OAKLAND — It was a super “lofty” goal for Oakland A’s designated hitter Brent Rooker, but as he heads to Seattle for the All-Star Game on July 11, he’ll earn the chance to remind himself he belongs there.
Rooker found out on Sunday he would be the team’s representative. After finding out the news in front of his teammates, Rooker offered up a speech.
“We just had a meeting, [manager Mark Kotsay] called everybody together and kind of told us all at once which was exciting — pretty special way to find out, in front of your teammates, in front of your friends,” Rooker said on Sunday.
Man, I feel just like a Rook Star ⭐
Congratulations on your first All-Star selection, Brent! pic.twitter.com/YpWJUSymuv
— Oakland A's (@Athletics) July 2, 2023
The announcement
The meeting had Kotsay asking the team to raise their hand if they ever were a little league All-Star.
While a majority of the arms were waved in the air, very few remained when Kots asked if there were any major-league All-Stars in his presence.
Rooker was able to keep his hand raised, initially without words.
But plenty of humility.
“I don’t think—just to be completely transparent, I ever allowed myself to think I could make an All-Star team, so this is even shocking for me,” Rooker said.
The moment Brent Rooker found out he made the All-Star team: pic.twitter.com/im7zOkrIJN
— Jessica Kleinschmidt (@KleinschmidtJD) July 2, 2023
The numbers
The 27-year-old earns his first trip to the Midsummer Classic after putting up a sensational March and April 2023. A .353/.465/.779 line with a 1.245 OPS collectively across those months created enough attention to have his player peers voting him second at the American League designated hitter position behind Shohei Ohtani.
Rooker also leads Oakland with a 1.0 WAR and 13 home runs and 39 RBI.
The journey
Rooker’s journey is a rewarding one.
It was a bumpy road following a successful time at Mississippi State where he earned a Triple Crown, the second in SEC history.
“I had a good college career for sure,” Rooker said. “I fell in the draft (35th overall in 2017) a little bit based on where my numbers were because I was older, I was 22—from that point on, you get into pro ball and no matter how good you are in college, you kind of realize, ‘OK this is an entire other level…'”
Rooker got the major-league call in 2020 while playing Call of Duty. It was a weird year with COVID-19 taking over the world, but after being a part of four teams in 2022—filled with trades and releases—Rooker just wanted to find a place to feel at home, established.
The two-way phenom
Sharing a roster and dugout with Ohtani will be extra special for Rooker.
Back in April, Rooker went off on the two-way superstar.
A three-run home run to break up Ohtani’s no-hit bid had the red-hot Rooker placed on the map.
That home run was monumented in the form of a photo. Rooker remembers it well and will use it to have an exchange with Ohtani.
He looks forward to meeting him.
“Shohei, I think number one,” Rooker said when asked who he looks forward to meeting during the festivities. “There’s a really cool picture of me hitting a homer off Shohei in Anaheim, and I’m going to approach him very humbly and try and get him to sign it because I think that is something I would love to have forever because I mean, if there’s anybody doubting that he is the best player of all-time, I don’t really know why they are.”
The experience
It’ll be a lot to take in, but Rooker looks forward to sharing the honors with the biggest names in the game.
“I will look around the clubhouse and kind of wonder who let me in, why they let me in, but it’ll be a really, really cool feeling. Of the guys in the clubhouse, I’m going to be kind of looking around, wide-eyed and starstruck for sure,” Rooker said.
“I will feel very out of place, Rooker smiled.
Like I said—plenty of humility.
Kotsay disagreed.
“He shouldn’t feel out of place, he’s an All-Star,” Kotsay said. “You get to live with that designated for the rest of your life.”
The A’s
Rooker knows being an A’s player is unique. There is a lot about the team that goes unnoticed. He looks forward to representing the organization and showing that off.
“I think the big thing is, if you go into that clubhouse and you watch our guys go through their business on a daily basis — no matter what the season has brought us, you never once have seen guys stop working,” Rooker said.
Glimpses of younger outfielders Esteury Ruiz and JJ Bleday could be seen with the two watching film ad nauseam and spending extra time working on their hitting in the batting cages.
“There’s guys doing early work every single day. There’s guys in the weight room every single day. There are guys in the cages for an extended period of time every day. There’s guys constantly trying to get better and constantly trying to improve. I think that’s the MO of this team, that’s what I’d like to represent. Just the constant desire to improve, the desire to get better and be the best player that each one us individuals can possibly be.”
