Tyler Soderstrom returns from injury as A’s lineup begins to rematerialize
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- Tyler Soderstrom was reinstated from the 10-day injured list Wednesday morning.
- After a tough start, Soderstrom held an OPS over 1.000 in his last 30 games.
- Opening Day starter Max Muncy was sent down in a corresponding move.
Another Athletics star is back from injury.
Outfielder Tyler Soderstrom was reinstated from the 10-day injured list Wednesday morning, the A’s announced.
Since Saturday, the injury-battered A’s have gotten back 2025 All-Star shortstop Jacob Wilson, hit-machine utility player Zack Gelof and Soderstrom — all former A’s first-round picks and key fixtures near the top of the team’s batting order.
Soderstrom will hit fourth as a designated hitter for the A’s on Wednesday in Detroit, while Gelof and Wilson will hit first and fifth, respectively.
While the team will still be without clubhouse leader and two-time All-Star designated hitter Brent Rooker, who is set to undergo season-ending knee surgery July 17, the three returns have mostly brought the A’s lineup back to what it was before the injuries began piling up in June.
The A’s entered Wednesday evening’s road game against the Detroit Tigers on a four-game losing streak and having lost eight of their last 10 games, dropping to 41-50 on the season.
What does Soderstrom’s return mean?
After a slow start to his age-24 season, Soderstrom, a Turlock native, had been playing his best baseball right before suffering his left hip impingement that he suffered during a June 27 game against the Los Angeles Angels.
Soderstrom held a .330 batting average and 1.069 on-base plus slugging percentage to go along with six doubles, eight home runs, 18 RBIs and 19 runs in the 30 games leading up to his injury. Overall, he is slashing .242/.360/.460 with 13 home runs and 20 doubles.
He is also tied for fifth in the American League with five outfield assists this season, and he has not made an error in more than a calendar year.
Soderstrom’s injury was his first since 2024, having become one of the A’s most consistent players since becoming an everyday starter last season. In 2025, he played 158 games, hitting 25 home runs and 34 doubles as he posted a .820 OPS.
Over the offseason, Soderstrom reportedly received the largest guaranteed contract in A’s history when he inked a seven-year, $86 million extension in December. Soderstrom’s signing was part of the club’s spending spree to lock up its future stars ahead of a planned move to Las Vegas in 2028, which also included the recently reinstated Wilson.
Muncy sent down; KG stays up
When Soderstrom and Wilson both hit the IL on the same day ahead of a tough series against the two-time reigning World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, the A’s elevated their No. 9 overall prospect Joshua Kuroda-Grauer.
The expectation for many was that Kuroda-Grauer, who was not on the A’s 40-man roster before the move, would make his MLB debut and probably get sent back down once Gelof and Wilson returned, due to the crowded infield the A’s are currently sporting. But Kuroda-Grauer’s performance has, at least so far, made that impossible.
The 23-year-old utility infielder smacked three hits in his MLB debut last week and has continued to contribute, hitting .462 with three doubles for a 1.058 OPS in seven games.
“He’s a baseball player,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay said of Kuroda-Grauer after Saturday’s loss to the Miami Marlins. “It’s been fun to watch.”
Kuroda-Grauer’s performance has allowed him to stay in the Big Leagues while Darell Hernaiz and Joey Meneses got sent down last week.
Now, he has, at least for now, outlasted Opening Day starter Max Muncy, who was optioned to the Triple-A Las Vegas Aviators in a corresponding move Wednesday.
Muncy, 23, has had a tough sophomore season thus far, holding a .699 OPS and the 17th-worst outs above average per Statcast on top of missing time with a left metacarpal fracture. He had previously spent time with the Aviators on a rehab assignment this season and was optioned to Triple-A once during his rookie campaign last year.
Kuroda-Grauer will start Wednesday’s contest at second base, with Gelof playing third, and will bat seventh for the A’s.
