The A's Goals for 2023, in Their Own Words

The Oakland A's open their season tonight against the Los Angeles Angels, and there are a number of new faces in the clubhouse. The A's roster is filled with young guys, veteran players, and debuting players, all with their own goals for the 2023 season. I caught up with a few of them before the opener and asked them about those goals. 

Ryan Noda said his goals for this season were to learn and to progress. The A's selected Noda second overall in December's Rule 5 Draft. He has yet to make his big-league debut, but in Triple-A with the Dodgers affiliate he batted .259 with a .395 OBP along with 25 home runs and 20 stolen bases. 

This spring was different for Noda as a Rule 5 pick, because he had a pathway to the majors with Oakland, instead of having a former MVP in Freddie Freeman blocking his way. 

In Arizona, Noda hit .208 with a .362 on-base with one homer and three doubles, and admitted that he put some added pressure one himself this spring. The 27-year-old first baseman spoke very highly of the clubhouse, and the mix of young guys and veterans that the A's have, and that Tony Kemp told him that they're all going to be a family because they'll be with each other all of the time. 

"This clubhouse is great."

Ken Waldichuk, who came over from the New York Yankees as part of the return in the Frankie Montas deal last summer, said that his biggest goal is to stay healthy and contribute as much as he can to the team. 

Opening Day left fielder Seth Brown, a veteran, is more focused on consistency. "Consistent and win ball games. That's about it." Brown also mentioned that he never looked at the shifts (which are now restricted) in the past. "There will probably be a little bit of adjustments you'll see with batting averages and whatnot, but I've never worried too much about the shift. It's just a part of the game." He added, "It's one of those things where you never know until you're at midseason and see what's going on."

A's starting catcher Shea Langeliers, despite leading the team in sprint speed and hitting ahead of the likely new clubhouse leader in speed Esteury Ruiz on Thursday night, said "we'll see" when it comes to him stealing some bases this season. He didn't swipe any bags in the big leagues last season, but he did grab five last year in Las Vegas. He also stole a bag in 2021 with Atlanta's Double-A affiliate. 

Shea's goals are less personal and more team-based. "For me it starts with the pitching staff. If the pitchers have a good year, we as a team have a good year. There's a lot of priority and emphasis on working with the pitchers and building those relationships."

Kyle Muller's success on Thursday night will come down to "executing location on the fastball" per the A's catcher. "When you're doing that, it just opens up your secondary pitches. Obviously, regardless of if he has his stuff or doesn't, he's going to go out there and give you all that he's got. If he's locating his fastball, we'll be in a good spot."

The A's lineup for Opening Day: