TOUGH LOSS TO TAKE
Olson fulfills dream as he’s chosen to represent A’s as first-time All-Star
OAKLAND >> The A’s will have one representative at the 2021 MLB All-Star Game in Denver as a reserve. And he is, statistically, one of the best offensive players in the American League.
Via the player vote, Matt Olson will be among the 17 reserve All-Stars, making his first appearance in the Midsummer Classic over his five-year career with the A’s.
“It’s definitely something you dream about as a little kid, to be in the All-Star Game one day,” Olson said. “It’s a special moment. You know I’m a win-first guy and let everything else fall into place. I do truly believe that.”
A reserved personality who prefers to let his play do the talking, Olson, 27, has put together a standout first half
at the plate. Despite hitting a rough patch recently, Olson has maintained an eighthranked .924 OPS and his 20 home runs are tied for fourth in the American League. Olson had a “chip on his shoulder” after a dismal 2020 season and flipped his .195 average with a 31.4% strikeout rate into a .282 average with a 16.4% strikeout rate. He has attributed his success to improved mechanics and the confidence they brought.
“I’m not trying to be one of those guys. But I had a really bad year last year, in my opinion,” Olson said. “Obviously you’re going to check
yourself in the mirror after the season and I couldn’t help but to feel like I was part of the reason we didn’t go all the way. I felt motivated to fix some stuff.”
Olson fixed himself into one of the league’s best players, but the American League first base field was clogged. Toronto Blue Jays’ first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. yielded the highest fan vote across both leagues to earn the starting nod. Olson was squeezed out of the fan vote by Guerrero Jr. (75% of the vote), Houston Astros’ Yuli Gurriel (15%) and Chicago White Sox’s reigning MVP José Abreu (10%).
The A’s haven’t had a player voted in as a starter since third baseman Josh Donaldson in 2014, the only A’s player
to start an All-Star Game in the last 10 years. Manager Bob Melvin and Olson’s teammates campaigned for him to get the start, but the fans went another way despite Olson’s top-tier numbers and the A’s winning record.
“Unfortunately not a lot of people tune into the West Coast games and I do feel like that’s what they were trying to accomplish whenever anyone said anything,” Olson said. “But that’s part of it and we all know that by now. We got a great group of guys and I’m humbled and honored to play with them.”
Because pitchers are the players most likely to opt out of the All-Star Game, A’s starters Sean Manaea and Chris Bassitt could still be on call for an All-Star appearance.
Cleveland’s Shane Bieber made the All-Star Game, but is not expected to play due to an injury.
Manaea (6-5) was named AL Pitcher of the Month for June and holds a 3.13 ERA over 17 starts, ranking seventh in the AL. Just ahead of him is Bassitt at 3.04 ERA over 17 starts.
“Bass and Manaea are two that pop into my head,” Olson said when asked if he’d like to see some teammates join him in Denver. “Especially this month, Manaea has been lights out. Bassitt has been, honestly, since the start of last year as solid a starter as there’s been. He’s not afraid on the mound, he’s challenging people. Those guys have been rocks at the top of the rotation.”