Max Muncy has been out of action since April 28 with a left fifth metacarpal fracture, but the past two days the A's infielder has been taking ground balls. Jacob Wilson joined him with the glove before Wednesday's game. 

Wilson and Muncy were teammates in high school with former big-leaguer Jack Wilson, Jacob's dad, serving as the team's coach. Taking those grounders on Wednesday, "felt like high school again," Muncy said. "Except, instead of Jacob's dad hitting them, it was [Bobby Crosby]."

Athletics Roundtable talked to Muncy after his defensive session, and he said he's feeling pretty good.

"Don't feel anything hitting. Don't feel anything defensively, so that's pretty good. Pretty excited for that." 

He also said that he feels like he's close to a rehab assignment with Triple-A Las Vegas, guesstimating his timeline at around five to eight days before receiving the assignment. 

"Obviously I'm pushing to be back since I feel good, but obviously the medical staff knows best, so we'll see what that timetable is." 

The boxes he has to check right now are basically what the team sees with his swing's readiness, and the level of hard contact that he's making on those swings. In order for that to get checked off, he just has to continue his hitting progression, from hitting off the tee to "flips" and then progressing to the hitting machine. 

"I think once I complete that, if there's no problems, then I'll be good to go. I just have to continue on the path of the hitting progression and then I'll be good." 

Last year it was an injury to second baseman Zack Gelof at the end of spring training that opened the door for Muncy to make his MLB debut on Opening Day in Seattle. This year, it was Muncy that was the team's third baseman to begin the year — a spot that Gelof has been taking over in recent weeks following Muncy's injury. 

The depth has been helpful for the A's, as Gelof has looked more like the player that debuted in 2023. His strikeout rate, which had been an issue the past two years, is back to 24.8%. He's hit six home runs and swiped six bases in 39 games, which is a 25-25 pace over a full season. 

There is still time before Muncy is ready to come back to the A's active roster. But at some point in the coming weeks they'll have to make a decision about how to not only fit him on the 26-man, but also sort out playing time. 

When Max Muncy returns to the roster, how will the playing time sort out? Join AthleticsRoundtable — it's free — and let us know how you're fitting him onto the roster, and who's getting the regular playing time. Never miss an article by following Jason @ByJasonB!