OAKLAND -- When it comes to defense, the way A’s No. 4 prospect Jordan Diaz is handling himself at second base this season compared to last year is night and day.

Take Saturday for example. During the seventh inning of a 3-2 loss to the Reds, Diaz broke in on a chopper hit by Jose Barrero, quickly applied a tag on first-base runner Nick Senzel and fired an off-balance throw to Ryan Noda at first base to complete an impressive inning-ending double play that preserved a one-run lead at the time.

"That’s the growth we’re looking for with Jordan,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay said. “He’s a young player who came through our system with a label that he wasn’t good defensively. He’s working every day to improve on that, and we’ve seen the improvements in front of us.”

When the A’s originally signed Diaz out of Colombia in 2016, he was described as a tremendously gifted hitter who was defensively flawed. Through most of his Minor League career, Oakland struggled to find a spot for him to play on the field. This offseason, though, Diaz underwent a transformation.

Following a solid showing in his first call to the Majors last season, the A’s sent Diaz into the winter with a list of things to work on improving. Among those tasks were getting his body into better shape and working on his defense. Upon his arrival to Spring Training, it was clear that Diaz heeded those recommendations, appearing trimmer and a lot more polished as a defender.

Called back up to the Majors on April 19, Diaz has played in each of Oakland’s 12 games over that time. Eight of those have come as the starting second baseman, in large part due to his improvements with the glove.

“In Triple-A, I felt really good,” Diaz said in Spanish. “I was working on my defense every day and I’ve felt really good. I have a lot more confidence with that position, which is kind of new for me.”

Triple-A Las Vegas
Outfielder JJ Bleday is doing all he can to force his way to Oakland. Entering Sunday, Bleday was hitting .305/.412/.621 with seven homers, seven doubles and 18 RBIs through his first 24 games with the Aviators.

Bleday, who was drafted fourth overall by the Marlins in the 2019 MLB Draft, joined the A’s this winter in a swap with Miami for left-hander A.J. Puk. After narrowly missing out on an Opening Day roster spot as one of the final cuts during Spring Training, the outfielder should make his way to the A’s at some point this season, especially if he keeps up this offensive performance.