The Athletics announced multiple roster moves before Saturday’s matchup against the Marlins. The club selected the contract of catcher Brian Serven and reinstated utilityman Zack Gelof from the 10-day IL. Infielders Darell Hernaiz and Joey Meneses are headed back to Triple-A. The A’s had a couple of openings on the 40-man roster, so no additional move was needed for Serven.
Shea Langeliers was pulled from last night’s game with a thumb injury, so the A’s added some catching depth for the weekend. Jonah Heim will draw the start behind the plate tonight against Sandy Alcantara. Serven will presumably be the backup until Langeliers is ready to reclaim his starting role.
The 31-year-old Serven is making his return to the big leagues after spending all of 2025 with Detroit’s Triple-A affiliate. He’s played in parts of three seasons in the majors, mostly with the Rockies. Serven last suited up with the Blue Jays in 2024.
Serven is a career .187 hitter as a big leaguer, but he was having a nice season with Las Vegas. The veteran slashed .295/.392/.505 in 53 games before his call-up. As we saw when the A’s played there, Las Vegas Ballpark is an extremely hitter-friendly environment, so it’s unlikely that Serven has taken a step forward with the bat. His main contributions should continue to come behind the plate. Serven has racked up 7 Defensive Runs Saved across 730 innings with the Rockies and Blue Jays.
Gelof required a minimum stint on the injured list with a bruised hand. He’s back in the lineup tonight, batting second and playing left field. Gelof has mostly played third base this year, but injuries to Brent Rooker and Tyler Soderstrom have made outfield a clearer need.
The hand injury paused what has been a massive bounce-back campaign for Gelof. After struggling to stick on the roster last year, he’s posted a 129 wRC+ through 62 games this season. Gelof has trimmed his troublesome strikeout rate to a manageable 24.1%. He’s popped 11 home runs and stolen eight bases as a near-everyday player bouncing between second base, third base, and the outfield.
More to come…
