Home sweet homer: Athletics rookie Denzel Clarke’s 1st major league HR comes in his native Toronto

TORONTO (AP) - This weekend is turning into quite a homecoming for Denzel Clarke.

The Athletics’ 25-year-old rookie hit his first major-league home run Saturday, going deep at Rogers Centre in his hometown of Toronto.

Clarke told reporters last week he expected 150-200 friends and family to attend the four-game series, and he’s given them plenty to cheer so far.

After going 1 for 19 with 15 strikeouts over his first six games as a big-leaguer, he singled twice and recorded his first major-league RBI in an 11-7 loss Friday night. He also made a flashy defensive play when he leapt at the center field wall to rob Alejandro Kirk of a home run in the fourth inning.

Oakland was down 4-3 in the top of the second Saturday when Clarke, batting No. 9 in the order, stepped to the plate against Braydon Fisher with a man on base and one out. Clarke hammered Fisher’s first pitch 406 feet into the left-field seats for a 5-4 lead.

Clarke, the cousin of Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Josh Naylor and Cleveland Guardians catcher Bo Naylor, played college baseball at Cal State Northridge and was a fourth-round draft pick of the Athletics in 2021.

He was playing at Triple-A Las Vegas when he was called up to the majors on May 23.