The Oakland baseball team’s catcher, Shea Langeliers, stepped up to the plate in the initial spot for the very first time on Tuesday. The team’s manager, Mark Kotsay, mentioned that he was hoping this strategic move would ignite “a swift and energetic beginning, ideally.”
And indeed, that’s what transpired.
Facing off against the Washington Nationals, Langeliers carved his name in the MLB history books with an exceptional showing – 5 hits in 6 at-bats, including an impressive three home runs – contributing significantly to their resounding 16-7 triumph. While it might not have surpassed a recent outstanding performance by another member of the Athletics, it was nonetheless a display that placed him in an elite group.
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Langeliers isn’t typically found in the leadoff position, given his focus on delivering powerful hits from behind the plate. However, the Athletics decided to elevate him from his usual spot to ensure he had as many opportunities at the plate as possible, according to reports.
He made his presence known early in the game, connecting on the fourth pitch against Nationals All-Star Mackenzie Gore. He then repeated the feat in the fifth and seventh innings. This marked his second game with three home runs in his career.
Langeliers nearly added a fourth homer to his tally in the eighth inning but ended up with a double instead. The Athletics were also just one batter away from providing him with another chance in the ninth inning. If he had managed to hit another home run, he would have joined his teammate Nick Kurtz in achieving one of the most uncommon accomplishments in MLB.
Kurtz delivered what was arguably one of the best offensive performances in MLB history on July 25, going 6-for-6 with an astounding 4 home runs, a double, 6 runs scored, and 8 runs batted in.
Even so, Langeliers achieved several significant milestones. He equaled the record among catchers with 15 total bases in a single game. He became only the fourth catcher in history to have multiple games with three home runs. He became the second catcher to hit three home runs from the leadoff position. He is the very first player to hit three homers in his first-ever game as a leadoff hitter. He is also the fifth catcher to hit at least 20 homers in three of his initial four MLB seasons.
While these statistics are interesting, they essentially reinforce what should already be evident.
Langeliers had been delivering some of the most impressive hits in baseball leading up to Tuesday and currently leads MLB with a slugging percentage of .925 over the last 15 days. Following a promising start to his career, he is experiencing a breakthrough season, ranking second only to MLB home run leader Cal Raleigh in slugging percentage among catchers with a minimum of 300 plate appearances.
A former ninth overall pick and top 100 prospect, the Athletics acquired the 27-year-old backstop as part of the four-player exchange related to the Matt Olson trade.
Although it’s been a challenging season for the Athletics overall, with a record of 49-65, they seem to have a promising core of young hitters including Langeliers, Kurtz, shortstop Jacob Wilson, and Tyler Soderstrom, along with the later-blooming Brent Rooker. All of these players are under team control until at least 2028, which is the season they are slated to make their anticipated move to Las Vegas.
