceg hit the ground running as a pro, batting .327 with nine home runs and 51 RBIs in 68 total games between Rookie ball and Single-A. In 2018, Ecreg was rated as Milwaukee’s fourth-ranked prospect by MLB.com and he continued to show good power, reaching double-digits in home runs in three of his first four seasons. But he also struck out a lot — 356 times in 437 games as a hitter in the minors — and had a career on-base percentage of barely .300.
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