In Oakland, backstop often a stopgap
Life is cyclical with the A’s. Out with the old — well, the semi-old — in with the new.
Braves catcher Kurt Suzuki can relate.
The A’s traded Suzuki to the Nationals in August 2012 to make room for the next best thing, Derek Norris, who assumed catching duties until he was traded to San Diego two years later.
More recently, catcher Stephen Vogt was designated for assignment Thursday because the A’s deemed Bruce Maxwell the next best thing.
“Kind of a similar situation,” Suzuki said Thursday during the Giants’ series in Atlanta. “You’ve got a young guy in the wings. I don’t know much about Maxwell. All things considered, he must be pretty good if they let go of a guy the caliber of Vogt. Obviously, Oakland has to see what they’ve got in him, and now is probably the time.”
It was Suzuki’s time in June 2007 when he made his bigleague debut. A month later, the A’s traded veteran catcher Jason Kendall to the Cubs.
That’s how it works in the East Bay. Not every team has a Buster Posey or Yadier Molina, but not every team is like the A’s and turns it over so quickly.
Suzuki reminded that the A’s reached the playoffs three straight seasons not long ago with such a strategy and said, “They’ve got to see what they’ve got. They build teams on development. Still do. They get freeagent veterans here and there, but basically they develop their team. It’s to the point they’ve got to see what they’ve got down there.”
Suzuki was Vogt’s teammate briefly before the trade to Washington and when he was traded back to Oakland for the end of the 2013 season.
“Guy’s a gamer,” Suzuki said. “He plays through nicks and a lot of crap you get when you’re catching but never says anything. He plays the game right.”
Braves third-base coach Ron Washington, who spent years coaching in Oakland, said from afar that Thursday was a “sad day for the Bay Area because Vogt was always one of the most popular guys and a tremendous teammate.”
From this corner, we envision Vogt managing in the big leagues one day. His knowledge, temperament, competitiveness, communication skills and humor are the perfect mix.
By the way, the day afterVogt was designated for assignment, Norris was designated for assignment by the Rays.
Kid power: Someone asked Giants manager Bruce Bochy whom he’d like to see in the Home Run Derby, and the first two names he mentioned were Aaron Judge of the Yankees and Cody Bellinger of the Dodgers.
They’re the young faces of baseball who lead their respective leagues in homers, as rookies, and don’t be surprised if both are MVP candidates come September. Never have we had rookies win the National League and American League MVPs in the same year. In fact, the only rookie MVP winners were Ichiro Suzuki (2001) and Fred Lynn (1975).
For now, we can only hope Judge and Bellinger face off in the July 10 derby, Judge, the 6-foot-7, 282-pounder with absurd power from Linden (San Joaquin County), against Bellinger, the 6-4 lefty with the majestically smooth swing. Both are open to the idea, and Bellinger has already said his dad would pitch to him.
Clay Bellinger played 183 games in parts of four seasons in the majors, mostly as a Yankee, and totaled 12 homers. His kid hit that in his first 36 games. Cody has 22 homers, the fastest in history to get there. No one has more since April 25, the day he was recalled from Triple-A to face the Giants.
Remember when Bellinger and Giants rookie Christian Arroyo, who was promoted a day earlier, made quick, simultaneous splashes? Arroyo was sent back to the minors in early June and is on the disabled list.
Panda pain: Are we seeing the end of Pablo Sandoval? The Red Sox had been playing Josh Rutledge at third base with Sandoval on the disabled list with an inner ear infection, his second stint on the DL this season, before Rutledge went on the seven-day concussion list Saturday.
Even when healthy and not extremely overweight, Sandoval has struggled on both offense and defense. His $95 million contract extends through 2019, and the Giants can consider themselves fortunate they didn’t re-sign him.
The great Panda has been replaced by a Rule 5 draftee, and perhaps what transpired in Sandoval’s final game before going on the DL suggests his days are numbered in Boston. Chris Young pinch hit for him in the eighth inning, even with the Red Sox having no one to play third base in the bottom of the inning.
Turns out, Christian Vazquez played third. A catcher. His first appearance at third since 2009 in Class A. Number retirements: The Red Sox retired David Ortiz’s number, and the White Sox retired Mark Buehrle’s number.
Some teams might wait to see if a guy is a Hall of Famer. This is nothing new for the White Sox, who retired Harold Baines’ number while he was still playing.
We’re not complaining. Buehrle was tremendously popular on Chicago’s South Side, and players aren’t lining up for No. 56 anyway. If Commissioner Rob Manfred wants to teach pitchers how to quicken the pace of games, he should simply send them videos of Buehrle.
A game I covered in 2003 pitting Buehrle and Oakland’s Mark Mulder lasted 1 hour and 49 minutes. Even with a rain delay, it was under 2 hours. Mulder pitched on multiple fireworks nights at the Coliseum, and his games ended so quickly that fans had to wait for darkness before enjoying the pyrotechnics.