SAN FRANCISCO -- The A's activated Josh Reddick from the disabled list Tuesday and slotted him in his familiar three-hole in Tuesday's lineup against the Giants, ending his five-week absence after fracturing his left thumb sliding into second base against the Yankees on May 19.
Reddick singled in the first of six at-bats in Tuesday's 13-11 A's victory, Oakland's fifth win in its last six games. As manager Bob Melvin pointed out, the A's are starting to feel healthier, as Reddick, Sean Manaea and Rich Hill are scheduled to return from the DL this week.
"Whenever you lose your three-hitter, obviously not only production wise but kind of psychologically for the team, that's a guy you really count on. It's nice to get him back," Melvin said.
Reddick flew to San Francisco on Tuesday morning after a six-game rehab assignment with Triple-A Nashville. It was initially believed Reddick could return prior to Monday's start of Oakland's series with San Francisco, but the 29-year-old elected to play one more rehab game.
"It was just a matter of getting to where I needed to be with my legs and getting into a rhythm at the plate," Reddick said. "I made all kinds of plays and swung the bat and didn't have any issues."
Reddick, who was hitting .468 in 14 games prior to his injury, went 3-for-25 (.120) with six strikeouts and one homer in Nashville. He felt it was best to not rush, especially as he quickly realized he'd have some rust to knock off, with one hit in his first 16 at-bats.
"There would have been no reason for me to come back; I wouldn't have helped this team at all," he said. "The way they've been playing the last week, why would I want to come up here and screw that up? And I obviously would've hurt myself as well. So you get down there where the numbers don't count and get right and get ready."
Reddick said Tuesday "felt like Opening Day all over again," and the A's hope he'll produce similarly to his .322/.394/.466 slash line through the 41 games he played prior to his injury. He had his first shot Tuesday against Giants righty Albert Suarez.
Reddick will wear a protective shield on his left thumb when playing the field, something he'll do "until we get X-rays that show [the thumb] is completely healed." He didn't have a timetable for the X-ray, but didn't rule out wearing the shield for the remainder of the season.
He reiterated there were "no issues" with the thumb, adding the shield has helped immensely and he feels no pain catching the ball, something that hindered him throughout the early stages of his rehab.
Oakland optioned Max Muncy to Nashville to make room for Reddick on the roster.