Billy Burns takes over in center field for the A's. (Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports)
HOUSTON — In the span of 24 hours, the Athletics lost both of their primary center fielders.
Starter Coco Crisp returned to Oakland to undergo an MRI exam on a sore neck that has bothered him for most of the season, while reserve outfielder Craig Gentry landed on the 15-day disabled list Monday with a broken right hand he sustained Sunday night in the series finale at Texas.
Those developments opened the door for speedy center fielder Billy Burns, whose extensive at-bats during spring training caught the eyes of the Oakland brass. Burns made his major league debut Monday night with a flyout during an at-bat off the bench in the ninth inning. He became the first rookie to make an appearance for Oakland this season.
“I felt OK,” Burns said. “I think everything was kind of a fog to me, with all the lights, and it just being my first AB. Everything was happening fast, I guess. I felt OK, I wasn’t too nervous.”
Given the uncertainty surround Crisp and Gentry, Burns was a needed addition. He is a switch hitter but is stronger from the right side of the plate, which increases the likelihood that left fielder Yoenis Cespedes will start in center field against right-handed pitching. However, Burns’ greatest tool is his speed. Before his promotion from Double-A Midland, Burns recorded 51 stolen bases in 56 attempts for a whopping 91.1 success rate. His steals total ranked fourth in the minor leagues.
“This was a guy we gave a lot of at-bats to in spring training,” Athletics manager Bob Melvin said, “and he really impressed everybody in spring training. Couple that with the fact that we wanted a center fielder, and he was the guy.”
