February 24, 2026

Athletics starting pitching prospect Gage Jump enjoyed a strong professional debut last summer and should be in the mix to join the MLB roster by the 2026 All-Star break. Jump joined the Athletics with the 73rd overall selection out of LSU in the 2024 MLB Draft. The left-hander enters the 2026 season as MLB.com's No. 60 overall prospect and the No. 3-ranked prospect on the team. He made his MiLB debut at High-A in 2025 and needed only 31 innings of work before he was cleared to reach Double-A. At High-A, Jump posted a 2.32 ERA, 0.84 WHIP, with a 45:5 K:BB. At Double-A, Jump took a bit of a step back but still carried a solid 3.64 ERA with a 1.20 WHIP. During this 81 2/3-inning stint, the southpaw struck out 86 batters but saw his walk rate jump from a low 4.1% to a much-higher 8.5%. While his strikeout production decreased, Jump was able to raise his ground-ball rate by nearly 11 points (33.8% - 44.2%). However, he had most of his struggles in the final weeks, surrendering 21 runs (20 earned) over his last 13 1/3 innings. Prior to this rough finish, Jump held a much stronger 1.74 ERA at Double-A. Fantasy managers should expect Jump to benign 2026 back at Double-A, but he may only need brief seasoning before he is cleared to join Triple-A Las Vegas. If he can increase his durability, Jump should be in the mix to join a weak Athletics rotation in the second half. Given his projected timeline, managers should only look to stash the young left-hander in deeper 15-team AL-only leagues at his current 699.5 ADP on NFBC drafts. However, a hot start at Double-A could put him on the stash radar in standard 12-team leagues in the opening months.--Andy Smith