DETROIT -- A’s manager Mark Kotsay was a bit confused when Shea Langeliers returned to the dugout with a look of frustration at the conclusion of the eighth inning. After all, the team was ahead by 10 runs and the catcher was putting together a two-hit game that featured a home run.

Once Kotsay looked up at the Comerica Park scoreboard, however, it didn’t take long to for him to put two and two together. The Tigers had just scored two runs in the inning, snapping a streak of 19 consecutive scoreless frames for A’s pitchers with Langeliers behind the plate.

“When he lost that shutout in the eighth, catchers really take pride in that,” Kotsay said. “But for him, to get these guys settled into the zone and continue the growth of game planning and pitch selection, he’s done a good job. He continues to get better.”

While the shutout evaded Langeliers, the 12-3 victory over the Tigers on Wednesday night still showcased the multidimensional aspect that the 25-year-old backstop brings to the A’s. In addition to a 2-for-5 effort that included his 10th homer of the season, Langeliers was fully in sync with the pitching duo of Austin Pruitt and Ken Waldichuk, which combined to face the minimum of 21 batters through seven innings, with only one single and one walk allowed.

A’s pitchers have routinely praised Langeliers for his knowledge behind the plate, and the past two games have shown why. On Tuesday night, he caught all 10 innings of a tightly contested 1-0 win, seemingly calling for the right pitch in every crucial moment.

“I definitely take pride in that,” Langeliers said. “My mentality has always been defense first and taking care of the pitching staff. When you’re succeeding and doing well, it’s a lot of fun to be back there calling the games.”

What the A’s saw from Langeliers in a 40-game Major League stint as a rookie last season provided them with more than enough assurance that he was ready to take on the heavy workload that comes with being an everyday catcher, so much so that they were comfortable with trading away an All-Star catcher in Sean Murphy to the Braves this offseason for a package of players headlined by Esteury Ruiz.

A look at Statcast will show Langeliers is already emerging as one of the game’s premier defenders. His 14 runners caught stealing at second base on 39 attempts leads all Major League catchers. He is tied for first in MLB in catcher’s caught stealing above average with six, while his 1.91-second pop time ranks ninth out of 69 eligible players.

“He’s a student,” Kotsay said. “In terms of leadership, he puts the mask on and wants to catch every day. You can’t ask for more than that. We know there’s going to be growing pains for him. It’s his first full season. He didn’t get exposed a ton last year with Murph being here. Now being back there every day, April was a grind not just for the pitchers, but for him as well. I think we’ve seen incremental progress from him behind the plate.”

Beyond the numbers, another valuable trait Langeliers possesses is his ability to connect with pitchers.

“He just invests a lot of time talking with us,” Waldichuk said. “Trying to figure out what we’re trying to do and trying to make us the best pitcher we can be. The amount of runners he’s thrown out kind of speaks for itself as well.”

With only four days left until the All-Star break begins, these rebuilding A’s find themselves playing some of their best ball. Wednesday’s win was their fifth in their past eight games, giving them a chance to go for what would be just their second series sweep of 2023 on Thursday afternoon.

“It’s important to keep building off this,” Langeliers said. “Keep that momentum and continue to communicate with these guys to keep going.”