A’s select LHP Hogan Harris and OF Lawrence Butler

OAKLAND, Calif. — The Oakland A’s selected left-handed pitcher Hogan Harris from Triple-A Las Vegas and outfielder Lawrence Butler from High-A Lansing, the club announced today.

Harris pitched for three different teams in the A’s farm system last season and combined to go 2-4 with a 3.42 ERA and .626 opponents OPS in 23 games, including 22 starts. He made seven starts with High-A Lansing, was promoted to Double-A Midland on June 13 where he appeared in eight games, and then earned a promotion to Triple-A Las Vegas where he finished the season with eight starts. The 25-year-old left-hander held the opposition to a .192 batting average and struck out 105 batters in 73.2 innings, an average of 12.83 per nine innings. Harris was the A’s third round selection in the 2018 draft out of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and is 3-9 with a 3.16 ERA in 38 games, including 35 starts, as a minor leaguer. He missed the entire 2018 and 2021 seasons due to injury that eventually led to “Tommy John” surgery, and the 2020 season due to the pandemic.

Butler batted .270 with 11 home runs, 41 RBI, 13 stolen bases and an .825 OPS in 81 games with High-A Lansing in a season interrupted by a two-month stint on the injured list with a dislocated left elbow. He also went 1-for-9 in a three-game rehab assignment with the A’s affiliate in the Arizona Rookie League. The 22-year-old left-handed hitter played for Mesa in the Arizona Fall League following the season and hit .241 with two home runs, 16 RBI, six stolen bases and 15 walks (.389 on-base percentage) in 19 games. Butler received the Dernell Stenson Sportsmanship Award following the AFL season. He was originally selected by Oakland in the sixth round of the 2018 draft and is a .247 career hitter with a .341 on-base percentage, 35 home runs, 153 RBI and 46 stolen bases in 287 games over four seasons in the minors.