Good day, everyone, and Happy Fourth of July!
This week I turn my eye west and on pitcher Gage Jump of the Philadelphia/Kansas City/Oakland/Sacramento/Future Las Vegas Athletics. Guess if we wait long enough, they will end up back east.
Like many younger players these days, Gage Jump attended college and then had a quick run through the minors before making their major league debut. At the time he was recalled from the minors, Jump was not having a great season at Triple-A Las Vegas as he was 0-2 with a 4.50 ERA and 1.474 WHIP, thanks to allowing 8.5 hits per nine innings and 4.7 walks.
But the A’s saw more than the stats and promoted him, and he has since been a solid member of the rotation.
Let’s take a look at Gage Jump, an up-and-coming dynasty player.
The Stats
| YEAR | LEVEL | G-GS | W-L | IP | ERA | WHIP | H/9 | BB/9 | K/9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-24 | NCAA | 24-18 | 7-3 | 99.1 | 3.53 | 1.097 | 6.9 | 3.0 | 11.1 |
| 2025 | A+|AA | 26-24 | 9-7 | 112.2 | 3.28 | 1.101 | 7.2 | 2.7 | 10.5 |
| 2026 | AAA | 9-9 | 0-2 | 38.0 | 4.50 | 1.474 | 8.5 | 4.7 | 13.3 |
| 2026 | Athletics | 7-7 | 3-2 | 40.0 | 2.93 | 1.125 | 7.9 | 2.3 | 9.0 |
Coming out of high school, Jump was one of the top prospects but was committed to play for UCLA. The Padres still drafted him in the 18th round in 2021, but he was set on heading to college and stuck with his decision to play for the Bruins.
As a freshman, he appeared in 7 games, making three starts, and was 1-1 with a 3.86 ERA and 1.286 WHIP before needing Tommy John surgery and missing all of the 2023 season. He transferred to LSU ahead of the 2024 season and went 6-2 with a 3.47 ERA and 1.060 WHIP for the Tigers before being drafted in the second round and then signing for an over-slot $2 million.
The Athletics’ decision to invest heavily in Gage Jump has paid quick dividends. Jump spent the 2025 season pitching at the High-A and Double-A level before starting this season at Triple-A. He entered the season ranked as a top 100 prospect by Baseball America, MLB, and Baseball Prospectus. After only nine starts, he was recalled by the A’s and made his major league debut on May 26 against Seattle.
The Tools
- Four Seam Fastball: 48% | 96.3 mph
Since joining the Athletics organization, Jump has seen his fastball velocity go from 92 to 94 mph to now averaging 94.6 mph and topping out at 99.3 mph. And he has solid control of the pitch as well, throwing it for a strike 63% of the time.
This is not a pitch that Jump throws past hitters, as they have only an 18.2 Whiff% against it. But hitters have only a .275 batting average against the four-seamer with a .362 SLG. Jump does a good job of throwing up in the zone, as the pitch has a bit more tail away from right-handed hitters than what the average left-handed pitcher gets.
- Slider: 26% | 87.5 mph
The slider is proving to be a solid pitch against major league hitters, as they currently have only a .250 average and .350 SLG against the pitch. Coming in about 9 mph slower than his fastball, Jump’s slider has more lateral movement than drop. Compared to other left-handed pitchers, his slider has 1.1 inches less drop but 0.8 inches more break. In a way, it is a hard sweeper, or his sweeper is a slow slider.
No matter how you want to describe it, it is a pitch that is generating a 25.9% whiff rate and only a 30.3% hard hit percentage.
- Curve: 12% | 82.8 mph
Gage Jump likes his slider more than his curve right now, but the curve may be his best pitch – at least statistically. Through his first seven starts, opponents are hitting only .095 against the curve with a .095 SLG. The pitch is also producing a 27% whiff rate and a 45% strikeout rate, with 10 punchouts in 22 at-bats.
Unlike his slider, Jump’s curve has great vertical movement and not much horizontal movement. Compared to other lefties, his curve has 1.5 inches more drop but 1.3 inches less break. It is more of the traditional 12-to-6 curve.
- Change: 8% | 88.2 mph
Jump uses the change to play off his four-seamer as he throws the pitch with 3.8 inches of less drop and 1.1 inches less tail than the typical lefty. And it is a pitch he uses only against righties as he nibbles on the outside edge of the plate in order to set up his slider. Like his curve, the change has been very effective as hitters have yet to get a hit against the pitch and have a 40% whiff rate.
- Sweeper: 6% | 84.4 mph & Sinker: 1% | 95.0 mph
The sweeper and the sinker are two more pitches Jump throws, though the sinker is rarely used and the sweeper has not been very effective compared to his other pitches. Against the sweeper, hitters have a .308 average with a .385 SLG. Thrown mostly against lefties, the pitch is pretty average, at best, right now. It has 2.8 inches less drop and 0.7 inches less break compared to other left-handed pitches, likely due to the fact that he throws it 3.4 mph faster.
As for the sinker, he has thrown it only four times this year. So he throws it, but really doesn’t.
The Results
As is typical of rookie pitchers, Gage Jump has had his ups and downs through his first seven starts. In his debut against Seattle, he allowed four earned runs on one walk and nine hits in five innings of work with five strikeouts. His next two starts were much better, allowing a combined one run on six hits and four walks in 13.1 innings with eight strikeouts.
Then came another so-so start (three runs in five innings) against Colorado, followed by two more great starts against the Angels and Giants as he combined for 12 shutout innings on four hits and four walks with 16 strikeouts. But then came a clunker versus the Dodgers as he gave up five runs on 11 hits in 4.2 innings of work.
The clunkers are not great, but when he has his pitches working, Jump is proving he can get big league hitters out and be a very effective pitcher. Because he is only six feet tall, there are some concerns that he may end up in the bullpen. But there are plenty of “short” pitchers who have proven they can handle the load of being a starter, and Jump has basically been a starter his whole career, so I’m not worried about those concerns.
He is a bit of a fly ball pitcher, as 59.3% of the balls put into play have been fly balls or line drives. In a park like the bandbox the A’s currently play in, that is not great news. And right now his splits show the difference when he is at home and on the road. At home, he has a 4.98 ERA and 1.431 WHIP, allowing 12 runs on 26 hits and five walks in 21.2 innings of work. But get Jump on the road, and he is a beast, posting a 2-0 record with a 0.49 ERA as he has allowed only one run on nine hits (two home runs) and five walks in 18.1 innings.
For me, Gage Jump is proving he can succeed at this level, and there is no reason why you shouldn’t add him if he is a free agent in your league or try to trade for him to strengthen your starting staff.
Thanks!
Thank you for reading, and come back again next week.
