SAN DIEGO -- Like most A’s fans, manager Mark Kotsay can only watch and wait on Sean Murphy trade news.
“My decision is to write him up in the three hole, but that’s not up to me”, Kotsay told NBC Sports California on Monday at the MLB Winter Meetings.
The opposite of Kotsay putting Murphy in his lineup seems to be increasingly inevitable, whether it’s hours or days from being finalized.
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“We all understand where we’re at as an organization, and the value that Sean provides, both on the field and off the field.”
A’s general manager David Forst has been entertaining calls and conversations on Murphy and other players around the clock in just his first 24 hours at winter meetings.
“We are having conversations about Sean, and some other players too,” Forst said. “[Murphy] is the most high profile, and public of conversations.”
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Which brings the expectation of what comes next. The A’s already called up Shea Langeliers in mid-August after a barrage of home runs for Triple-A Las Vegas. He’s a certain frontrunner to earn catching duties if Murphy is traded.
“We’ve obviously thought about it both ways,” Forst said, in relation to having either Murphy or Langeliers as the primary backstop in 2023.
“His catching and throwing was outstanding,” Forst said of Langeliers. “And like any young player, there’s going to be an adjustment with the bat. I don’t know how you rate his readiness, but we obviously think he’s an everyday catcher at some point.”
Kotsay also referenced the A’s pipeline depth at the catching position, including the success of Tyler Soderstrom, who ascended from Single-A to Triple-A during last season.
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A Murphy trade would have to return something significant, as he is under team control for three more seasons.
But as usual in Oakland, they’re prepared to move forward with Langeliers and others.
“He’s doing all the right things,” said Kotsay said of Langeliers. “We’ve communicated with him this offseason, he’s prepared to come in and compete for the role.”