The A’s announced on Wednesday afternoon mere hours before their series finale against the Mariners that they were placing center fielder Denzel Clarke on the IL with a right foot bone bruise, with fellow outfielder Colby Thomas taking his spot:
It’s a disappointing development for Clarke, who has gotten off to a brutal start at the plate to start the season. He’s continued to display his awesome skills as a center fielder but he’s
looked lost in the batter’s box all season. This could end up being a good thing for Clarke. The injury seems mild and it could give him to get a sort of reset to his season. The A’s don’t need him to hit all that much to be a net positive for them but he can’t be an absolute black hole in the lineup.
How the A’s handle his absence will be fascinating to watch. Lawrence Butler seems like the most likely option to pick up the bulk of playing time in center field, but the team has also been using Zack Gelof up the middle a couple times this year and he could get more playing time there with Clarke’s absence. Or the team could turn to Colby Thomas, who is taking Clarke’s spot on the active roster. He’s gotten off to a solid start in Triple-A with the Aviators as he’s hitting .305 with five home runs. Either way the A’s go, they’ll likely be getting more offense out of the position than they have up to this point.
