Olson in swing of things
Baseball’s chicken-and-egg question — do players thrive because they get consistent playing time or do they get consistent playing time because they’re thriving? — has a perfect case study in A’s first baseman Matt Olson.
Olson homered in each of the final three games of the Baltimore series over the weekend. That meant if the rookie had gone deep in all three games of the Kansas City series that began Monday night, his streak of games with a homer would have equaled the number of stints he has had with the A’s this season: six.
Olson, 23, has accepted his fate of yo-yoing between Oakland and Triple-A Nashville.
“It isn’t as bad of a gig as the media makes it out to be,” Olson said before going 0for-4 Monday. “Anytime I’m up here, I’m happy to be up here.”
His most recent demotion came July 24. Olson said that manager Bob Melvin “just came up to me in the dugout and was like, ‘Someone’s got to go. It sucks that it’s you, but keep doing your thing in Nashville and we’ll get you back up here when we can.’ ”
Olson returned to the big club Wednesday, and this time, it appears he’ll get an extended stay in the majors.
“This is the first real opportunity that he’s gotten,” Melvin said. “When he’s been here before, it’s been kind of an up-and-down thing. He (knew) that at some point in time, he was probably going back down.
“Now, he knows he’s going to get a significant opportunity and he’s taken advantage of it.”
To put some significance to Olson’s recent power surge:
He became the fourth Oakland hitter this season to homer in three consecutive games. The others: Ryon Healy (May 4, 6-7), Matt Chapman (July 22-24) and Khris Davis (Aug. 6, 8-9).
He fell one shy of the Oakland rookie record for homering in consecutive games, set by Dan Johnson in August 2005.
On Sunday, he became the first left-handed hitter to take Baltimore’s Zach Britton deep since April 29, 2013.
Olson is hitting .200 with seven homers in 75 at-bats with the A’s this season. He figures to platoon at first with Healy for the foreseeable future.
“It’s just nice to get in a routine when I’m in there as much as I have been,” Olson said, “and kind of get into a rhythm.”
Olson’s demeanor has impressed Melvin.
“It doesn’t ever look like anything really makes him nervous or antsy,” Melvin said. “He’s a real clear thinker.”