Chapman wins first Play of the Week nod

August 16th, 2021

has two Gold Glove Awards to his name. He now has his first Play of the Week nod.

The A's star third baseman earned the award on Monday for producing what might be his defensive highlight of the year.

With a runner on and no outs in the fifth inning in Saturday night's 8-3 win over the Rangers, Chapman raced out into shallow left field on a ball popped up by Brock Holt and laid out for an incredible over-the-shoulder diving catch. Picking himself up immediately, he fired the ball over to first baseman Matt Olson, narrowly missing a chance to double up Yohel Pozo, who was nearly halfway to second base at the time of the catch.

“I’ve seen him do some miraculous things,” A's manager Bob Melvin said. “But when that ball was hit, it was [supposed to be] a hit. I don’t know that anyone else gets to that.”

In addition to his defensive heroics, Chapman bashed two homers to help Oakland keep pace with Houston in the American League West race.