After being tagged as one of the best prospects for the Athletics during the offseason, outfielder Denzel Clarke was slated to spend the 2025 season with the organization’s Triple-A affiliate in Las Vegas. However, when the parent club suffered a nine-game losing streak, the 6-foot-4 native of Canada was called up to the Majors on May 24th. At the time of his promotion, Clarke was hitting .286/.436/.419 with 21 RBI and seven stolen bases in 31 games with the Aviators.
Denzel Clarke Is Known For His Defense: Comparisons to Bo Jackson
Known more for his defensive prowess, he had 25 runs scored and a modest 17.3 percent walk rate (23 in 133 plate appearances). However, Clarke’s glove earned him his first trip to “The Show”.
According to A’s director of player development and former big leaguer Ed Sprague, Clarke brings great traits in center field, possessing a strong arm and impressive range. Many scouts have already labeled his defense as Gold Glove-caliber.
“When you see him good, you think you’ve got Bo Jackson,” Sprague said to MLB.com. “Denzel’s just a freak athlete. … Then there are times where you see him and it’s like, ‘Whoa, he’s a long way away.’ Like he’s never played before.”
“He’s up and down, which is not out of the norm for big guys like that. You see these guys like [Aaron] Judge and Giancarlo [Stanton] that are super-human athletes, they’re going to have hot streaks and cold streaks just because it’s hard to sync up those big body parts.”
“But when Denzel hits it, it’s electric.”
Clarke Comes From Family Of Elite Athletes
For the 25-year-old Clarke, it’s all about the genes. Clarke’s mother, Donna, was a decorated heptathlete who competed at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. His uncle, Kevin Smellie, was a Canadian Football League running back for the Toronto Argonauts. He’s also the cousin of current major leaguers Josh & Bo Naylor, as well as minor leaguer Myles Naylor. Denzel and Bo were teammates for the Canadian National Team that played in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
Ironically, Myles, the youngest of the three brothers, was drafted by the Athletics as a Competitive Balance Round A pick (39th overall) in the 2023 MLB Draft. Originally drafted by the New York Mets in the 36th round of the 2018 MLB Draft, Clarke decided to attend California State University of Northridge. After playing three seasons, he was drafted by the Athletics in the 2021 draft and signed.
During his first two seasons in the organization, Clarke slowly climbed up the Athletics’ ladder. After beginning his pro career in the Arizona Complex League, he was selected to play in the 2022 All-Star Futures Game at Miller Park in Milwaukee. In 116 games for Double-A Midland in 2024, he hit .269 with a .784 OPS, 13 home runs, 21 doubles, and eight triples while also stealing 36 bases. Following the season, the Athletics added Clarke to their 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.
During spring training, Clarke gave the Athletics a glimpse of his extraordinary defensive skills. Just before being optioned to Las Vegas, he made one of the best catches in Cactus League play.
Against Arizona, he robbed outfielder Ryan Waldschmidt of a home run with a leaping grab over the center-field wall during a game against the D-backs at Las Vegas Ballpark. When he was called up on May 23, he solidified his reputation with another highlight reel grab.During the first inning of his Major League debut against Philadelphia, Clarke raced over from his spot in center field to make a fantastic catch on a liner hit to left-center by Nick Castellanos with a 35% catch probability.
Posting on X following the game, Clarke said, “The experience was awesome. Playing against guys I grew up watching on TV is cool. … I honestly thought I was going to be nervous, but I felt very relaxed. Happy to go out there and play the game I love at the highest level today.”
After going hitless in his first 11 at-bats, Clarke would get his initial MLB hit on May 27th in an 11-1 loss to Houston at Daiken Park. The rookie hit a slow bouncer off Hunter Brown with one out in the sixth and the A’s trailing 9-1. Third baseman Isaac Paredes had to eat the ball, knowing he had no chance to throw out the speedy center fielder. Clarke had been one of Brown’s eight strikeout victims when he faced him in the third.
“He’s got great stuff,” Clarke told MLB.com. “[I’m] just making an adjustment to this big-league level. It’s cool to see one of the top pitchers in the game, how his stuff plays, and the adjustments I need to make to take steps moving forward.”
Those steps would come sooner than later when the Athletics visited the Blue Jays in a four-game set last weekend. The native of Toronto used the series as a coming-out party in front of family and friends.
Clarke Continues To Make Insane Gold Glove Web Gems
On Friday, in an 11-7 loss, Clarke made a spectacular home run robbery during the fourth inning. He climbed the center-field wall just to the left of the 400-foot mark for a perfectly timed leap to bring back a Statcast-projected 407-foot drive hit by Alejandro Kirk, which would have been a homer in 11 of 30 Major League ballparks.
According to Statcast, Clarke covered 86 feet at a speed of 25.3 feet per second to make the catch at the wall. After landing back on the surface, Clarke fired the ball back to the infield and raised his right index finger to fellow outfielders Drew Avans and Lawrence Butler to signal the first out.
He then calmly turned around to catch a glimpse of his highlight-reel play on the big screen. The catch even left manager Mark Kotsay, a 17-year veteran outfielder, with his jaw dropped to the floor.
“From a defensive standpoint in center, he’s probably one of the better ones we have in the organization,” Kotsay told MLB.com. “He’s super talented out there. Climbing the wall and timing it to make it look almost routine is pretty insane.”
Denzel Clarke Can Swing It Too
Clarke also notched his first Major League RBI with a single in the ninth. One day later, Clarke hit his first Major League home run off Blue Jays right-hander Braydon Fisher. Clarke’s go-ahead two-run blast in the second inning of the 8-7 loss continued what had truly been a grand homecoming.
Clark’s power was displayed on his first big fly, barreling it up at an exit velocity of 106.5 mph and sending it a Statcast-projected 406 feet for a no-doubter that would have gone out in all 30 Major League ballparks.
“It’s been awesome playing at home in front of family and friends again,” Clarke told MLB.com, who stated that between 150 and 200 friends and family members were in attendance over this four-game series.
“Not many people can say they’ve gotten to do that. I’m super blessed and super grateful to be in this position.” Although his defense is what helped Clarke get to the big leagues this season, his impressive raw power is something the franchise has raved about since being drafted.
Entering the Athletics’ weekend series with the Orioles, Clarke is hitting a modest .205/.239/.419 with a homer, 3 RBI, and three stolen bases in 13 games since his callup. However, many in the organization think he’s just scratching the surface of his talents.
“Denzel’s done a really nice job this year in his first extended look at Triple-A,” General Manager David Forst told MLB.com at the time of Clarke’s callup. “His strike-zone judgment has been excellent.”
“He’s taken walks. He’s used his legs to get some hits, and he’s played really good center field, which is obviously the priority for his time here. I know Mark [Kotsay] will get him in there as much as possible.”
Clarke added another clip to his growing highlight reel in the Athletics’ 5-4 victory on Friday night. In the fourth inning, Baltimore’s Jorge Mateo hit a deep drive in the left-center gap. Clarke ran full speed from his spot in center to make the play and crashed into the wall. He remained on the ground for a few moments to collect himself after making impact with the wall, getting checked on by teammates before jogging back to the A’s dugout, where he received a standing ovation from the home crowd.
Two innings later, the rookie was replaced by Seth Brown in centerfield and exited the game with what the A’s announced as a left shoulder contusion. After the game, Kotsay said Clarke is day-to-day.
