ARLINGTON – Denzel Clarke’s start to the season was nothing at all like he or the Athletics expected, but he’ll get a chance to write his own, much better ending.
Clarke joined the A’s for their current seven-game road trip, which began with Monday’s 8-1 loss to the Rangers at Globe Life Field. The outfielder will be activated off the injured list on Tuesday, when active rosters expand to 28 players.
Taking the field in his home city of Toronto at Rogers Centre back in March as the A’s starting center fielder for his first Opening Day, Clarke entered the season having generated plenty of excitement for what was expected to be his first full season in the Majors after a dazzling debut in 2025 that saw him produce several highlight-reel plays, including the catch of the year on a brilliant home run robbery of Nolan Schanuel at Angel Stadium.
Clarke’s ‘26 campaign got off to a slow start, hitting .170 with a .417 OPS through his first 22 games. Then came a mid foot bone bruise in his right foot, which stemmed from an earlier issue in his big toe that he’d been playing through early in the season before landing him on the 10-day IL on April 22.
From there, Clarke rehabbed and looked to be on the mend with a potential return in late May. After three rehab games in the Minors, however, Clarke was pulled off his rehab assignment after suffering a high-grade left hamstring strain, an injury that kept him out of action until starting back up a rehab assignment on Aug. 18.
“We always talk about the value of finishing the season,” manager Mark Kotsay said on Monday. “For Denzel, he’s missed the majority of it. It’s been a long year for him rehabbing injuries. For him to get an opportunity to come back and join the team in September, it’s a good sign for us and for him, personally, just to have an opportunity to play in some games and finish out the year.”
What are the A’s looking to see from Clarke?
The hope at the beginning of the season was for Clarke to take a step forward on offense. His defense is already considered Gold Glove-caliber, but the bat was lacking for most of last year, save for a hot stretch in July just before his season was cut short due to injury.
The A’s would be thrilled to get anything close to the production Clarke displayed in his rehab stint – he slashed .344/.462/.594 with two home runs, a triple and seven RBIs in 10 games. Above all, though, they’d like to see the 26-year-old get through the final month of the season.
“The goal for Denzel is to stay healthy,” Kotsay said. “He’s had a hard time doing that the last two years. The performance side of it [in Triple-A] was in alignment with what we expected. The biggest thing was more about his health and his legs and building him up to have a month here with us.”
What does this mean for Henry Bolte?
In Clarke’s absence, Bolte has emerged as the A’s everyday center fielder and arguably the hottest rookie in MLB this month.
Clarke will get his reps in center field in his return, but don’t expect Bolte to cede much playing time. On days when Clarke plays, Bolte could see some time in right field – his natural position – when Lawrence Butler gets a break from the field as the designated hitter, or vice versa.
“Henry’s played a lot,” Kotsay said. “I think it’ll be good for Henry to have a day or to DH. We’ll do our best to incorporate that. … He’s very familiar with right field and has played there. But that’s not to say that Henry’s not going to play in center as well.”