Matt Olson is absolutely tearing up left-handed pitching this season.
The A's first baseman homered off Rangers starter Drew Smyly in Sunday's 9-8 win, his second home run off a southpaw in as many days. A left-handed hitter himself, Olson has now hit five homers off lefties this year, already a career-high in just 32 at-bats.
"I just went into (Sunday's) game wanting to be aggressive," Olson told NBC Sports California. "They've been pounding me with some strikes early pretty much the majority of the series and it was something that I wanted to get in front of. He left one over the heart of the plate."
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It's not that Olson was terrible against left-handed pitching last year, but his power numbers were way down. He slashed .251/.332/.369 against southpaws in 2018 for an OPS of just .701. This year, that slash line is up to .281/.361/.781 for a mammoth OPS of 1.142.
"Everything has been the same," Olson said of his approach. "I haven't changed anything. I've been a pretty big advocate of the fact that I treat lefties the same as righties. There are even times where I would prefer to face a lefty. So I've just got to approach the at-bats the same way and I'm just having a little more success early this year."
Olson's five long balls against left-handed pitching trail only Kole Calhoun among American League left-handed hitters, and Olson has done it in half the at-bats. After missing 34 games with a hand injury, the 25-year-old is slashing .227/.319/.504 overall, with nine home runs and 18 RBI in 33 games.
Olson's versatility in the lineup has been extremely valuable for the A's this year. He has hit everywhere from third to seventh in the order, with at least one home run in each spot in between.
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Olson also represents Oakland's only left-handed power bat in the lineup, breaking up a string of Marcus Semien, Matt Chapman, Khris Davis, and Stephen Piscotty. The A's clearly missed Olson when he was injured, going 15-19 in his absence. Since his return, they are 18-12.
Olson will try to keep his power stroke going when the A's open a three-game series in Tampa Bay on Monday. Olson is 3-for-8 with a home run in his career against probable Rays starter Charlie Morton.