Jackson was placed on the 15-day injured list by the Athletics on Friday with a right flexor tendon strain.
It's an injury which typically results in longer than a minimum stay on the IL. Jackson was part of the closer mix in a messy A's bullpen situation but now figures to be out of commission for at least a month or so. Not a single active member of the bullpen has recorded a save this season.
Jackson picked up the save Saturday against the Royals. He gave up one hit and one walk while striking out two over one scoreless inning.
Jackson grabbed his first save of the season, taking advantage of Trevor May's (personal) presence on the 15-day injured list and Jeurys Familia recently being designated for assignment. May's rehab assignment was recently paused, making it unclear when he might rejoin the A's. Jackson appears to be Oakland's preferred option at closer for now, but he'll likely remain an unsavory fantasy option considering Saturday's win was just the team's eighth of the year.
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Athletics' Zach Jackson: Gets second win Sunday
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Jackson (2-1) got the win against the Reds on Sunday, firing a scoreless ninth inning during which he allowed two hits and recorded two strikeouts.
Jackson labored some to preserve the 4-4 tie he'd entered the game under, allowing a single and double to Kevin Newman and Spencer Steer, respectively, to open the frame. However, he powered himself out of trouble with swinging strikeouts of Jonathan India and Tyler Stephenson before inducing an inning-ending groundout from Henry Ramos. Jackson was then rewarded with his resiliency via Esteury Ruiz's game-winning single in the home half of the ninth, giving him both his 2023 wins in addition to his first hold in the last four appearances.
Jackson (0-1) was charged with the loss in Wednesday's extra-inning loss to the Guardians, allowing two runs (one earned) on a hit, a walk and a wild pitch over one inning. He struck out one.
Tasked with preserving a 4-4 tie when he entered in the 10th inning, Jackson immediately issued a walk to Myles Straw and then uncorked a wild pitch that moved both him and inning-opening runner Andres Gimenez up a base. After subsequently surrendering an RBI groundout and RBI single to Will Brennan and Steven Kwan, respectively, Jackson was on the hook for the loss he was eventually charged with. The right-hander's struggles Wednesday notwithstanding, Jackson should remain a trusted member of the manager Mark Kotsay's late-inning bullpen arsenal and had opened the season with three straight scoreless appearances before the hiccup.
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Athletics' Zach Jackson: Control issues in spring
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Jackson sports a 1-0 record, 4.50 ERA and 2.17 WHIP across six innings in six Cactus League appearances.
The right-hander was a highly valuable bullpen asset as a rookie in 2022 before ending the season on the injured list with a shoulder strain, producing a 2-3 record, 27 holds, three saves and a 3.00 ERA across 54 appearances. Jackson has experienced some control issues as he works off rust this spring, however, issuing multiple walks in three appearances. Nevertheless, the 28-year-old impressively managed to avoid any damage until his most recent outing Saturday against the Reds, when he allowed his only three runs of Cactus League play thus far across just one-third of an inning.
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Athletics' Zach Jackson: Looks ready for spring debut
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Jackson (shoulder) is listed as an available option out of the Oakland bullpen for Monday's Cactus League game against the Rockies, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Jackson closed the 2022 campaign on the injured list with a shoulder strain suffered in early September, but he avoided surgery to address the injury and appears to be back to full strength for spring training. Oakland has yet to formally name a closer for Opening Day, and Jackson should factor into the late-inning mix in some capacity after a strong showing as a rookie a season ago. Over his 54 appearances with the big club spanning 48 innings, the right-hander accrued a 3.00 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 67:33 K:BB while collecting three saves and 27 holds.
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Athletics' Zach Jackson: Likely done for season
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A's manager Mark Kotsay said Tuesday it's unlikely that Jackson (shoulder) will pitch again this season, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
Jackson has been making progress with his strained right shoulder, the issue is simply that there isn't enough time left in the season for Jackson to come back. The rookie reliever will likely have to wait until 2023 to pitch again following his 3.00 ERA, 1.27 WHIP campaign in 2022.
Jackson's recent MRI revealed a shoulder strain, and he's expected to rest all of next week before likely embarking on a rehab assignment, the team's official site reports.
The right-hander, who's shouldered a heavy workload as a rookie this season with 54 appearances, still has a chance to return to action in 2022 if his rehab assignment goes off without setbacks and is of relatively short duration. Manager Mark Kotsay praised the 27-year-old's impressive body of work, which includes a 3.00 ERA, 27 holds and a 12.6 K/9, and confirmed the organization will err on the side of caution but noted "any time a player can finish the season, you want to give him that opportunity."
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Athletics' Zach Jackson: Out with shoulder inflammation
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Jackson was placed on the 15-day injured list Tuesday with right shoulder inflammation.
Jackson hasn't seen game action since Aug. 24 and will now be unavailable for at least the next couple weeks due to the shoulder issue. Dany Jimenez (shoulder) was recently ruled out for the rest of the season, leaving A.J. Puk as the leading candidate for save opportunities going forward.
Jackson recorded a save Wednesday against the Angels, tossing a perfect frame during which he struck out two batters.
Jackson protected a two-run, ninth-inning lead with ease, notching a pair of punchouts and retiring all three batters he faced on 14 pitches. It was a strong bounce-back performance after the right-hander took a loss against the White Sox his last time out. With Lou Trivino now a Yankee, Jackson could be Oakland's closer of choice -- A.J. Puk, who is also in competition for the role, worked the seventh inning and picked up his 14th hold in the contest. Dany Jimenez, who was recently activated from the injured list, also figures to be in the ninth-inning mix.
Athletics' Zach Jackson: Takes third loss Saturday
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Jackson (2-3) took the loss against the White Sox on Saturday, allowing an earned run on a hit and a wild pitch over one-third of an inning.
The normally reliable Jackson was entrusted with preserving a 2-2 tie when he entered in the ninth inning, but he conceded a leadoff double to Gavin Sheets and eventually allowed the winning run to score on a wild pitch while facing Tim Anderson. The stumble was a rare one for the right-hander, who'd last given up an earned run June 23, a span of 14 appearances.
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Athletics' Zach Jackson: Records second save
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Jackson recorded his second save in a win over the Rangers on Saturday, firing a scoreless ninth inning during which he recorded two strikeouts.
After Sam Moll earned his 10th hold with a strong 1.1-inning performance that served as a bridge to the ninth inning, Jackson took over and disposed of the Rangers on 13 pitches to close out the win. The right-hander has the swing-and-miss stuff to seemingly thrive in high-leverage spots, posting a 12.7 K/9 across what is now an 11-appearance, 10.2-inning stretch during which he hasn't allowed an earned run.
