Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: Belts first big-league homer
Rotowire
Soderstrom went 1-for-3 with a solo home run Thursday in a loss to the Dodgers.
Though his eighth-inning solo shot didn't have much of an impact on the final score, it was certainly a big moment for Soderstrom since it was the first homer of his major-league career. In fact, it was the first extra-base hit of any sort for the rookie, who came into the contest with just eight singles over 47 plate appearances. Soderstrom has seen his playing time fluctuate but appears to be getting into a groove at the plate, as he's batting .300 (6-for-20) over his past six games.
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Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: Sitting Wednesday
Rotowire
Soderstrom is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Dodgers.
Soderstrom has a .467 OPS in his first 13 big-league contests and will head to the bench Wednesday after he started the previous three games. Shea Langeliers will work behind the plate while Brent Rooker serves as the designated hitter.
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Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: Multi-hit effort in win
Rotowire
Soderstrom went 2-for-4 with an RBI single, a walk and a run in a win over the Rockies on Saturday.
Soderstrom got in on some of the fun during the Athletics' 13-hit outburst, authoring the second multi-hit effort of his young career. The rookie is carrying a lackluster .200 average and .500 OPS thus far even after factoring in Saturday's success, but he's now hit safely in three straight games.
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Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: Gets Tuesday off
Rotowire
Soderstrom is not in the starting lineup Tuesday against Boston.
Soderstrom will take a seat after he started the first four games following the All-Star break, going 3-for-13 while drawing two walks and striking out three times. Jordan Diaz will draw the start at designated hitter and bat third versus the Red Sox.
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Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: Possible waiver wire pickups
Rotowire
Though he moved quickly, Soderstrom is a prospect who lost some of his luster on the way to the majors. Plate discipline was supposed to be a strength, yet he had just a .303 on-base percentage at Triple-A Las Vegas this year. So far in the majors, though, so good. He's gone 3 for 10 with two doubles and two walks while starting all three games, including one at catcher. For now, he's only eligible at first base in CBS Sports leagues, which is itself a position of need in many leagues, but of course, the statistical threshold for a useful Fantasy catcher is much lower. Making hard contact is probably the most important quality for a hitter in today's game, and for all my other questions about Soderstrom, he does at least do that. He's worth adding in Rotisserie leagues, with all their extra lineup spots to fill.
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Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: Draws walk in big-league debut
Rotowire
Soderstrom, whose contract was selected from Triple-A Las Vegas earlier in the day, went 0-for-3 with a walk in his big-league debut Friday against the Twins.
Soderstrom didn't slot in at either catcher or first base, instead filling the designated hitter role in his big-league debut. The 21-year-old is expected to provide some solid power numbers in time, and he should be in line for regular opportunities given his ability to fill up to three positions.
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Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: New era begins
Rotowire
Soderstrom's contract was selected from Triple-A Las Vegas ahead of Friday's game against the Twins.
Soderstrom is as good of a candidate as any to be the face of the Athletics franchise going forward. The 21-year-old lefty hitter has huge raw power and could retain catcher eligibility for several years while playing almost every day at a combination of catcher, first base and designated hitter. Soderstrom, who was selected with the 26th overall pick in the 2020 Draft, hit .254 with 20 home runs and 59 RBI in 69 games at Triple-A. There could be some initial growing pains with strikeouts and a low batting average, but Soderstrom has a chance to contribute positively in the four non-speed roto categories during his prime years.
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Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: On power surge in Vegas
Rotowire
Soderstrom has three home runs in his last five games for Triple-A Las Vegas and carries an .835 OPS over 221 plate appearances for the Aviators.
Soderstrom continues to put together a convincing case for a promotion during his most extensive stint at the Triple-A level yet. The promising 21-year-old has played slightly more at catcher (27 games) than first base (20 games), and it's the latter where Soderstrom is believed to have a clearer path to playing time at the big-league level. However, rookie Ryan Noda has made a solid case for himself at the position with the Athletics thus far by generating an outstanding .410 on-base percentage and impressive .462 slugging percentage over his first 60 big-league games.
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Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: Majority of starts at catcher
Rotowire
Soderstrom has played more games at catcher (eight) than first base (three) with Triple-A Las Vegas.
He has been roughly league average (97 wRC+) in the early going, as a .267/.346/.511 slash line is par for the course in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. However, the fact the A's have continued to stress his development behind the dish is noteworthy, as most evaluators view him as the team's first baseman of the future.
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Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: Getting taste of Triple-A
Rotowire
The Athletics promoted Soderstrom from Double-A Midland to Triple-A Las Vegas on Monday, Melissa Lockard of The Athletic reports.
With Midland's season coming to a close Sunday, the Athletics will reward one of their top prospects with a look in Las Vegas, where he could end up spending a large portion of the 2023 campaign. Las Vegas marks the third stop of the season for the 20-year-old backstop, who slashed .265/.324/.509 with 28 home runs across 518 plate appearances between Midland and High-A Lansing.
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Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: Fully healthy for 2022
Rotowire
Soderstrom reported to minor-league spring training at full health after he was sidelined for the final two months of the 2021 season plus the Arizona Fall League with an oblique strain, Melissa Lockard of The Athletic reports.
The injury spelled an early end to an impressive professional debut season for the 20-year-old catcher, who was a 2020 first-round selection. He saw action in 54 games for Low-A Stockton, slashing .306/.390/.568 with 33 extra-base hits and a 10.8 percent walk rate across 254 plate appearances. Soderstrom profiles as one of the top backstop prospects in all of baseball, but his bat remains firmly ahead of his glove at this stage of his development, making it uncertain whether he'll stick behind the plate long term. He's expected to begin the 2022 campaign at High-A Lansing.
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Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: On IL with back issue
Rotowire
Soderstrom was placed on the 7-day injured list at Low-A Stockton on Tuesday because of a back issue, Athletics Farm reports.
Soderstrom hasn't played since July 23 due to a collarbone injury, and it now sounds like he's also hampered by some sort of back problem. The severity of the latest issue isn't clear, so it's not known how long the Athletics expect their top prospect to be on the shelf. The backstop has slashed .306/.390/.568 with 12 homers and 49 RBI across 222 at-bats with Stockton this season.
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Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: Solid in early opportunities
Rotowire
Soderstrom is 2-for-5 with two doubles and an RBI over his first six Cactus League games.
The 26th overall pick of the 2020 first-year player draft, Soderstrom lost out on his first opportunity for extended professional development with the cancellation of the 2020 minor-league season. The 19-year-old is gaining from the experience of being around the big-league club this spring, however, and he hasn't looked out of place over the small sample of at-bats thus far. Soderstrom is thought to have a bright future at catcher and will likely start the 2021 season at either the rookie or Low-A level.
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Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: Gets big-league spring invite
Rotowire
The Athletics announced Monday that Soderstrom will report to big-league spring training as a non-roster invitee.
After being selected in the first round of the 2020 first-year player draft, Soderstrom didn't get the chance to make his debut in affiliated ball due to the cancellation of the minor-league season. The assignment to major-league spring training will thus give the Athletics a greater opportunity to evaluate Soderstrom against higher-level competition, even though he won't be a serious candidate to break camp with the big club. Look for the 19-year-old backstop to make his professional debut at the rookie-ball level.
