Landon Reed Powell graduated from Apex (NC) High School in 2000...Was a second team Baseball America High School All-American selection in 2000 after leading his team to the North
Carolina 4-A State Championship...Attended the University of South Carolina...Helped the Gamecocks to three straight College World Series appearances
from 2002-2004...Named to the CWS All-Tournament team in 2002 and 2004...Also was picked to the NCAA College World Series Legend team on May 6, 2010...Played for the USA National Team in 2002...Was an All-SEC selection in 2003 and 2004...Batted .339 with 10 home runs 61 RBI and a league-leading 46 walks in 67 games in 2003...As a senior in 2004, Landon
compiled a .330 average with 19 home runs, 66 RBI and 47 walks in 70 contests...Was selected by the Oakland Athletics with the first-round pick of the Boston Red Sox as compensation for the loss
of free agent, Keith Foulke...His wife is the granddaughter of NBA Hall-of-Famer Bob Davies...Landon and his wife have raised over $90,000 for Donate Life Carolina through their annual Donor on the Diamond
event in Greenville, SC.
2012
Went to spring training with Oakland...Released on March 9 and joined
the Houston organization on March 14...Played the entire season with Houston's Oklahoma City (AAA) team of the
Pacific Coast League...Hit .364 (20-55) in 16 May games...Had four home runs and 12 RBI...Compiled a .284 (19-67) batting average vs. lefthanded pitching...In addition, he hit .327 (18-55) with runners on and two outs and .316
(12-38) with runners in scoring position and two outs...Posted a .309 (42-136) batting average in 44 away games...All eight of his
home runs were on the road...Made 71 starts as a catcher...For the year, he had 11 games with two hits and two games with three hits...Had a home run in three straight games, May 17-May 20...Knocked in five
runs in the three games...Hit safely in a season-best 10 games from May 17-May 31 (14-32, .438)...Also had an eight-game streak to open the season from April 5-April 19 (9-
25, .360).
2011
Spent nearly the entire season with Oakland but appeared in just 36 games, batting .171 with a home run and four RBI...had a 19-day stay with Sacramento from Aug. 22 to Sept. 9...it was his third consecutive season as the back-up catcher to Kurt Suzuki and he had career lows in nearly every offensive category...has appeared in 123 games over the last three years with Oakland and has been on the active roster for all but seven weeks...the switch-hitter batted .185 (5-for-27) with his lone home run against left-handed pitching, compared to .167 (14-for-84) against right-handers...his career splits are .156
(15-for-96) against lefties and .225 (60-for-267) against righties...went 3-for-32 (.094) with runners in scoring position...his best month of the season was April when he hit .273...batted .167 or lower in each of the final five months and hit .146 from May 1 through the end of the season...had a .227 average when leading off an inning...hit .087 over the first four innings of a game, compared to .231 from the fifth inning
on...started 30 games at catcher, matching his career-high...tossed out 6-of-22 (27.3%) attempted
base stealers and has thrown out 19-of-63 (30.2%) in his career...A's pitchers had a 2.70 ERA with him behind the plate...also made one start at first base...was 0-for-2 with a strikeout as a pinch-hitter and is 0-for-7 in the pinch in his career.
OAKLAND: Landed a spot on the A's Opening Day roster for the second time in the last three years and hit safely in each of his first four games...batted .455 (5-for-11) with two of his four RBI during the hitting streak, which was his longest of the season...had his only multiple-hit game April 10 at Minnesota when he went 2-for-3 with a double and RBI...started back-to-back games at catcher April 27 at Los Angeles and April 29 against Texas...that was the only time he started consecutive games all year...his batting average stood at .243 at the conclusion of play May 21...then went 10-for-74 (.135) over his final 24 games...went 1-for-7 with a career-high four strikeouts June 4 at Boston...connected for his only home run June 19 against San Francisco...it was a solo shot off Jeremy Affeldt in the bottom of the eighth inning and it broke a 1-1 tie in the A's 2-1 victory...it was also his last extra-base hit of the season...finished June with a .143 batting average, then hit .167 in July and .133 in August...was batting .176 with one home run and four RBI in 32 games overall when he was optioned to Sacramento Aug.
22...was recalled Sept. 10 and went 1-for-9 (.111) in four games following his return.
SACRAMENTO: Went 13-for-46 (.283) with a home run and five RBI in 12 regular season games with Sacramento...added seven walks for a .377 on-base percentage...went 11-for-32 (.344) against righthanded pitching, 2-for-14 (.143) against left-handers...batted .364 with runners in scoring position...started nine of the River Cats' final 13 games at catcher and also went 1 for 11 (.091) in three starts at designated hitter...tossed out 2-of-7 (28.6%) attempted base stealers...hit his lone home run Aug. 26 at Fresno...went 4-for-5 with two runs scored against Las Vegas Aug. 29...was 1-for-11 (.091) with a double, RBI and strikeout in three postseason games, all starts at catcher.
