There’s a fresh face lighting up the outfield for the Oakland Athletics, and his name is Denzel Clarke. As a rookie center fielder, he’s already establishing a reputation with a unique pregame routine designed to help him navigate each new ballpark. Before the first game of each road series, you can find Clarke out in the outfield during batting practice, calculating how to time his steps from the warning track to the wall. He’s meticulous about it, knowing that understanding the dimensions of the park could mean the difference between a catch and a missed play.
“I always say the first play in my first time playing a new ballpark is going to break the ice,” Clarke explained. “Crazy play to break the ice.”
And break the ice he did. In a captivating moment during Monday night’s game against the Los Angeles Angels, Clarke delivered a sensational catch that saw him scale the wall in left-center field. It was Nolan Schanuel’s 398-foot drive in the first inning that set the stage. As the ball soared, Clarke measured his approach perfectly, robbing Schanuel of what would have been a solo home run.
“I just timed it up,” Clarke noted after the play. “Found my distance between the wall and just did what the ball told me to do. Just go up there and get it.”
This wasn’t just another catch for Clarke; it was reminiscent of the jaw-dropping robbery he pulled off just weeks earlier in Toronto against Alejandro Kirk, where he leaped over the center-field wall for an incredible grab. This time, however, he seemed to channel his inner superhero, getting an excellent read on the ball right off the bat and tracking it seamlessly. He timed his jump to perfection, extending fully over the fence while grabbing hold of it with his right hand for support.
Manager Mark Kotsay was left in awe. “That play was pretty phenomenal,” he stated. “I asked our bench coach Darren Bush, ‘If he had fallen over the fence, how would they have ruled that?’ That’s about as far over a fence you can get without going over and making a play. We talk about his range. The package is instinct, reaction, and speed. He’s got it all.”
The excitement was palpable on the field. Pitcher Grant Holman stood on the mound, arms raised in disbelief. Schanuel, who had half-heartedly rounded first base, could only gaze out to the outfield, stunned by Clarke’s athletic prowess. Even Clarke, known for his calm demeanor after spectacular catches, couldn’t hold back a triumphant roar as he jumped off the wall and back onto the field.
“I’ve played with Denzel for a few years now, dating back to the Minor Leagues,” Holman reflected. “I’ve seen him do stuff out there that you just don’t see. Schanuel hit that ball, and I’m thinking, ‘All right, with Denzel, he’s got a chance to catch anything.’
“Then he makes that catch. I’ve never been on the mound and not known what emotion to show. But I was stunned. … The guy makes plays every day that continue to blow our minds.”
Schanuel himself thought he had an easy home run. “Off the bat, I felt like I got it,” he admitted. “Then I see him come back, go down the wall, see the ball disappear, and then come back up and him celebrating with the ball in his glove. My heart dropped. He’s a crazy athlete. … He’s special. Really good fielder, and he’s got a bright future.”
Clarke, now merely weeks into his Major League career, has already notched what could be considered some of the most memorable defensive plays this season. The way he’s going, the Electric Play of the Week presented by Chevrolet may need to be rebranded as the “Denzel Clarke Award.”
He’s already clinched the honor in consecutive weeks: first for that memorable Toronto heist, and then again for an acrobatic catch at Sutter Health Park where he sprinted full speed into the left-center fence.
When reflecting on his latest highlight, Clarke humbly remarked, “I’m always very tentative to say this was the best one, but I think this is probably the best one I’ve ever made.”
With a combination of skill, instinct, and charisma, Denzel Clarke is not just fitting in; he’s making waves in the big leagues. It’s safe to say that the baseball world will be buzzing about him for a long while.
