Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz has won the American League Rookie of the Year award. (Michaela Schumacher / MLB Photos via Getty Images)

By The Athletic Staff

Nov. 10, 2025 7:29 pm EST

Nick Kurtz did not crack the A’s roster for opening day. He did not hit a home run until his 17th big league game, and didn’t connect on his second until nearly a month deep into his big league career.

At the time, it looked like his teammate, shortstop Jacob Wilson, was the early heavy favorite for an award that wasn’t at all on Kurtz’s mind at the time. The young first baseman was just worried about proving he was worthy of a roster spot.

On Monday — six months later — he was unanimously voted the American League’s Rookie of the Year, after completing one of the most impressive rookie seasons in baseball history. He’d already earned the American League Silver Slugger award at first base the week prior.

“I’ve always had that confidence in myself, that I’m able to do that — be the centerpiece of a lineup, and help that lineup score a bunch of runs,” Kurtz told The Athletic in September. “I think having that confidence in yourself is huge in this game.”

Kurtz’s slow start was quickly forgotten. He morphed from a struggling slugger into a heat-seeking missile — quickly becoming one of the game’s premier power threats. When the season was done, he’d clubbed 36 homers over just 117 games, and finished with a 1.002 OPS and 5.4 bWAR.

122 Hits 86 RBI 36 HR 2 Walk-offs 1 Rookie of the Year pic.twitter.com/sFmrB3v6xw

— Athletics (@Athletics) November 11, 2025

The 22-year-old’s baseball savant page is coated ruby red, indicating that nearly all of his advanced metrics place him at the top of the sport. Bat speed: 98th percentile. Walk rate: 90th percentile. Barrel percentage: 98th percentile. Expected slug: 95th percentile. He hits the ball in the air to the opposite field 24.3 percent of the time, a staggeringly high number for a power-first hitter.

You get the idea.

After tying an MLB record with 19 total bases, including four home runs, in a 6-for-6 game on July 25, pitchers routinely avoided him in the lineup. Through that game, Kurtz had a 10.3 percent walk rate. After that game, it was 16.1 percent, which would have ranked only behind Aaron Judge and Juan Soto, if it occurred over a full season.

“He has enormous power,” then-Angels manager Ray Montgomery said after Kurtz launched his 29th homer on Sept. 6. “You have to be careful when you’re attacking him. He’s the biggest leadoff guy I’ve ever seen.”

Wilson ended up finishing a distant second for the award, despite collecting a .311 batting average, 800 OPS and 3.0 bWAR over 125 games. Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony came in third, despite playing just 71 games this season.

Kurtz will automatically receive a full year of service time for winning the award, meaning he’ll reach free agency a year earlier. The A’s will not receive draft pick compensation for Kurtz’s award, since he did not begin the season on the club’s opening day roster.

Kurtz’s rookie season stacks up with some of the greatest rookie years ever, statistically. In Mike Trout’s first year in 2012, he had fewer homers (30) and a lower OPS (.963), though he did post 49 stolen bases.

Judge hit 52 homers in 2017, with a 1.049 OPS, which will be tough to top, while Albert Pujols’ .329 batting average, along with 37 homers, might also surpass Kurtz. Though less comparable to Kurtz, Ichiro Suzuki’s 242 hits in 2001, along with a Gold Glove, were enough to earn him MVP honors.

What is clear is that Kurtz is in elite company, on a list with first-ballot Hall of Famers.

Kurtz plays at a Triple A ballpark in Sacramento, on a team that finished in fourth place in the American League West standings. He plays for a franchise with an uncertain future, one known to trade away young stars, sometimes well before they reach free agency.

Still, in 2025, Kurtz became the face of a team stacked with young, growing players, and he boasts the potential to become one of the top young stars of the sport.

Nov 11, 2025

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