WEST SACRAMENTO -- No player in Major League Baseball has hit more home runs this season than Tyler Soderstrom.
Yes, we are only two weeks into the 2025 season. But for those who watched him somewhat regularly during his first two seasons in the Majors, Soderstrom -- who hit 12 homers from 2023-24 with the Athletics -- leading the league in big flies at any point might have seemed unfathomable.
Yet here we are, 11 games in, and Soderstrom is halfway to that mark from the previous two seasons. After homering twice Monday night in a 5-4 loss to the Padres at Sutter Health Park, Soderstrom is tied with Yankees slugger Aaron Judge for the most round-trippers in MLB.
¡°I feel like I just keep getting better,¡± Soderstrom said. ¡°I keep maturing as I get older. I¡¯m learning my swing and myself. I¡¯ve been able to control the zone and put good swings on good pitches.¡±
Because he was drafted out of Turlock High School -- 90 miles south of West Sacramento -- in the first round of the 2020 MLB Draft, it can be easy to forget that Soderstrom is only 23 years old. When the A¡¯s selected him 26th overall, they knew patience and extra development might be required before he reached his full potential.
Now getting his first real shot at regular playing time in the big leagues, Soderstrom is beyond holding his own. He¡¯s putting up offensive numbers matched only by the game¡¯s elite hitters. He also continues to etch his name in A¡¯s history.
Having already joined Khris Davis (2017) and Jason Giambi (2000) as just the third A¡¯s player to homer twice on Opening Day last month, Soderstrom became the first A¡¯s player age 23 or younger to post two two-homer games in a season since Matt Olson in 2017. There have only been two other A¡¯s players to do so this early in a season, and you have to go back generations to find them.
According to the MLB research team, Soderstrom is the third player in franchise history with two multihomer games within the team¡¯s first 11 games of a season. The other two:
- Reggie Jackson (1974)
- Joe Hauser (1928)
¡°It¡¯s unbelievable,¡± said A¡¯s starter Luis Severino, who took the loss after allowing five runs in seven innings. ¡°He¡¯s getting better every day. I¡¯m happy for him. I think he¡¯s going to be a great player.¡±
Both of Soderstrom¡¯s solo homers came in hitter¡¯s counts, which he has worked much more frequently this season than in past Major League stints. The first one came on a 2-1 fastball low and in from Padres starter Michael King drilled over the right-field wall for a Statcast-projected 385-foot drive. The second was on a 1-0 fastball up and in from reliever Jeremiah Estrada that Soderstrom pulled 389 feet to right for a no-doubter that would have gone out in all 30 Major League parks, according to Statcast.
¡°He¡¯s controlling the zone real well,¡± manager Mark Kotsay said of Soderstrom. ¡°Past seasons, he expanded and swung at some bad pitches. I think he¡¯s really found some zone discipline and is swinging at the right pitches. This kid, we all know the power he has. He displayed that in the Minor Leagues. It¡¯s not a surprise that he¡¯s driving the baseball.¡±
It shouldn¡¯t exactly be a shocker that Soderstrom is hitting for a ton of power. That was his standout trait and main calling card throughout the Minors as he rose to the status of A¡¯s No. 1 prospect and bashed 72 homers through four Minor League seasons.
What stands out about Soderstrom¡¯s early success is that he looks like a complete hitter. He now leads the Majors with seven multi-hit games, is tied for the second-most hits with 16, and his 1.292 OPS ranks third.
The only thing that could have made Soderstrom¡¯s second two-homer night even better would have been a victory, which continues to elude the A¡¯s in their new home. After getting swept by the Cubs in their inaugural Sutter Health Park series last week, the A¡¯s are now 0-4 at home.
¡°The homers are nice, but I¡¯m not focused on those,¡± Soderstrom said. ¡°I¡¯m just trying to go out there and help my team win. We¡¯re just trying to do the best we can to get some wins.¡±