'Part of my path': Kaprielian rejuvenated after stint in Minors

OAKLAND -- Falling out of the A’s starting rotation and struggling through the first month of the 2023 season, James Kaprielian sensed a demotion to the Minor Leagues was imminent. He dreaded the thought of losing the spot in the Majors he’d established since 2021.

Sure enough, following a rough outing in relief last month against the Angels on April 24 at Angel Stadium that ballooned his ERA to 12.94, Kaprielian was summoned to manager Mark Kotsay’s office, where he learned he was being optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas.

“If I’m being honest, I thought that it would be the end of the world,” Kaprielian said of the demotion. “It had been something that had been clouding me for a long time. I felt like it was coming. I knew it was coming, and the world kept spinning when I heard the news.”

Softening the blow for Kaprielian was that the team was near his hometown of Laguna Hills at the time. With the support of his friends and family, the right-hander took a couple of days to clear his mind before heading back to the Minors.

“I just bought into it,” Kaprielian said. “This is my journey. It’s just part of my path. It’s not always come up to The Show and stick here. I’ve been up here for the last two years, so it is different. But it’s just part of my path. That was important for me to try and buy into.”

Seeking to regain his rhythm on the mound, Kaprielian put together a pair of solid outings at Triple-A Las Vegas. Recalled to make a spot start in Saturday’s 5-0 loss to the Rangers at the Coliseum, he carried over that success by producing just the eighth quality start by an A’s pitcher this season, limiting a potent Texas offense to three runs on six hits and a walk with a season-high seven strikeouts over seven innings.

Considering Kaprielian had matched his career-high of seven innings just three times in 50 career Major League starts coming in, Saturday certainly felt like a positive step forward.

“I thought Kap did a great job today,” Kotsay said. “When he [was sent down], you can tell he was disappointed. The message was to go down and pitch and be prepared for whenever that time comes. He obviously has done that. For him to come in and step in there today was great.”

Among the noticeable differences from Kaprielian’s first big league stint this season was a slider that appeared to have a bit more bite. He threw the pitch 32 times and generated 16 swings and five whiffs, utilizing it as the putaway pitch on three of his strikeouts.

Kaprielian was also in “attack mode” throughout, with 69 of his 104 pitches going for strikes. The aggressiveness worked against him at times, including in the fourth inning as Nathaniel Lowe took him deep for a solo shot. But the constant pounding of the strike zone allowed him to work deep and keep damage to a minimum. Kaprielian’s lone walk did not come until the seventh, and even that was a competitive battle with Bubba Thompson that went to a full count.

“I was a little bit anxious early on,” said Kaprielian, whose flight from Las Vegas to Oakland landed just three hours before first pitch. “Then I felt me and [catcher] Shea [Langeliers] just click. There was just a time where we were going fastball in and I was just executing and going for it. Being the hunter. There wasn’t that question in the back of my mind out there today of, ‘Can I execute this pitch.’ I was just going for it, and I think the results with the swings showed.”

It’s unclear what awaits Kaprielian going forward. The main reason for his callup was to provide Oakland’s starters an extra day of rest, so a move to the bullpen or demotion to Triple-A is a real possibility. Whatever comes his way, Kaprielian said he was just grateful for the chance to go seven innings and provide a depleted A’s bullpen some rest.

“I see how hard the arms are working up here. It’s good to get those guys a break,” Kaprielian said. “If they send me down again, I’m going to continue to work and be the person I am. Try to be a good teammate and leader. Continue to learn from those guys down there and do what I have to do to get back on track.”