Norris available after being injured on foul tip

ARLINGTON -- Less than 24 hours after being hit in the groin by a foul tip off the bat of Adrian Beltre, Derek Norris feels good enough to play if the A's need him in Thursday's series finale.

Norris left in the sixth inning of Wednesday's 9-4 loss to the Rangers after Dan Otero fired a 90 mph fastball that was tipped straight back into Norris, leaving him on all fours. He was replaced by John Jaso. Norris was wearing a cup, but he said he lost the feeling in his legs and didn't feel as though he could perform well enough to stay in the game.

"I definitely feel better. I don't feel as sick," Norris said. "Last night, when I had to come out of the game, it was because of pain tolerance, not a discomfort tolerance. It's a discomfort today, not a pain."

If he was needed on Thursday, Norris said he would be ready to go.

"When it comes time for [the game], I'll be more than ready to play," Norris said. "It just caught me in the right spot at the wrong time. If they need me to play today, I can go. It's not going to be very easy, but I can still man up and play if I need to. If something happens where John goes down, I'll step in and do the job."

Jaso, who was supposed to get a day off on Wednesday, went 0-for-2 after coming in for Norris. He started at catcher and batted second in Thursday's series finale. Third baseman Josh Donaldson is the team's emergency catcher.

"It would have to be an emergency situation," manager Bob Melvin said of Norris' availability for Thursday's game. "We have Donaldson, who we don't want in that situation. Derek even came into my office earlier and said, 'I know I don't look so good moving around right now, but if you really need me, I can go back there.'"