LAWRENCE BUTLER NEWS

Sitting out Saturday Butler isn't in the Athletics' lineup Saturday against the Angels.

Impact Buter will get a breather after going 4-for-22 with an RBI and three runs scored across Oakland's last seven games. Esteury Ruiz will start in center field with Butler out, allowing JJ Bleday to start in left and bat fourth.

SEPTEMBER 30, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Swats pair of doubles Wednesday Butler went 2-for-3 with two doubles and two runs in a loss to the Twins on Wednesday.

Impact The rookie produced the only multi-hit effort of the night for the Athletics and the second multi-extra-base-hit tally of his nascent career as well. Butler's productive night snapped a brief 0-for-10 skid that had encompassed his previous three games, but he's picked up the pace at the plate since mid-September by producing a .259 average in his last nine games (30 plate appearances).

SEPTEMBER 28, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

On bench Thursday Butler is absent from the lineup Thursday against the Tigers.

Impact Aledmys Diaz, Esteury Ruiz and Brent Rooker will start across the outfield as the Athletics roll with an all-righty lineup versus left-hander Tarik Skubal. The left-handed-hitting Butler has gone 4-for-27 (.148) with 11 strikeouts over his last 10 games.

SEPTEMBER 21, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Resting Tuesday Butler isn't in the Athletics' lineup Tuesday against the Mariners.

Impact Butler will get a chance to clear his head Tuesday after going just 3-for-18 with nine strikeouts across his last six games. Esteury Ruiz will get the start in center field and bat ninth while Butler sits.

SEPTEMBER 19, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

On base thrice in loss Butler went 2-for-3 with a walk in a loss to the Padres on Saturday.

Impact The rookie's pair of singles represented his first hits since returning from the bereavement list Sept. 8. Butler had been mired in an 0-for-15 funk since that point, and despite Saturday's production, his season line sits at a paltry .218/.253/.379 across his first 91 plate appearances, albeit while partly comprised of a pair of doubles and four home runs.

SEPTEMBER 17, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Sitting against lefty Butler isn't in the Athletics' lineup Friday against Texas.

Impact With left-hander Jordan Montgomery on the mound for the Rangers on Friday, the lefty-hitting Butler will take a seat to begin the game. Esteury Ruiz will take over in center field and bat ninth.

SEPTEMBER 8, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Returns from bereavement The Athletics reinstated Butler from the bereavement list Friday.

Impact Butler went on bereavement leave Tuesday and will now return after a minimum-length absence for the start of Oakland's series against the Rangers. Jonah Bride was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas in a corresponding move.

SEPTEMBER 8, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

On bereavement list The Athletics placed Butler on the bereavement list Tuesday.

Impact Butler will miss at least three days and no more than seven as he tends to more-important matters. Kevin Smith was recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas in a corresponding move.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Homers twice Monday Butler went 2-for-4 with two homers and three RBI in Monday's 6-5 loss to Toronto.

Impact Butler got Oakland on the board with a solo homer off Jose Berrios in the fifth inning before cranking a two-run shot off Jordan Romano in the 10th. It's the first multi-homer effort of Butler's career, as he's up to five longballs in his rookie campaign. Overall, he's batting .246 with a .717 OPS, nine RBI and six runs scored through his first 71 plate appearances. Butler certainly has intriguing power potential, and he should see a fairly regular role with the A's down the stretch.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Idle versus lefty Butler is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Angels.

Impact Butler will be joined on the bench by fellow left-handed-hitting outfielders Tony Kemp and Seth Brown in the series finale. Oakland will roll out a starting outfield trio of Aledmys Diaz, Esteury Ruiz and Brent Rooker from left to right.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Belts second homer Butler went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run in a loss to the Mariners on Wednesday.

Impact The rookie opened the scoring with a 431-foot shot to right center in the second inning with Jordan Diaz aboard. Butler's multi-hit effort was Butler's first since Aug. 21 and third overall of his nascent professional career. The round tripper was his first extra-base hit since back on Aug. 15, however, a major factor in his anemic .373 slugging percentage.

AUGUST 31, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Butler homers in return to Seattle after Futures Game SEATTLE -- Before getting called up by the A’s last month, Lawrence Butler got a taste of a Major League atmosphere through playing in the S...

AUGUST 31, 2023 • MLB.COM

On bench Sunday Butler is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the White Sox.

Impact Butler will head to the bench for the series finale after he started in each of the previous three games while contributing two hits, an RBI and a run over his 11 at-bats. Esteury Ruiz will spell Butler in center field Sunday.

AUGUST 27, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Taking seat Wednesday Butler is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's game versus the Royals, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Impact The Athletics have faced a lot of lefties lately and the left-handed hitting Butler has now been out of the lineup for two straight. He did appear in Tuesday's game as a pinch-hitter, so perhaps he'll see some more action off the bench again in this one. Esteury Ruiz is in center field Wednesday.

AUGUST 23, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Not starting versus lefty Butler is not in the lineup Tuesday versus the Royals.

Impact Butler will not start with lefty Angel Zerpa on the mound for the Royals. Butler has appeared in every game since Aug. 11. Esteury Ruiz will shift to center field, Brent Rooker will play in right field with Jonah Bride being inserted into the lineup as the designated hitter to bat leadoff.

