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Ports to host Tyler Soderstrom Bobblehead Night
Tyler Soderstrom bobblehead night
The Stockton Ports have announced that June 23 will be Tyler Soderstrom Bobblehead Night. The Ports are the Single-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics and was the first team Soderstrom played with at the professional level after being drafted by the A’s in 2020 (Photo courtesy of the Stockton Ports).

Turlock native and Turlock High School alumnus Tyler Soderstrom will be immortalized in bobblehead form this summer as the Stockton Ports will be hosting his own bobblehead night on June 23.

The Ports are the Single-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics and was the first team Soderstrom played with at the professional level after being drafted by the organization 26th overall in the 2020 MLB Draft. With the Ports during the 2021 season, Soderstrom played 57 games, batting .306 with 68 hits, 12 home runs and 49 RBI.

Despite the limited games due to late-season collarbone and oblique injuries that year, the catcher and first baseman was named the California League Player of the Month in June and was selected to represent the A’s at the Future’s Game in Colorado as part of All-Star Game festivities.

“Tyler is a local in the San Joaquin Valley who is from Turlock and had a strong impact in the Stockton community and the fan base during his time with the Ports,” said Chris Zavaglia, Ports Director of Baseball Communications. “His story represents the success we've seen come in and out of Stockton as we'll continue to cheer for him to pursue his dreams of making it to the Major Leagues."

The 21-year-old is currently ranked as the Athletics’ No.1 prospect by MLB Pipeline, Fangraphs and Baseball America. Overall, he is the 39th ranked prospect in all of baseball, according to MLB.com. He finished his 2022 campaign with Triple-A Las Vegas and will be a non-roster invitee to Athletics spring training later this month.

Soderstrom’s bobblehead night is one of 14 giveaways scheduled for the Ports in 2023. Zavaglia explained that, considering the top prospect could be making his major league debut this upcoming season, a promotion revolving around him was a popular request by the Stockton and A’s fanbases.

"Bobbleheads are a staple in the Ports community,” Zavaglia said. “We wanted to make sure our fans saw we heard them for our promotional calendar this year and thought the best way to do so was by incorporating a former Port and a 209 local.”

According to the team, there is not an exact date for when the bobblehead’s design will be released. Nevertheless, tickets for the June 23 game against the San Jose Giants are already on sale and can be purchased online at www.milb.com/stockton/tickets.