Before Athletics right fielder Lawrence Butler emerged as a star during the second half of the 2024 MLB season, the 24-year-old was a struggling prospect dealing with demotion.
Butler made Oakland’s last Opening Day roster in history but was sent to Triple-A Las Vegas on May 14 after slashing .186/.291/.284 roughly 30 percent into his second campaign.
Things were grim for Butler. However, the change in scenery catapulted an electric ascent. In appearing on Jomboy Media’s “Chris Rose Rotation” podcast Monday, Butler explained how being sent to the Las Vegas Aviators was exactly what he needed.
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“Yeah, it was tough for me, of course,” Butler told host Chris Rose. “You dream your whole life of going to the big leagues and never going back to the minor leagues. So, that part was tough on me. I kind of saw it coming because I wasn’t putting up the numbers that anyone would expect me to.
“I was kind of glad they did it to me; I probably needed it. I wasn’t hitting too bad, I was just getting a lot of hard contact and getting out. I think … I was the sixth-unluckiest player in baseball. And it was kind of getting to me. I was frustrated a lot, majority of the time at the field, because I’m putting in the work and not getting results.”
Butler was unlucky as one of baseball’s hardest hitters without the on-base percentage to show for it. But the “Law Dog,” as fans, teammates and media often call him, didn’t quit, and instead was grateful for the reset.
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After bouncing back in Sin City, Butler was summoned back to Oakland on June 18, and following some acclimation, he took over in July.
Butler broke out by slashing .363/.408/.802 with 73 total bases, 33 hits, 27 RBI and 10 home runs over 98 plate appearances in July. He had collected a mere 36 bases in 150 plate appearances prior.
Butler earned an AL Player of the Week honors in mid-July before taking home the title again in September. Who knows where he’d be if not for the demotion.
“When they sent me down, I went to Triple-A [and] kind of just cleared my head,” Butler added. “[I] got away from all the big-league stuff, didn’t really get on my phone. I just stuck to myself more and had my thoughts … at my Triple-A apartment, I was just on the game with my bros. It took me back to a simpler time.
“I needed it as a little getaway. And then I came back, and the rest is history.”
The escape from MLB’s bright lights proved to be everything Butler needed.
He finished the 2024 season with 108 hits, 57 RBI, 22 homers, a 22-game hitting streak and tons of positive attention.
Buter will be a player to follow during the A’s first season at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento and probably won’t see minor-league play for a long while.
And even if he were sent back down, there is good reason to believe Butler would return better than ever.