Rooker calls game! A's slugger clubs walk-off blast -- and reaches team milestone

WEST SACRAMENTO – Brent Rooker arrived to the Athletics as a waiver claim in November 2022 while seriously contemplating forgoing a Spring Training invite to pursue opportunities in Japan.

You could easily understand why Rooker was considering the move. Baseball overseas is often a more lucrative opportunity to keep the Major League dream alive for players on the fringe, especially one such as Rooker, who was about to join his fourth organization in three years.

Rooker ultimately gave it one last shot stateside with the A’s. Safe to say, that decision has paid off.

Nearly four years later, he’s emerged as a two-time All-Star and leader of this young ballclub, and when the A’s needed him most on Sunday afternoon, the slugger delivered not once, but twice with a two-homer game.

First was a tiebreaking two-run homer in the seventh, then came a booming 364-foot three-run blast in the 10th that he and everyone else inside Sutter Health Park knew was gone as soon as it left his bat to secure the A’s their first series win of 2026 with a 12-10 walk-off victory over the Astros.

This series finale was far more dramatic than it probably needed to be, as the A’s carried a four-run lead into the eighth inning that was squandered by the bullpen and had to battle back. In the end, however, Rooker ensured the team a happy flight to New York, where six games against the Yankees and Mets await, starting Tuesday at Yankee Stadium.

There also may not have been a hitter on this A’s squad that needed those two big swings more than Rooker, who entered Sunday batting .133 (4-for-30) with 14 strikeouts to begin the season.

“It was good to finally do something to help us win or do something good in any fashion,” Rooker said. “I’m proud of our guys today as a whole. We saw some good arms and they put together good at-bats and made some unbelievable plays, yet we were able to battle through all that.”

Rooker’s first two homers of the year were his 100th and 101st as a member of the A’s, which is quite the impressive milestone for a guy whose career was at a crossroads shortly before playing his first game for the A’s in 2023. He is now the 30th player in franchise history to reach 100 homers with the A’s and seventh-fastest to reach the century mark.

1. Khris Davis - 356 games
2. Mark McGwire - 393 games
3. Matt Olson - 399 games
4. Gus Zernial - 419 games
5. Dave Kingman - 447 games
6. Jose Canseco - 450 games
7. Rooker - 453 games

“He’s writing the script, for sure,” manager Mark Kotsay said. “I couldn’t be happier for a player that, when he came to us, had bounced around. We all know the story. But to have the patience and work ethic and determination to be where he’s at today says a lot about the person. I couldn’t be more proud of the man.”

Rooker and the A’s have been a perfect match. He needed them for his first real extended opportunity as a big leaguer, and they needed him for his potential as a middle-of-the-order presence at a time they were desperate for offense while going through a rebuild.

The result now is an elite hitter who signed a five-year, $60 million extension last year and is a big reason for why the A’s believe they are now in position to contend for the playoffs this season.

“I’m obviously super thankful for this organization giving me a shot,” Rooker said. “I’ve loved my time here, and I’ve got several more years to go. I owe a lot to this organization and the people in it, so I’m super happy to be here and get that 100th one.”

Rooker’s two-homer performance certainly feels like one that could snap the A’s out of what has been an early-season lull, and if that ends up being the case, Kotsay revealed that the igniter might have been what took place between Rooker and a chair after Saturday’s painful 11-0 loss.

“He finally got a little angry yesterday and broke a chair,” Kotsay said. “I think that was good for him. He came in today with a different mindset. He’s our guy. … The offense goes when he goes.”

Rooker expanded on the chair-breaking incident.

“It was more like a Hulk smash several times,” Rooker said. “Sometimes, you just have to snap. I snapped yesterday and got it out and we were good to go today. So, it helped.”