Scouts grade baseball players’ tools on a 20-80 scale. A 20 means he’s far overmatched for that level. An 80-grade tool is generational talent.
Las Vegas Aviators infielder Joshua Kuroda-Grauer has a 55-grade hit tool, but it’s his 80-grade leadership that has impressed the Athletics.
Kuroda-Grauer, rated the No. 10 prospect in the A’s system by MLB Pipeline, has been a standout hitter and leader for the Aviators (36-25) since being promoted from Double-A Midland on May 12.
Usually batting at the top of the order, he’s hitting .351 with three triples for Las Vegas. Kuroda-Grauer helped the Aviators win four out of six in last week’s homestand against the upstate rival Reno Aces, getting hits in five games.
“He’s just a guy that you can always trust to do the right thing, on and off the field,” Las Vegas manager Fran Riordan said. “He’s always there for his teammates. He’s always the first one to congratulate someone when they do something great. He’s always the first one to pick somebody up.”
Kuroda-Grauer credits his mothers, Sumi Kuroda and Edie Grauer, with helping him become the caring, hardworking person he is today.
Growing up in Somerset, New Jersey, Kuroda-Grauer was not highly recruited out of high school. The one Division I offer he had? Rutgers, in his home state. Kuroda-Grauer became a Scarlet Knight so his parents could watch him play regularly.
College coaches and teammates raved about his kind demeanor, such as the time on a team trip to Honolulu where he bought a homeless woman outside their hotel a meal and had a heart-to-heart conversation with her.
It’s not an act or something he does to show off, they said. That’s just the kind of person Kuroda-Grauer is.
“It’s a testament to both my mothers and how they raised me,” Kuroda-Grauer said. “They worked their tails off to allow me to play baseball for a living, so it would be unjust if I go out there and give anything less than 100 percent.”
With Las Vegas this season, Kuroda-Grauer is working on adding more power to his game. He’s bulked up a bit, spending plenty of time in the weight room.
The bat-to-ball skills have never been a question for Kuroda-Grauer, whom the Athletics took in the third round of the 2024 draft. Since getting promoted to the Aviators, he’s been racking up hits in bunches. In 24 games for Las Vegas, he’s had multiple hits in 14 of them.
As vital as he’s been on the field — playing second base, third base and shortstop — he’s been just as important in the clubhouse.
“He’s a better person than he is a player, believe it or not, and he’s a great dude on the field,” said Aviators infielder Tommy White, Kuroda-Grauer’s roommate in Midland. “He’s gonna bring his best effort every day.”
This offseason, the heavily-tatted Kuroda-Grauer added some new ink to his right forearm, showing his journey as a ballplayer. He has tattoos of his jerseys from Franklin High and Rutgers — with an A’s jersey on top.
If he keeps leading the way for Las Vegas, it won’t be long before he’s wearing that A’s jersey on his back.
Major leaguers on the mend
Two former Aviators came back to Las Vegas Ballpark on major league rehab assignments from the Athletics — third baseman Max Muncy and shortstop Jacob Wilson.
Sources said that Muncy, who fractured the fifth metacarpal bone in his left hand in April, will be reactivated prior to Monday’s A’s game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Las Vegas Ballpark.
Riordan said Saturday that Wilson, recovering from a left shoulder subluxation suffered last month, will continue with the Aviators this week as they travel to face the Omaha Storm Chasers.
Muncy joined Las Vegas May 30 and stayed through this past homestand against Reno, where he went 8-for-22 in five games, with two home runs and five RBIs.
“He’s looked great,” Riordan said Saturday. “Taking that much time off and having his balance, and recognizing pitching, and getting his timing where it needs to be to rejoin the major league team.”
Wilson was Las Vegas’ DH on Saturday and shortstop on Sunday. He went 0-for-2 with a walk Saturday, and 1-for-3 with a double and a run scored Sunday.
Lin struggles in Triple-A debut
Lefty starting pitcher Wei-En Lin, rated the No. 4 prospect in the Athletics’ organization and No. 91 in baseball, started his Triple-A tenure Saturday with a strikeout. Lin — the youngest player in the Pacific Coast League, at 20 — caught Aces right fielder Kristian Robinson looking at a changeup to open the game.
He struggled after that, however. Lin was pulled after just two outs, giving up three hits, three walks and five runs (all earned). Las Vegas hitters spared him from a loss, though, rallying to a 21-10 win.
Lin was promoted Friday from Midland after going 3-1 with a 1.93 ERA in 10 starts.
Up next
What: Las Vegas Aviators at Omaha Storm Chasers
When: Tuesday-Sunday
Where: Werner Park, Papillon, NE
Aviators starting pitcher: Tuesday — Joey Estes (2-6, 5.95 ERA)
