The squad continues to get healthier. Just hours before their second game against the Detroit Tigers the Athletics announced the activation of left fielder Tyler Soderstrom from the 10-day IL, while optioning infielder Max Muncy to make room on the active roster:
It turns out to be a best-case scenario for Soderstrom and the club as hip issues can sometimes snowball into more serious problems. The lefty swinging Soderstrom will return
to the club after missing just over a week with the left hip impingement and the 24-year-old will be a welcomed return to the lineup. Soderstrom has been one of the better hitters in the lineup this season, slashing .242/.343/.460 with 13 long balls along with his solid play in left field, and was having a quality June before heading to the shelf. The club could have been extra cautious with the All-Star break just days away so the activation could be a great sign that he’s completely recovered and ready to roll.
As for Muncy, the club’s Opening Day third baseman has just not found his stroke at the big league level quite yet. The former first round pick has hit just .227/.303/.369 with five home runs this season, which comes out to 11% worse than league average. He missed some time with a hand fracture but he’s been off the IL for exactly a month and continued to struggle both in the batter’s box and in the field. He’ll now head to Triple-A and work on his mechanics and hopefully straighten things out in a lower-pressure environment. In the meantime the hot corner will likely be occupied by some combination of Zack Gelof and Joshua Kuroda-Grauer. That duo should definitely provide more offense than Muncy.
