A’s prized prospect to start Wednesday or Thursday vs. Angels
OAKLAND — The A’s are set at their corner infield spots for years to come with first baseman Matt Olson and third baseman Matt Chapman. If they’re healthy and ready, they’re in the lineup every day, no question.
Will the same thing be said one day about catcher Sean Murphy?
“The labels don’t mean a whole lot,” Murphy said. “If I go out there and don’t perform, then obviously I’m not the catcher of the future.”
Murphy wasn’t in the A’s lineup Tuesday for the start of their three-game series at the Coliseum against the Los Angeles Angels. But manager Bob Melvin said Murphy, the organization’s top prospect among position players, will catch either Wednesday or Thursday with the A’s facing left-handed pitchers on back-to-back days.
Murphy was selected from Triple-A Las Vegas on Sunday when rosters were allowed to expand. The A’s are scheduled to start Tanner Roark on Wednesday and Chris Bassitt on Thursday.
“We’ve known this for a while now and it’s just giving him the proper amount of time and development, and we feel like we have,” Melvin said. “That’s why he’s here, and he’s here for a reason. He’s not just going to sit around.”
Per MLB pipeline, Murphy, 24, is considered the A’s best prospect among position players and the 43rd-best prospect overall in the majors. In 120 at-bats with Triple-A Las Vegas, he had a .308/.386/.625 slash line and an OPS of 1.011.
Murphy had surgery for a torn meniscus in May and injured the same knee in late July. He returned to play three games in the Arizona League from Aug. 15-19 before he was returned to Las Vegas and played eight games from Aug. 21-30.
The A’s began Tuesday one game back of the Cleveland Indians for the second Wild Card spot in the American League. Murphy said his parents, his sister and his girlfriend all made the trip to Oakland after he had about 25 friends and family members at Yankee Stadium, a short distance from where he grew up.
“It’s a dream come true,” Murphy said of being with the big club in September. “Happy to be here, excited to be here. Glad we’re in the hunt. It makes it makes it more fun when you’re playing meaningful games.”
The A’s could use a bit more offense from the catching position. Josh Phegley, who came back from the 10-day injured list (left thumb contusion) on Aug. 16, hit .314 in 11 games in August but managed just five RBI and three extra-base hits in 35 at-bats. Chris Herrmann hit .121 in 13 games in August with one RBI and an OPS of .378.
Murphy said there are certain things he wants to improve on offensively, such as power and plate discipline. His first priority, though, is defense.
“I’ve got to learn a whole new pitching staff here in a few days,” Murphy said. “I want to make sure I get in touch and talk to a lot of these guys, as many as I can in a short period of time.”
The Angels started right-hander Jaime Barria on Tuesday and are scheduled to start lefty Patrick Sandoval on Wednesday. The A’s-Angels series concludes Thursday before Oakland’s homestand ends against the Detroit Tigers.
Friday at 5:15 p.m., the A’s and Tigers will complete their May 19 game that was suspended in the bottom of the seventh inning because of rain. The three-game series between the two teams will officially start after the completion of the suspended game.
Laureano update
Centerfielder Ramón Laureano took batting practice with his teammates Tuesday and said he’s ready to play again whenever the A’s might need him. Melvin, though, said the timetable for Laureano to return remains sometime during the Tigers series.
“We’re going to stick pretty disciplined with that,” Melvin said. “I know he’s eager to play. He was eager to play a week ago. But there’s reasons that we’re doing this and we want to make sure he’s healthy. If all goes well here in the next couple days, I would think (he would be activated) sometime in the Detroit series.”
The A’s are 18-11 since Laureano missed his first game July 30 with a stress reaction in his right shin. Mark Canha played 25 games in August, all in center field, and hit .347 with 11 home runs and 27 RBI.
Melvin said when Laureano returns, Canha will likely slide to right field and he’ll use matchups more for left field. Seth Brown is hitting .423 (11-for-26) with three doubles and seven RBI in seven games with the A’s since Aug. 26.
Stephen Piscotty is not doing any baseball activity at the moment, Melvin said, and it is unknown when he might be able to return from a right ankle sprain.
Rotation plans?
Melvin said there is no clear cut plan for when Sean Manaea might start again. Manaea threw five shutout innings for the A’s on Sunday in his first start since Aug. 24, 2018, but the A’s as of Tuesday have not determined whether they will go to a six man rotation with Fiers, Roark, Bassitt, Homer Bailey and Brett Anderson already in the mix.
Melvin added there also hasn’t been any decision made on whether to bring up Jesús Luzardo from Triple-A. Luzardo last pitched Aug. 30 and had 10 strikeouts and allowed one earned run in six innings.