2010
Had four stints with Oakland and batted .214 with two home runs and 11 RBI in 41 games...spent all
but five weeks of the season with the A's, seeing limited action as the back-up catcher to Kurt Suzuki...made a total of 29 starts behind the plate, including just 14 over the A's final 97 games beginning June 15...had career-highs in walks (15) and on-base percentage (.305) and also stole the first base of his career...the switch-hitter batted .232 (19-for-82) against right-handed pitchers, .167 (5-for-30) against
left-handers...now has a .251 (46-for-183) career average against righties, with seven of his nine home runs, compared to .145 (10 for 69) against lefties...had a .250 batting average before the All-Star Break and hit .167 after the break...batted .163 with runners on base but had a .269 average with runners in scoring position...is a .297 (19-for-64) career hitter with RISP...went 8-for-27 (.296) when leading off
an inning after going 1-for-33 (.030) in that situation in 2009...committed six errors in his 38 games at catcher for a .972 fielding percentage...tied for sixth among American League catchers in errors...tossed out 4 of 21 (19.0%) attempted base stealers and has now thrown out 13 of 41 (31.7%) in his career...also appeared in one game at first base and was 0 for 3 with a strikeout as a pinch hitter...is now 0-for-5 in the pinch for his career.
OAKLAND: Began the season at Triple-A Sacramento before being recalled for the first time April 21 when Mark Ellis went on the disabled list...was optioned back to Sacramento two days later without appearing in a game...returned to Oakland April 27 when Brett Anderson went on the DL and spent nearly
a month with the A's during his second stint...started 12 of the A's 22 games, hitting .231 (9 for 39) with two doubles and three RBI...caught the 19th perfect game in Major League history as he was behind the plate for Dallas Braden's Mother's Day gem May 9...snapped a career-long 0-for-14 streak in the game with a second-inning RBI single that gave the A's a 1-0 lead...added a double in the eighth and went
2-for-4...was presented with his mitt from the perfect game in a pre-game ceremony honoring Braden May 21...stole the first base of his career and second as a professional May 11 at Texas...matched his career-high with three hits May 15 at Los Angeles (also May 3, 2009 at Seattle)...was optioned to Sacramento May 21 when Coco Crisp was reinstated from the DL but returned May 26 when Crisp went back on the DL...appeared in just two games, both starts at catcher, during his third stint...was 3 for 7
(.429) with a home run and two RBI when he was optioned June 4...appeared in 12 games in May, his
most in any month in 2010, and hit .297 with a home run, five RBI and seven walks for a .400 on-base percentage...recalled again June 11, spending the remainder of the season with Oakland, batting .182 (12 for 66) with a home run and six RBI in 26 games, including 16 starts at catcher...started two of the A's three games behind the plate at San Francisco from June 11-13 while Suzuki was on the bereavement list, going 2 for 9 (.222)...appeared in just 23 of the A's final 97 games beginning June 20 and went 10-for-57 (.175) with a home run and five RBI over that span...went 2-for-13 (.154) in five games in July, 3-for-20 (.150) in eight games in August and 4-for-20 (.200) in eight games in September.
SACRAMENTO: Spent the balance of the season with the River Cats, batting .200 with a home run and two RBI in 14 games...added 10 walks for a .345 on-base percentage...hit .304 with the bases empty but was 0-for-12 with runners in scoring position...was 4-for-9 (.444) when leading off an inning...appeared in seven games at catcher and two at first base...was also 3-for-15 (.200) in four games at designated hitter and 1-for-1 as a pinch hitter...tossed out 2 of 8 (25.0%) attempted base stealers.
2009
The rookie catcher spent the entire season on the A's roster but appeared in just 46 games as the back-up to Kurt Suzuki...hit .229 with seven home runs and 30 RBI...the RBI were second most in Oakland history by a player with 50 or fewer games played...Rico Carty had 31 RBI in 41 games in 1978...added seven doubles and 14 of his 32 hits were for extra bases, fueling a .429 slugging percentage...appeared in 36 games at catcher, including 30 starts, and tossed out 9 of 20 (45.0%) attempted base stealers...among catchers with 20 or more games, that was the second-best percentage in the majors in 2009 (Johjima, SEA 50.0%) and it was the best by an Oakland catcher since Jamie Quirk tossed out 10 of 20 (50.0%) in 37 games in 1990...the switch-hitter batted .267 (27 for 101) with six of his seven home runs and 26 of his 30 RBI against right-handed pitchers, compared to .128 (5 for 39) against left-handers...had a .505 slugging
percentage against righties and .231 against lefties...hit .190 with the bases empty and .279 with runners on, including .316 with runners in scoring position...was 1 for 33 (.030) with two walks when leading off an inning...saw most of his playing time in day games and batted .250 with five of his seven home runs in 29 day games compared to .175 in 17 night games...four of his seven home runs came on the first pitch and he batted .478 (11 for 23) with eight RBI when putting the first pitch in play...five of his seven home runs came after the All-Star Break and the A's won all seven games in which he homered...in addition to 36 games behind the plate, he also appeared in six games (four starts) at first base, his only professional
appearances at a position other than catcher...was 2 for 14 (.143) in four games at designated hitter and 0 for 2 as a pinch hitter.
