Jack Perkins (baseball)
Jackson Scott Perkins is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Athletics of Major League Baseball. He made his MLB debut in 2025.
Amateur career
Perkins attended Kokomo High School in Kokomo, Indiana, where he played baseball. He was selected by the Atlanta Braves in the 39th round of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft, but did not sign and instead honored his commitment to play college baseball at the University of Louisville for the Louisville Cardinals baseball team.Perkins made his collegiate debut with Louisville in 2019 as a freshman. He pitched a total of innings for the year, going 3–0 with a 4.18 ERA and 37 strikeouts. He underwent elbow surgery after the season, and did not make an appearance in 2020 while recovering. He returned to pitch in 2021, pitching 16 innings and compiling a 7.31 ERA. After the season, he transferred to Indiana University. He started 15 games for Indiana in 2022 and went 3–4 with a 5.10 ERA and 91 strikeouts over 83 innings.
Professional career
The Oakland Athletics selected Perkins in the fifth round of the 2022 Major League Baseball draft. Perkins made his professional debut with the rookie-level Arizona Complex League Athletics and also played for the Stockton Ports, pitching ten innings between the two affiliates.To open the 2023 season, Perkins was assigned to the Lansing Lugnuts before being promoted to the Midland RockHounds. Over 22 games between the two teams, Perkins went 4–3 with a 4.10 ERA and 93 strikeouts over innings. After the season, he was selected to play in the Arizona Fall League for the Mesa Solar Sox, with whom he did not allow a run over ten appearances. Perkins spent the 2024 season back with Midland and missed time due to a lat injury, but still started 15 games and went 4–1 with a 2.96 ERA and 100 strikeouts in 76 innings.
Perkins missed the start of the 2025 season due to injury but made his season debut in May with the Las Vegas Aviators. In nine starts, he posted a 3–2 record and 2.86 ERA with 68 strikeouts over 44 innings of work. On June 22, 2025, Perkins was promoted to the major leagues for the first time. He made his MLB debut that night versus the Cleveland Guardians at Sutter Health Park, pitching three scoreless innings in relief with two strikeouts. On June 28, Perkins recorded his first career save, tossing scoreless innings of a 7–0 victory over the New York Yankees. On August 9, he recorded his first career win, allowing three runs over six innings pitched against the Baltimore Orioles.