A’s beat: Amid rash of injuries, Mark Canha chips in everywhere.
The A’s have let no single injury bury them. They’ve rebounded from setbacks to, in order, first baseman Matt Olson (hand), designated hitter Khris Davis (oblique), right fielder Stephen Piscotty (knee) and center fielder Ramon Laureano (shin).
The common denominator is Mark Canha, the super utility player who has subbed for all four teammates while playing solid defense and compiling competitive atbats.
“What he’s meant to this team has been very significant,” manager Bob Melvin said.
Laureano is scheduled to do running drills Tuesday for the first time since he was shelved in late July. He could return to the lineup in late August or early September, but for now, Canha is handling center field nicely.
He’s hitting .333 with a .419 onbase percentage and eight RBIs in 14 August games. His 18 homers rank fourth on the team.
“He hits in the middle of the lineup, hits homers and is playing a really good center field in a place that can be difficult to play center,” Melvin said.
Once Laureano comes back, Melvin will have a nice little problem trying to find atbats for Canha.
“If Laureano’s back in there, then we can do something else with Canha or use him off the bench,” Melvin said. “We’ll find a way to get him in there when Laureano’s back.” Big boppers out: Neither Piscotty nor Davis played Sunday. Piscotty sat out one day after rolling his ankle but is expected to play Tuesday against the Yankees after Monday’s off day. Jurickson Profar, who lost his secondbase job to Corban Joseph, was the DH, replacing the struggling Davis.
“At some point in time, Profar is going to have to get some atbats,” Melvin said. “For someone who basically has played every day, to sit there and not get any reps, it doesn’t serve him very well, nor us.”
As for Davis, Melvin said, “He’s going through a tough period right now . ... It gives him a day to kind of take some pressure off.” Manaea update: Lefthander Sean Manaea, returning from shoulder surgery, allowed two runs and two hits with six strikeouts in a fiveinning stint for TripleA Las Vegas. He threw a seasonhigh 91 pitches in his seventh outing this year.