Kurtz (forearm) will start at first base and bat leadoff Thursday against the Red Sox.
Kurtz made an early exit from Wednesday's contest after taking a pitch off his forearm, but he's been cleared to return to the starting nine after MRI results came back clean Thursday. The 23-year-old slugger owns an .890 OPS through 426 plate appearances on the season, but he's gone just 1-for-12 with a three-run homer and seven strikeouts since returning from the injured list Saturday.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Will undergo MRI on Thursday
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Athletics manager Mark Kotsay said Wednesday that Kurtz will undergo an MRI on Thursday after X-rays on his left forearm were "kind of unclear," Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
Kurtz was forced to depart Wednesday's contest versus the Red Sox after being struck on the forearm by a Patrick Sandoval pitch. The Athletics should offer an update on the star first baseman's status later Thursday. Kurtz just returned from the injured list less than a week ago after missing time with a thumb injury.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Launches 21st homer
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Kurtz went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run and a walk in Sunday's 11-8 loss to the Twins.
Kurtz returned from a thumb injury Saturday, but he stayed cold at the plate. When he went deep Sunday, he snapped an 0-for-25 stretch at the plate that dated back to July 3. The first baseman should be able to turn things around, though his 32.1 percent strikeout rate is an obvious flaw, especially since he's struck out 17 times over nine contests in July. Kurtz is batting .264 with a .901 OPS, 21 homers, 69 RBI, 62 runs scored, 15 doubles, one triple and seven stolen bases over 94 games this season.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Not ready for baseball activities
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The Athletics announced Saturday that Kurtz remains limited to participating in range-of-motion and strengthening exercises during his rehab for a right thumb capsule sprain, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
Kurtz was placed on the 10-day IL on July 11 due to the injury and will be without a clear timeline for a return until he's able to resume taking part in baseball activities. In the meantime, Tommy White, Jonah Heim and Jeff McNeil could all be candidates to pick up reps at first base in Kurtz's absence.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Officially placed on IL
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The Athletics placed Kurtz on the 10-day injured list Saturday due to a right thumb capsule sprain.
Kurtz jammed his right hand while attempting to field a throw in the first inning of Wednesday's game against the Tigers, with that injury along with an illness contributing to his removal from the game. Now that he's been moved to the IL, Kurtz will sit out Tuesday's All-Star Game, in addition to the Athletics' final two games of the first half versus the White Sox and the club's first series of the second half against the Nationals. Joey Meneses and Jonah Heim will likely be in store for reps at first base while Kurtz is out.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Expected to go on IL
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Kurtz will likely be placed on the 10-day injured list due to a right thumb capsule strain, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
Kurtz was removed from Wednesday's game against the White Sox with what was diagnosed as an illness at the time. However, he appeared to jam his right hand while attempting to field a throw in the first inning of that game, and more tests have revealed a right thumb strain. It's unclear whether the injury is severe enough for Kurtz to warrant a stint on the IL beyond the 10-day minimum. However, assuming he's placed on the IL, it means that the young first baseman would no longer represent the American League in the All-Star Game on Tuesday. An extended absence means there will be more reps at first base available for Joey Meneses and Jeff McNeil.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Out of lineup Friday
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Kurtz is not in the starting lineup for Friday's game against the White Sox.
It's unclear if Kurtz's absence is related to the illness he dealt with earlier this week that caused him to be removed from Wednesday's contest. Kurtz started Thursday but went 0-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts. With Kurtz idle, Joey Meneses is batting sixth and making the start at first base against right-hander Sean Burke.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Swats 19th homer
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Kurtz went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run, an additional RBI, a walk and two total runs scored in Sunday's 9-7 loss to the Angels.
Kurtz had looked a little human, going just 4-for-19 (.211) with a 4:12 BB:K over the previous five games. He got back to his power-hitting ways in this contest, lifting a seventh-inning homer that ended up being the Athletics' last scoring play of the game. The first baseman is up to 19 homers, 61 RBI, 56 runs scored, seven stolen bases, 15 doubles and a triple while batting .290 with a .995 OPS through 77 games this year.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Launches two homers in win
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Kurtz went 3-for-4 with two home runs, five total RBI and a walk in Monday's 11-2 win over the Pirates.
Kurtz put together a monster performance, lacing a two-run line-drive homer in the second inning before launching a towering three-run shot in the eighth, with both blasts going to the opposite field. The first baseman has had his power stroke working of late, blasting seven homers over his past eight games while recording two multi-homer performances during that stretch. Monday's outburst pushed Kurtz's season numbers to a .293 average with a 1.006 OPS, 18 homers, 57 RBI, 51 runs and seven stolen bases across 71 contests.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Goes deep twice in loss
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Kurtz went 3-for-6 with two home runs, three total RBI, three total runs scored and a walk in Monday's 15-14 extra-innings loss to Milwaukee.
Kurtz electrified Las Vegas Ballpark, connecting on a solo shot over the left-field fence in the sixth inning before demolishing a 447-foot, two-run homer to right field in the 10th inning of Monday's back-and-forth affair. The first baseman has now homered in consecutive games and launched six long balls over his past 10 contests. The 23-year-old has blossomed into one of the most feared hitters in the sport, slashing .282/.434/.521 with 14 homers, 12 doubles, a triple, 48 RBI, 45 runs and seven stolen bases across 65 games.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Reaches base four times Sunday
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Kurtz went 2-for-3 with an RBI double, a run scored and two walks in Sunday's 13-8 loss against the Yankees.
