Time Off Has Worked Wonders for Athletics Olson's Productivity
Matt Olson wants to play baseball every day, so the five-day work stoppage that came about last week after Daniel Mengden’s positive COVID-19 coronavirus test result wasn’t great.
Still, the unexpected break meant there was time to sit back and think about how the season was going. And since Olson was the owner of a .169 batting average at the time, the timing was good.
He came back with three walks in four plate trips Friday, then had three hits, including his first career triple, on Saturday, and two more hits Sunday.
His average is up to .195, but more significantly, with the second-place Houston Astros in town for a five-game series that starts Monday night at the Coliseum, he’s feeling good at the plate at a time when the A’s need him.
“The at-bats have been better,” Olson said Monday in a video conference call. “I’ve been finding a few holes, which has been different from earlier, but I just wanted to come back and slow it down after the break and get back to the basics a little bit.
“But my hands were … I was having some success with it.”
Olson used the down time to find ways to get loose in the batter’s box, having come to the conclusion that while his power numbers, including 10 homers, were fine, the fact that he had more homers than singles (nine) meant his swing needed some adjusting.
“I did make a conscious effort to feel my hands more, loosen up a little bit,” the first baseman said. “When things started going bad, you start thinking about stuff and sometimes tings get a little tight and tense because of it. I’m definitely still working on it, but I think being relaxed helped me.
“I looked at it as kind of an All-Star break, with time to get away and kind of hit the reset button. Leading up, that wasn’t the kind of year that I came in wanting to have. But when things are not going the best, sometimes it is good to be able to have a little time away.”
One of the reasons that Olson and the rest of A’s offense will be asked to step up this week is that the club is likely to play the series without Matt Chapman, who came out of Sunday’s game with a right hip problem. That loss came on top of shortstop Marcus Semien having not played since the resumption of play with left hip soreness. Semien isn’t likely to play Monday, but he could make a return sometime during this series.
Olson said he has talked with Chapman, who had an MRI Sunday, and he needs to “wait first for more answers.”
“We all know the caliber of player that Chappy is, and he’s not coming out of a game unless he’s hurt. Unfortunately, it’s part of the game, but it sucks to have a guy like that have to come out.”
There are three weeks left in the season for the A’s, who lead the American League West with a 23-14 record and who own a 3½-game lead in the division.
“This is a big five-game series here,” Olson said. “But we just want to continue to do what we do. This break might have given a little rust, but we’re all ready to roll.”
Follow Athletics insider John Hickey on Twitter: @JHickey3
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