A’s will have to wait on injured prospect Jorge Mateo
MESA, ARIZ. >> A’s top infield prospect Jorge Mateo was one of the players manager Bob Melvin was most excited about seeing in action this spring. Turns out he’s going to have to wait a little longer.
Melvin revealed Tuesday morning that Mateo had sustained a slightly sprained ligament in his left knee a few months ago while playing winter ball in the Dominican Republic. The A’s were waiting to see how the knee would respond at the start of spring training with hopes of a full recovery.
Mateo will still participate in daily team workouts, but with their first game set for Friday it was determined Mateo will not be available to play early on.
“Mateo is gonna be a little bit behind in games,” Melvin said. “Straightahead stuff is fine with him. The issue he’s having is slowing down. He gets going pretty fast. That’s our first semi-casualty at this point.”
Mateo, 22, was one of the players acquired from the Yankees in the trade for Sonny Gray last July. He is considered to be the most athletic player on the roster, and showed it last season by combining to hit .322 with 12 home runs while leading the minor leagues with 52 stolen bases at Single-A and Double-A. Melvin had hoped to get Mateo as many at-bats as possible this spring.
The Mateo injury now makes it two players for the A’s who will not be available to play in games early on. Outfielder Dustin Fowler is meeting with Dr. Charles Bush-Joseph on Friday looking to get cleared to begin playing in games Monday. The A’s plan to be conservative with both.
“We’ve been talking about our athleticism, Fowler and Mateo are two key guys in that,” Melvin said. ” Not to have a guy we were gonna look at extensively, and maybe our most athletic guy, is a little disappointing. But we have to be careful with that.”
There is no timetable for Mateo to start playing in games at this point, as the A’s are still evaluating the situation.
Mateo said he did not feel any issues with his knee on the field during Tuesday’s workout, which included batting practice and situational defensive drills.
“I feel fine,” Mateo said. “The injury happened a while back. Thankfully it wasn’t anything too bad. I feel like I can play right now.”
• Things may be looking up for the A’s as they continue their quest for a new ballpark. During a news conference Tuesday, Manfred had high praise for his recent visit to Oakland for a tour of the Howard Terminal site near Jack London Square.
“The proximity to downtown in general is a positive. I think anytime you have the opportunity to build a ballpark proximate to the water, it can be a big positive,” Manfred said.
While he also pointed out the lingering issues that surround the option, including financing and transportation, Manfred praised A’s owner John Fisher and president Dave Kaval for their continued efforts in the search for a new stadium site.
There’s a lot of work to be done in Oakland in terms of figuring out the more difficult issues … with respect to that site that would need some good, hard thinking and investment in order to make this site work to its maximum potential,” Manfred said. “I give great credit to John Fisher and Dave Kaval. I think they have approached the project of determining where the best site in Oakland is with a professionalism and energy that is really commendable. I remain optimistic that we can make baseball work in Oakland.”
The Howard Terminal option has been priority No. 1 for the A’s since December, when their plans to build a new park near Laney College were rejected by the Peralta Community College District’s Board of Trustees. The only other option being considered at this time is to build at the Oakland Coliseum parking lot.