Sunday night didn’t result in new shiny hardware for Turlock native and Athletics star Tyler Soderstrom, but just the mere fact that he was a finalist for a Rawlings Gold Glove Award is an accomplishment in itself.
As announced on ESPN on Sunday night, Soderstrom and Texas Rangers youngster Wyatt Langford were beaten out by Steven Kwan of the Cleveland Guardians in left field for the top defensive honor in baseball.
Since they were prospects, Kwan and Langoford were always highly touted as defenders in the outfield. But for Soderstrom, it was uncharted territory. Up until late April, he had never played in the outfield since he was playing youth travel ball.
That was until Nick Kurtz forced his way into the big leagues on April 22. In 20 games with Triple-A Las Vegas to start the year, Kurtz slashed .321/.385/.655 while leading the minors with seven homers in 20 games to earn the call-up. The promotion prompted A’s manager Mark Kotsay to ask a huge favor from Soderstrom — to try his hand in the outfield.
I happened to be at Sutter Health Park that week as the A’s were set to take on the Rangers in a three-game series. Soderstrom told me that he’d “just let his athleticism take over.”
“Pretty confident,” I thought to myself.
I then asked both Soderstrom and Kotsay how he was preparing for the move. Their answers amounted to nothing more than him shagging balls during batting practice.
Admittedly, I had my doubts. Fans and pundits may have had more. I mean, pitchers regularly shag balls in the outfield during batting practice, for crying out loud. And it certainly did take some adjustment.
In a July 6 home game against the San Francisco Giants, Soderstrom’s attempt to make a catch of a Tyler Fitzgerald hit at the wall resulted in the ball bouncing off his glove and over the left field wall for a home run. Fourteen days later in Cleveland, he floated a ball back to the infield that allowed a run to score, just moments before making a catch and forgetting the number of outs.
Then, the highlight catches began. And the arm strength that made him a top catching prospect the four years prior translated seamlessly at his new position.
In 108 games in left field, Soderstrom recorded 231 putouts and 11 assists, while only having two errors. The assists were second-most among AL left fielders. Additionally, Soderstrom finished with five outs above average, tied for the most in left field in the AL, and was second in defensive runs saved with 10.
Kwan earned his fourth consecutive Gold Glove with a league-high +12 fielding run value and an MLB-best 13 outfield assists.
The Turlocker accomplished all of that after working hard to establish himself as a full-time first baseman.
After recovering from injury, Soderstrom finished the final month of the 2024 season starting almost exclusively at first base . Come spring, the 23-year-old reported to Mesa, Ariz. early to ramp up for the season as a catcher, his primary position when he was drafted in the first round out of Turlock High School in 2020. By the start of this season, he was back at first, where he stayed for a month until he moved to accommodate Kurtz.
Said TV color commentator and Stockton native Dallas Braden on social media last month: “Tyler Soderstrom was asked to shed (the) catcher's gear & learn first base. He did it & did it damn well. He was then asked to learn to play LF in the BIG LEAGUES & is now a Gold Glove finalist. I hope folks appreciate just how ridiculously difficult that is all while continuing to RAKE! 209 STAND UP!”
Added All-Star teammate Brent Rooker on X: “Y’all know how impressive it is to switch to a position that you’ve never played in your life mid-season and then be a gold glove finalist at that position in the SAME YEAR?”
It was definitely no easy task. And it’s why the national recognition is well deserved, even if there is no gold trophy to show for it.
