Denzel Clarke's Glove May Not Be Enough to Keep His Role with the A's

Denzel Clarke made his MLB debut in 2025 and dazzled with his defense, setting him up for a spot on the Athletics Opening Day roster in 2026. On April 22, Clarke landed on the IL with a bone bruise on his right foot, which kept him out of action for the club until September. 

During the season, the A's called upon prospect Henry Bolte to take over in center, and he showcased some solid defensive skills. He also hit .277 with a .359 OBP, 11 home runs, and 21 stolen bases, and his 30.5 feet per second sprint speed was the fastest in baseball. Given his production at the plate, he's now seen as the team's centerfielder heading into 2027.

Clarke's defense is among the best in baseball at any position when he's healthy, but in his condensed playing time this season, just 40 games with the A's, he hit .158 with a .238 OBP and an 11 wRC+ (100 is league average). He stole four bases but didn't hit a home run, and struck out in 33.3% of his plate appearances. 

Given that disparity in production, Athletics Roundtable asked what the plan is for Clarke going into 2027. He was used as a late-inning defensive replacement fairly often in the final couple of weeks of the regular season, but with a healthy outfield of Tyler Soderstrom, Bolte, and Lawrence Butler, generating even those defensive opportunities could be difficult.

"I [want] him to go out and play winter ball to get at-bats," A's manager Mark Kotsay said. "To have success in winter ball to possibly change my mindset in terms of his role." 

Kotsay went on to say that Clarke is a great defender and Bolte is a good one, and the manager expects Bolte to improve with the glove going into 2027. The key part of the decision-making process is the offensive side of things.

"As [Denzel] comes into camp, he'd have to do a lot of things to be in that outfield group as the nine (starting lineup) or the three (starting outfielders)," Kotsay said. "I'm not putting that off the table, but he definitely needs to go compete for a job." 

It's a fairly blunt assessment, but it's also not unexpected. Clarke has missed large swaths of both the 2025 and 2026 seasons, and while he has tremendous defensive ability, he's lacked availability. Not being available on the field has kept him from possibly taking further steps with the bat, and now we've seen Bolte pass him by on the depth chart. 

While the A's defense could use a lot of help and playing Clarke consistently would go a long way to fixing those issues, there are also a number of other outfielders in the mix vying for a role on the club.

Right now Clarke is a helpful, yet one-dimensional depth piece. Given that the club also has Carlos Cortes as a fourth outfielder option and Devin Taylor storming through the minors up to Triple-A this season, perhaps the club looks to include Clarke in a trade this offseason as they search for pitching. 

There is a high likelihood that a team out there has ideas on how to get Clarke to be more productive at the plate and would also be willing to give up an arm that the A's would find attractive. The New York Yankees were one of the worst defensive teams in center field this season, while the Philadelphia Phillies were at best league average. 

Clarke would be a big boost to either club. He could also boost a big area of need for the A's — the team's defense — but in order to be in that mix, he'll have to improve with his bat.