Former CWS championship teammates Bleday, Martin reunite for MLB matchup

MINNEAPOLIS -- A’s center fielder JJ Bleday will never forget June 25, 2019. It was his final game as an amateur, capped with a dogpile on the infield grass of Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Neb. as Vanderbilt captured its second College World Series championship.

While the occasion was certainly joyous, Bleday also reflects on the momentous day with a bit of sadness.

“I remember [Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin] saying, ‘Hey, this is the last time you guys are going to be together as a unit,’” Bleday recalled. “We shrugged it off like, ‘Oh yeah, sure.’ But it was actually legit. Everyone went their own ways. Some played professional baseball. Others just got a job somewhere. It’s tough to keep in touch.”

Keying that high-powered Vandy offense was the dynamic duo of Bleday -- SEC Player of the Year that championship season -- and first-team All-American Austin Martin. The two had previously reconnected over the years for weddings. This weekend’s series against the Twins, however, marked the first big league matchup between the two.

In Game 2 of Sunday’s doubleheader at Target Field, Bleday and Martin each shined for their respective clubs in Oakland’s 8-7 loss to Minnesota. Bleday’s career-high four-hit night included his 10th home run of the year, which matched his previous career-high total from last season. Meanwhile, Martin dazzled with a spectacular highlight-reel catch over the center-field wall to rob Shea Langeliers of a two-run homer along with a go-ahead RBI double as part of a 2-for-4 effort.

Despite the A’s coming up short to drop both ends of Sunday’s twin bill and go winless on a seven-game road trip, it was hard for Bleday not to feel proud of his fellow Vanderbilt comrade in Martin, who was recalled from Triple-A earlier this week and is now set to fill a valuable utility role with the Twins.

“He’s a great player,” Bleday said of Martin. “It’s fun to kind of see that come around full circle after playing together. I’m happy for him. He had a good night.”

This was a flashback to that ‘19 national title run when Bleday and Martin routinely dominated on the baseball field. Bleday went on to get drafted fourth overall by the Marlins later that summer in the 2019 MLB Draft. Martin stuck around for one more college season before the Blue Jays made him the Draft’s fifth overall selection one year later.

Even after that separation, though, the two remained close. Martin found himself often going over to Bleday’s house in the leadup to that 2020 MLB Draft to hang out and ask for advice on how to handle the process. Their bond remains tight to this day, as Martin plans to attend Bleday’s wedding this offseason.

“He’s always been like a good big brother role model for me,” Martin said of Bleday. “It’s special because I know we kind of had similar paths in our professional careers. I played with him his junior year, when JJ Bleday became JJ Bleday. Then I also saw him struggle a little bit. … When I see him now, I’m just impressed. … He looks like how I remember him.”

For Bleday, this ‘24 campaign continues to be a breakout performance. He is the only A’s player to play in all 74 games this season, and among all Major League center fielders, he ranks second in extra-base hits (32), tied for second in homers (10) and second in OPS (.770) -- trailing only Yankees superstar Aaron Judge in all three categories.

“I knew today was going to be a grind playing a doubleheader,” said Bleday, who also doubled in Oakland’s Game 1 loss. “I’ve just been ready to attack at the plate trying to hit [pitches] low and hard the other way. … Just trying to stack good ABs and carry it into the All-Star break.”

Sunday’s nightcap saw the A’s twice come back from two-run deficits to tie the game before eventually extending their frustrating losing streak to a season-high nine games. They’ll return home hoping to take some positive momentum from an offensive outburst in Game 2 that also featured yet another homer by Tyler Soderstrom, who joined the illustrious company of Jose Canseco, Reggie Jackson, Jimmie Foxx and Mickey Cochrane as the only A’s players in franchise history age 22 or younger to hit four home runs in a seven-game span.

“It’s good to see some of the young bats, especially Tyler and JJ, contributing,” manager Mark Kotsay said. “Both these young left-handed hitters are having an impact in [our] lineup right now.”