2008
Batted .230 with 15 home runs and 53 RBI in 88 games in his first full season at Triple-A Sacramento... added 63 walks for a .360 on-base percentage...tied for fourth in the A's farm system and led the River Cats in walks...his batting average included a .276 mark against left-handed pitching and .211 against right-handers...had six home runs in 87 at bats against lefties and nine home runs in 213 at bats against righties...batted .254 with runners in scoring position but that mark jumped to .344 with RISP
and two outs...batted under .200 in each of the first two months of the season as he hit .182 in April and .174 in May...then hit .241 in June before batting a season best .310 in July...added five home runs, 13 RBI and 20 walks in 22 games in July for a .457 on-base percentage...hit seven of his 15 home runs in the seventh inning or later...tossed out 21 of 55 (38.2%) attempted base stealers, which was the second-best percentage in the Pacific Coast League...tied for the lead among PCL catchers with nine errors...
was rated as the Best Defensive Catcher in Baseball America's Best Tools survey for A's prospects following the season...hit in every spot in the order except first and second...had six home runs and 12 RBI over a nine-game span from April 22 to May 8...that included a grand slam April 26 at Colorado Springs and his lone two-homer game May 1 against Omaha...had a season high four RBI in each of those two games plus July 1 against Portland...had seven home runs over his first 18 games, followed by a 30-game homerless streak from May 9 to June 19...then hit eight home runs over his final 40 contests...his average was at .196 entering play June 18 when he put together a season best six-game hitting streak that run through June 24 (7 for 24, .292)...was hitting .208 through July 7 but then batted .284 over his final 26 games...had his only three-hit game of the season July 25 at Albuquerque when he went 3 for 5...was placed on the disabled list Aug. 16 with a strained right knee and missed the remainder of the season.
2007
Began the season at Double-A Midland and earned a late June promotion to Triple-A Sacramento before a strained left knee ended his season after just a week with the River Cats...combined for a .292
batting average, 14 home runs and 42 RBI in 64 games...hit .302 against left-handed pitching and .289 with 11 of his 14 home runs against right-handers...appeared in 61 games at catcher and tossed out 20 of 37 (54.1%) attempted base stealers...batted .292 with 11 home runs and 39 RBI in 60 games at Midland...added 36 walks for a .391 on-base percentage...tied for second on the RockHounds in home runs despite spending just three months with the club...his average improved each month as he hit .188 in April, .238 in May and .425 with eight home runs and 26 RBI in 21 games in June...had a grand slam and a season high five RBI May 27 against Wichita...had the longest hitting streak in the Texas League
in 2007 as he hit safely in 20 consecutive games from June 1 to 20...hit .442 during the streak with eight home runs, 26 RBI and 25 runs scored...had a season high tying four hits June 10 at Frisco...homered twice and drove in a season high tying five runs June 19 against Frisco...was promoted to Sacramento June 28 and homered in each of his first three games in his Triple-A debut...was 5 for 17 (.294) with
three home runs and three RBI in four games before going on the disabled list July 3 with a left knee strain that caused him to miss the remainder of the season.
2006
Was named to the California League Postseason All-Star team...played 90 games at Single-A Stockton before moving up to Double-A Midland for 12 games late in the year...batted .264 with 16 home runs and 51 RBI in a combined 102 games...hit .264 with 15 home runs and 47 RBI at Stockton...made 82 appearances behind the plate and committed just four errors for a .994 fielding percentage,
which was the best mark in the CL...tossed out 51.5 percent (50 of 97) of attempted base stealers, which was the third best in the CL...batted .290 against right-handed pitchers and .200 against left-handers at Stockton...batted .321 over his first 16 games and was hitting .282 at the end of May...averaged slipped to .277 at the end of June and he then hit .221 in July...hit at a .289 clip in 12 games in August...was promoted to Double-A Midland Aug. 18 and made his debut with the RockHounds Aug. 19 at Arkansas...batted .268 with one home run and four RBI in 12 games for Midland...batted .170 with two RBI in 16 games with the Phoenix Desert Dogs in the Arizona Fall League.
2005
Spent the entire season on the Stockton disabled list after tearing his left ACL in January.
2004
Began his professional career at Single-A Vancouver of the Northwest League...batted .237 with three home runs and 19 RBI in 38 games...added 26 walks for a .362 on-base percentage...batted .257 with all three of his home runs against right handed pitching and .200 against left-handers...his batting average included a .297 mark at home compared to .183 on the road...got off to a slow start as he batted .128 over his first 11 games through August 8...then put together a 10-game hitting streak from August 9 to 18 (16 for 36, .444) that boosted his average to .280...went 11 for 60 (.183) over his final 17 games to finish the year at .237...hit in the fourth through seventh spots in the order...committed just one error in 20 games at catcher for a .994 fielding percentage...also hit .226 in 18 games at designated hitter...hit his first professional home run on July 24 at Spokane...had his first of five three-hit games on July 29 against Yakima...had a pair of doubles and also homered in that game, giving him two home runs in his first eight games...homered just once over his final 30 games...went 0 for 19 over a six-game stretch from August 31 to September 4 before collecting three hits in the final regular season game on September 5 at Eugene...then hit .250 with three doubles and three RBI in three playoff games for the Canadians.