A's Notes: Mark Kotsay's ALDS Memories

Friday night is Mark Kotsay bobblehead night in Sacramento, and the figurine depicts his celebration after hitting an inside-the-park home run in Game 2 of the 2006 American League Division Series against the Minnesota Twins. The game was tied 2-2 when he lined a ball to right-center that skipped under Torii Hunter's glove and skidded on the astroturf toward the wall. 

"They did a good job with that," Kotsay said of his bobblehead. "I look young." 

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That 2006 team was the first club to win a postseason series since the Athletics made it to the World Series in 1990, only to be swept in four games by the Cincinnati Reds. The 2020 A's are the only team to win a postseason series since 2006 with a win in the AL Wild Card round, taking down the Chicago White Sox. Kotsay was a coach on that team.

"The experience itself was amazing," Kotsay said of that first postseason series. "The result was unbelievable." 

Kotsay said that that 2006 season for him and catcher Jason Kendall was a big one, since neither player had made it to the postseason in the past nine seasons, and each was in his 30s.

"Once he missed it, the excitement of the moment was enough to get me around the bases," Kotsay said with a chuckle. "We had a lot of characters on that team. I think that chemistry and obviously talent led us to where we were." 

Jose Suarez Back in the Mix

The Athletics announced ahead of Friday's game that left-handed reliever José Suarez has been reinstated from the IL after dealing with a strained right hip for the past 16 days. The A's optioned left-hander Drew Rom to Triple-A Las Vegas. 

Suarez had been a reliable reliever for the A's up until the end of July, holding a 3.19 ERA (3.41 FIP) across 36 2/3 innings with the A's. In six appearances from July 27 to when he landed on the IL on August 10, Suarez held a 19.64 ERA across 3 2/3 innings. The hope here is that Suarez is back to the version of himself that he's shown over the previous two months, and not the last couple of weeks before the IL.

Rom, 26, held a 9.53 ERA in his 5 2/3 innings with the A's this season, giving up nine hits and six earned runs. Kotsay said that despite the lefty not having a ton of success with the A's in his limited sample, he's still part of the bullpen mix moving forward. 

"I'm confident he'll go down, make some adjustments with landing the breaking ball a little more consistently, using the split more effectively," Kotsay said. 

Langeliers Hoping to Return, Wilson Gets Surgery Date

Since All-Star catcher Shea Langeliers had surgery, the hope has been that he would be able to return to the A's roster in some fashion before the end of the season. Manolo Hernandez spoke with Langeliers before Friday's game, who said that he's optimistic he'll be able to return before the season is over.

The one caveat is that he won't be doing any catching, given the surgery on his knee and the position's physical demands. If he does return, it will be as the club's DH.

Martín Gallegos is also reporting that shortstop Jacob Wilson will have surgery on his left shoulder on September 16, calling it a similar procedure to the one Zack Gelof underwent last season. Wilson is already on the 60-day IL, ending his season.

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