AUGUST 22, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Out of lineup Butler will be on the bench for Saturday's game against Baltimore.

Impact The Athletics presumably want to see what Butler can do down the stretch as they think about building their roster for 2024 and beyond, but so far, they haven't been interested in seeing what he can do against same-sided pitching. He owns a .760 OPS through his first 25 big-league plate appearances but has sat against both lefties the A's have faced since his call-up, including Saturday's starter Cole Irvin. Esteury Ruiz will be the center fielder Saturday.

AUGUST 19, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Heads to bench Wednesday Butler is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cardinals.

Impact For the first time since being called up from Triple-A Las Vegas last weekend, Butler will head to the bench after he went 4-for-19 with a home run, two doubles, two RBI and an additional run in his first five big-league games. Butler should get the opportunity to play on a near-everyday basis moving forward now that Oakland has an opening in the outfield following JJ Bleday's (knee) recent move to the 10-day injured list.

AUGUST 16, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Launches first big-league home run Butler went 1-for-4 with a two-run homer in Tuesday's 6-2 loss to St. Louis.

Impact The 23-year-old rookie took advantage of a hanging slider thrown by Dakota Hudson, sending it 437 feet to right field for a two-run bomb. Butler's first career long ball left his bat at an impressive 111 mph. Oakland's fifth-ranked prospect is now 4-for-19 (.211) with two doubles and a home run through his first five major-league games.

AUGUST 16, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Laces first two big-league hits Butler went 2-for-8 with two doubles -- his first two big-league hits -- over the two weekend games against the Nationals.

Impact Butler drew starts in each installment of the three-game interleague set against the Nationals and laced both of his first two big-league hits for extra bases. The promising prospect has now toiled at three professional levels this season and has encouragingly struck out just twice over his first 12 big-league plate appearances.

AUGUST 14, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Hitless in big-league debut Butler, making his major-league debut, went 0-for-4 in a loss to the Nationals on Friday.

Impact The promising prospect, who started the season at Double-A Midland, completed his meteoric rise through the ranks by donning an Athletics uniform Friday. While Butler failed to reach safely in his first four plate appearances, he made contact on each occasion -- an extension of the sub-20.0 percent strikeout rates he posted in both minor-league stops this season -- and should have plenty of opportunity to acclimate to big-league arms for what remains of the 2023 campaign.

AUGUST 12, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Batting eighth in MLB debut Butler is starting in right field and batting eighth in his MLB debut Friday versus the Nationals.

Impact Butler was called up to the Athletics on Wednesday after delivering a .284/.350/.475 slash line with 15 homers, 70 RBI, 21 steals and 67 runs scored in 89 games this summer between Double-A Midland and Triple-A Las Vegas. The 23-year-old outfielder should get regular playing time down the stretch as the A's look ahead to 2024 and beyond.

AUGUST 11, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Headed to majors The Athletics called Butler up from Triple-A Las Vegas on Wednesday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Impact Butler started the season with Double-A Midland before reaching Triple-A in mid-July, and he'll now get his first taste of major-league action Friday during Oakland's next series against the Nationals. The 23-year-old outfielder is slashing .281/.347/.473 through 412 plate appearances between Double-A and Triple-A this season with 15 homers, 70 RBI and 21 stolen bases. Butler provides an interesting power/speed combination that could earn him regular playing time on an Athletics team that seems motivated to get its top prospects some reps in the majors to close out what has been a rough season.

AUGUST 10, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

A's set to promote No. 7 prospect Butler (source) OAKLAND -- The A’s kicked off a youth movement following the All-Star break by calling up their top two position player prospects in Tyler S...

AUGUST 10, 2023 • MLB.COM

Solid start in Vegas Butler, who was promoted to Triple-A Las Vegas on Friday, is 5-for-19 with a double, a home run, six RBI, a walk, three steals and three runs across his first four games with the A...

Impact The promising 23-year-old has struck out just once in 20 plate appearances as well, certainly an encouraging early sign against a higher caliber of arms and following a significant improvement in his contact rates during a 318-plate-appearance sample at Double-A Midland. Butler's intriguing mix of power and speed has earned him a brisk climb up the organizational ladder thus far, and a strong finish down the stretch of the minor-league season would almost certainly lead to Butler's first opportunity in the majors in 2024.

JULY 19, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Getting it done at Double-A Butler owns a .273/.344/.454 slash line with 24 extra-base hits and 38 RBI across 256 plate appearances with Double-A Midland this season.

Impact The red-hot prospect also has 10 stolen bases, 25 walks, 42 runs, and perhaps just as encouraging, a 19.1 percent strikeout rate that's by far the lowest of any of his minor-league stops. After mustering just a .195 average and .601 OPS over 101 games in Rookie ball to open his professional career, Butler has taken off offensively and now appears to have significantly improved his ability to make consistent contact. Having apparently closed that one hole -- at least against Double-A arms -- in his otherwise impressive profile, Butler appears to be closing in on a bump up to Triple-A Las Vegas.

JUNE 20, 2023 • ROTOWIRE