A's Matt Olson compliments teammate Marcus Semien on AL MVP nomination

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Marcus Semien just put up an impressive season with the A's. He put up an impressive season, period. 

The 29-year-old Bay Area native started all 162 games for the Green and Gold at shortstop and finished his 2019 campaign with a .285/.369/.522 slash line with 33 home runs and 92 RBI -- all career highs. These numbers landed him in the final group of AL MVP hopefuls.

"We don't necessarily get the coverage as some of these other teams, and you talk about Most Valuable Player to a team, and Marcus had a big year for us," teammate Matt Olson said in an interview on MLB Network Radio. "He was there every game in the one-hole, shortstop -- to do that and put his body through that and play every game is not an easy thing by any means and his attitude coming to the field every day was just top-notch."

Olson said Semien received a nickname of "The Machine," which suited him perfectly.

"He doesn't get sore, his swing doesn't feel bad -- he just goes up and he rakes and he plays defense," Olson added.

That shortstop defense has improved drastically over time, as he's worked with coach Ron Washington which has helped him build confidence on that side of the ball.

The rest is history. 

"He definitely was the MVP for our team and I think for the AL as well," Olson added.

Semien will be going up against some tough competition in his AL West counterparts in Houston Astros third baseman Alex Bregman and Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout.

[RELATED: Semien reacts to being named AL MVP finalist]

It'll be a tough contest, but it's safe to say Semien is deserved of the nomination.

Winners for the prestigious honor will be announced on Nov. 14 at 3 p.m. PT on MLB Network. 

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