Max

Muncy

Muncy was placed on the injured list on September 22nd with left knee chondromalacia, which is a cartilage issue under his kneecap. We don’t know exactly what type of surgery he had or what the specific timeline will be, but it’s been reported that “he’ll begin rehab immediately and is expected to be ready for 2027 Spring Training.”

We’re not medical professionals, so we had to look this one up. Basically, Muncy is dealing with a cartilage issue under his kneecap and will miss the remainder of the season. The 24-year-old finishes with a .230/.296/.387 slash line with nine homers and three steals in 284 plate appearances.

The A’s appear to be easing Langeliers back into action following his return from the injured list on Saturday. He’s expected to finish out the season exclusively as a designated hitter for the Athletics. Max Muncy is functioning in that role on Sunday and will bat fifth against Mariners’ right-hander Bryce Miller.

With Tommy White needing a break, Muncy has started three straight games, including the last two at DH, and he’s homered in back-to-back contests. The success might get him some extra playing time after White returns; the 24-year-old is not necessarily one of the Athletics’ best options, but there isn’t much reason to play Donovan Walton and Michael Stefanic over him.

Muncy hit the first of four homer off Logan Gilbert; all in the third inning. The 24-year-old has homered eight times with a less-than-ideal .224/.293/.384 slash, but it’s worth noting that he’s still just 24, and there have been some good moments for the former first-round selection.

Clarke is finally back 4 1/2 months after suffering a right foot bone bruise and nearly 3 1/2 months since he strained a hamstring on his initial rehab assignment. He just hit .353 with two homers in 11 games for Triple-A Las Vegas, and he should finish out the season as the Athletics’ primary center fielder. Henry Bolte can slide over to left, giving the A’s maybe the game’s best defensive outfield. Carlos Cortes will likely spend more time at DH, taking at-bats away from Max Muncy.

Muncy was 0-for-3 with two strikeouts on the day before driving the only pitch he saw from Aroldis Chapman off the Green Monster. It was a little bit surprising to see Muncy start today. Technically, it was the Athletics’ fourth straight game facing a lefty starter, but in this case, it was just an opener in Erik Miller. Muncy got the nod anyway and obviously played the entire game. With the Rays set to throw righties in all three games of their upcoming series, Muncy could head back to the bench in favor of Donovan Walton on Monday.

Muncy still needs to prove he should be in the Athletics’ plans for 2027, so he ought to get a lot of time at third base for the A’s with Nick Kurtz down. He’s hit .223/.298/.389 in 178 plate appearances in the majors this season.

Gulp. Hopefully, Kurtz will prove to be fine after being hit by a pitch in Wednesday’s game. If not, the A’s would probably recall Max Muncy and put him at third and Tommy White at first for now.

Muncy was only up with the Athletics for a handful of games after rookie Joshua Kuroda-Grauer suffered an unfortunate groin injury that required surgery earlier this week. The 23-year-old retreats to the minors with slugger Nick Kurtz coming back from the injured list.