Oakland A’s have four candidates for 2020 All MLB Team

Four players on the Oakland A’s have been named as candidates for the 2020 All MLB Team.

The Oakland A’s season may not have ended as they would have liked, but it was memorable nonetheless. They managed to capture the AL West, breaking the Astros stranglehold on the division. The A’s also managed to get past the first round of the playoffs for the first time since 2006, although they were easily handled by the Astros in the second round.

However, the A’s success was certainly noted. They had two Gold Glove finalists, and four players have been named as candidates for the 2020 All MLB Team.

Sean Murphy was the only member of the lineup to receive a nomination, an impressive feat for a rookie catcher. He posted a solid .233/.364/.457 batting line in his 140 plate appearances, hitting seven homers and five doubles. His 132 OPS+ led the A’s, and Murphy drew praise for his excellent defense, being considered a future Gold Glove candidate.

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Chris Bassitt capped off his breakout performance by being nominated to the 2020 ALL MLB Team. He emerged as the A’s most dependable starter during the season, posting a 5-2 record with a 2.29 ERA and a 1.159 WHiP, striking out 55 batters with 17 walks in his 63 innings. Bassitt went from being an afterthought to having his role in the A’s rotation locked up moving forward.

In some ways, Liam Hendriks was in a similar position as Bassitt. He had emerged as one of the A’s greatest surprises in 2019, transforming from an anonymous middle reliever into a dominant closer. He proved that season was not a fluke, notching 14 saves as he posted a 1.78 ERA and a 0.671 WHiP, striking out 37 batters with three walks over his 25.1 innings.

Hendriks has company from the A’s bullpen. Jake Diekman was impressive for Oakland, allowing just one earned run all year. He posted a 0.42 ERA and a 0.938 WHiP in his 21.1 innings, striking out 31 batters with 12 walks.

The season may not have ended the way the Oakland A’s wanted, but they still made an impression. Four of their players have been nominated for the 2020 All MLB Team.