Kurtz was unable to extend his home-run streak to three games, but he reached base in four of five plate appearances, highlighted by an RBI double in the eighth inning. The first baseman will close May with a .333/.456/.569 slash line, 13 extra-base hits (five homers), 26 RBI, 21 runs and three stolen bases across 28 games. His .939 OPS through 58 total games ranks fifth among qualified MLB hitters.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Homers again Saturday
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Kurtz went 3-for-4 with a two-run home run and an additional run scored in Saturday's 6-4 win over the Yankees.
Kurtz is rebounding after a brief rough patch earlier in the week when he went 0-for-11 across three games versus the Mariners. He's now cranked a homer in consecutive contests against the Yankees, giving him 10 long balls on the year. Overall this season, the first baseman is batting .283 with a .925 OPS, 40 RBI, 38 runs scored, 11 doubles, one triple and six stolen bases across 57 games.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Lifts solo shot
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Kurtz went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Friday's 8-2 loss to the Yankees.
Kurtz had gone 12 contests without a homer and three games without a hit entering Friday. He ended both droughts with a long ball in the first inning off Carlos Rodon, though that was only to cut the Athletics' deficit to 4-1 after a rough first inning saw A's starting pitcher Luis Severino (arm) leave the game. Kurtz hasn't displayed as much power early this year as he did in 2025, but when he has, he's done it in bunches. The first baseman is batting .274 with a .900 OPS, 38 RBI, 36 runs scored, six stolen bases, nine homers, 11 doubles and a triple over 56 games.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Plates five runs in rout
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Kurtz went 3-for-5 with a double, two runs, five RBI and a stolen base in Tuesday's 14-6 victory versus the Angels.
Kurtz plated the first run of the game with a single in the third inning. He added a two-run single in the sixth and a two-run double in the eighth. The five RBI were a season high for Kurtz and marked the second-highest total of his career, behind the eight runs he drove in during his historic four-homer performance last July. He's been hot in May, batting .328 with three homers, 13 runs, 19 RBI and three stolen bases through 17 contests.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Mashes seventh homer Thursday
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Kurtz went 2-for-3 with a solo home run, a walk and a hit-by-pitch in Thursday's 5-4 loss to the Cardinals.
After going 15 games without leaving the yard, Kurtz lifted his second homer in as many days by leading off the bottom of the first inning with a 442-foot solo shot off Michael McGreevy. The young first baseman continues to flash the same elite bat he showed during his 2025 stint, as over his last 25 games Kurtz is batting 31-for-94 (.330) with a 1.025 OPS. On the year he's now slashing .275/.428/.477 with seven homers, eight doubles, 26 RBI, 27 runs scored and five stolen bases across 194 plate appearances.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Launches grand slam in win
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Kurtz went 2-for-4 with a grand slam, a double and a second run scored in Wednesday's 6-2 win over the Cardinals.
Kurtz had been a bit quiet on the power front, going 15 games without a homer despite batting .271 (16-for-59) in that stretch. He ended the drought in a big way Wednesday, taking Matthew Liberatore deep in the fifth inning to give the Athletics all the offense they needed to win. Kurtz is batting .267 with an .871 OPS, six homers, 25 RBI, 26 runs scored, five stolen bases, eight doubles and one triple over 41 contests this season. He hasn't come close to his pace from last year -- 36 homers in 117 games -- but there's still plenty of upside in the 23-year-old's bat.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Extends on-base streak to 30 games
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Kurtz went 2-for-4 with an RBI, a stolen base and a walk in Wednesday's 6-3 loss to Philadelphia.
Kurtz continued his on-base tear, tallying a pair of singles and drawing a walk to extend his on-base streak to 30 games. He also drew his 35th walk of the campaign, trailing only Mike Trout (36) for the MLB lead. Not known for his speed, Kurtz also swiped his fourth bag of the season, already doubling his total from 2025. The power numbers haven't been overwhelming, but the 23-year-old's ability to consistently reach base has fueled a solid start to 2026, as he's slashing .252/.414/.409 with five homers, five doubles, 17 RBI and 19 runs across 35 contests.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Racks up season-high three RBI
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Kurtz went 2-for-4 with a double, three RBI and a walk in Thursday's 9-6 loss to Texas.
The 23-year-old slugger collected a season-high three RBI on Thursday, also posting his fourth multi-hit effort of the year. Although Kurtz mashed right-handed pitching to the tune of a 1.153 OPS a year ago, he's off to a sluggish start versus right-handers in 2026. He has a .650 OPS through 42 at-bats against righties so far, though Kurtz did enter Wednesday with an elite 58.6 percent hard-hit rate overall and should find his power stroke soon enough.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: First day off Wednesday
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Kurtz is not in the lineup for Wednesday's game in Atlanta.
Kurtz will receive his first day off of the season after going 1-for-17 with 11 strikeouts through five games. Andy Ibanez will get a start at first base and bat second as the Athletics take on lefty ace Chris Sale at Truist Park.
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Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Caps off season with 36th homer
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Kurtz went 1-for-4 with a two-run homer in Sunday's 9-2 loss against the Royals.
The rookie slugger provided Oakland's only offense of the night with a 423-foot blast off Sam Long in the eighth inning, marking his 36th homer of the season and his seventh since September 10. Over that span, he hit .233 with 13 RBI while continuing to show his game-changing power. Kurtz looks like the clear favorite for AL Rookie of the Year honors, as he'll finish the regular season with an impressive .290/.383/.619 slash line, 26 doubles, 86 RBI and 90 runs scored to go along with his outstanding long-ball total across 488 plate appearances.
