Carson

Blair

Blair had hit the ball well this year at Double-A Midland, though it was not the largest sample size. The 26-year-old catcher is a .248/.347/.424 career batter between all levels of the minor leagues.

Blair appeared in 11 games with the Athletics in 2015, but he played exclusively in the minors last season while batting .250/.339/.372 with four homers and 21 RBI over 45 games between the Rangers and Athletics. The 27-year-old will provide some depth behind the dish for Chicago.

He’ll be fine for spring training. Blair hit just .129/.229/.226 in 11 games with the A’s this season.

He suffered the injury during a freak accident at batting practice on Friday. With rosters expanded, the A’s don’t need to place him on the disabled list. Carson Blair started at catcher Saturday against the Astros.

He’s been out since suffering a groin injury on September 6. Vogt went through a full pre-game routine on Friday and Saturday. Carson Blair has been filling in at catcher.

Blair hit .252/.348/.447 with nine homers and 37 RBI over 286 at-bats in the A’s minor league system. He’s shown a little bit of pop with the bat, but is unlikely to see much playing time during his month on the expanded roster.

Phegley hinted at it earlier Tuesday and A’s manager Bob Melvin made it official. The catcher just hasn’t experienced enough improvement with his concussion, which occurred when he was hit with Billy Butler’s bat in a freak accident during batting practice last Friday. With Stephen Vogt (groin) not ready to catch yet until at least this weekend, the A’s catching duties will be left to Carson Blair and Bryan Anderson for now.

The rookie backstop saw just 35 plate appearances with the A’s, slashing .129/.229/.226 with a homer, three RBI and an 18/4 K/BB ratio. He’ll undergo surgery to repaid the issue and should be ready for action before spring training.

Blair wasn’t expected to make the big league club. He’ll continue to provide organizational depth behind the plate at the Triple-A level.

Blair was a September call-up by the A’s but had to have minor knee surgery a couple weeks after the promotion. He’ll be fine for spring training and should be in camp as a non-roster invitee.