Nick Kurtz was removed from Friday’s game against the Texas Rangers in the fourth inning due to right oblique soreness. Carlos Cortes was the substitute.
Prior to exiting, Kurtz went 0-for-1 with a walk, run scored and a strikeout. He was batting leadoff.
It would be a huge blow to for the Athletics offense if Kurtz misses an extended period of time, as he has already contributed 27 home runs, 69 runs, 70 RBI and two stolen bases in 390 plate appearances. Kurtz is slashing .309/.401/.634 with an eye-popping .324 ISO. Sure, the strikeout rate is high at 29.7%, but the walk rate is 13.3%. Did I mention that the ISO is .324?
The average exit velocity is 92.7 mph (19th in MLB), barrel rate is 17.2% (12th) and the hard hit rate is 51.1% (22nd). That .324 ISO is fifth in all of baseball.
Carlos Cortes replaced Kurtz on Friday and manned left field. It was Tyler Soderstrom who moved to first base. Either Soderstrom or Brett Harris would likely play first base if Kurtz is out for an extended period of time.
Harris has 41 plate appearances this season, and they have been ineffective ones. The slash is .235/.325/.282 with a .059 ISO.
Soderstrom has 23 home runs, 67 runs, 77 RBI and seven stolen bases in 539 plate appearances. He’s slashing .274/.347/.475 with a .201 ISO.
