Zack Gelof is Back with the A's

It was only a matter of time before Zack Gelof ended up back with the Athletics. Ahead of Monday's game, they announced that the second baseman has been recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas, and in a corresponding move, the club has designated Luis Urías for assignment.

While the fact that he's back isn't a surprise, the timing of his arrival is, to a degree. With rosters set to expand by two next week, they could have just waited to activate him, especially with Max Schuemann just being sent down to the minors last week. They were the only two position players that are not currently on the IL that also weren't in the big leagues.

That said, designating Urías for assignment does open up a spot on the 40-man roster for the A's to add any number of players next week.

The other interesting wrinkle to Gelof's promotion will be what happens with the playing time at second base. Darell Hernaiz had been showing a lot of promise while manning shortstop with Jacob Wilson out of the lineup, but when Wilson returned for the Seattle series, Hernaiz slid over to second base and went 1-for-12 against the Mariners.

It's a small sample size that we're working with, and the Mariners have one of the better pitching staffs in baseball, so it would be tough to move Hernaiz out of the lineup consistently after one weekend's results. Still, they're going to need to find a way to play both him and Gelof fairly consistently.

One option would be to give Hernaiz time at third base where Brett Harris has been playing since he was recalled on August 15. Harris has gone 6-for-27 (.222) with a .313 OBP in his eight starts with the Athletics this month.

Gelof joins the A’s for the second time this year.  He began the season on the 60-day injured list after having right hamate surgery on March 24, was reinstated on July 4, and went 2-for-25 (.080) with 13 strikeouts in eight games before he was optioned to Las Vegas July 13. 

The 25-year-old right-handed hitter batted .259 with 11 home runs, 28 RBI and a .897 OPS in 33 games with the Aviators following his July 13 option and hit  .256 with 12 home runs, 31 RBI and a .888 OPS in 47 games overall at Triple-A.

Urías was on the A’s roster for the entire season with the exception of an eight-game stint on the injured list in early July.  He hit .230 with eight home runs and 25 RBI in 96 games. Urias made 83 starts at second base and five at third base.