Max Muncy’s change since his time in Oakland goes beyond the baseball field
by Rowan Kavner
A wide-ranging array of feelings present themselves when Max Muncy returns to Oakland and RingCentral Coliseum.
On one hand, it’s where he started his Major League career and developed friendships with former teammates and coaches. On the other, it’s a source of pain and a reminder of a time in his life he’s left behind.
“It’s always interesting,” Muncy said. “I don’t know if I can necessarily describe exactly how it feels, but there wasn’t a whole lot of good memories on the other side. But this is where I made my debut, so that’s always going to be special to me. I still have a lot of good relationships with the people over there.
“Despite what might have happened with me, they’re still good people and I enjoy talking to them. So, it’s always a little bit of mixed feelings. We’ll just go with ‘weird.’”
Muncy was drafted by Oakland in the fifth round out of Baylor University in 2012. He had some memorable seasons coming up through the Oakland farm system, blasting 25 home runs between Single-A Stockton and Double-A Midland in 2013.
In 2015, Muncy worked his way up to the big league club, making his MLB debut on April 15. He recorded a hit in that first game, but he finished the season batting .206/.268/.392 with three home runs in 45 games. The next season went similarly, hitting .186/.308/.257 with two home runs in 51 games.
Mentally, he was in a place he didn’t like.
“When I was running out of my time in Oakland, it was a lot of depression and a lot of just not being happy with who I was,” Muncy said. “Showing up to the field every day was really a grind. It was something I almost didn’t even want to do.”
In March 2017, Oakland let him go. Muncy said he felt relief. There wasn’t any urgency to immediately return.
“Just going home and trying to find a passion for something again and realizing it’s still for baseball and realizing I needed to change how I went about things, I think it changed my outlook on life a little bit,” Muncy said. “It’s kind of a tough thing to go through, but it’s one of those things you’re thankful that it happened, because it’s really the reason you’re the person you are today.”
Since that time in his life, Muncy said he’s made a lot of changes. In some ways, he feels more like a kid now because he’s finding more joy both personally and professionally, even on the days he gets frustrated on the field.
One of the biggest differences between today’s version of Muncy and the one who was released in March 2017 — beyond the back-to-back 35-homer seasons and the many successes on the field — is he’s thankful and grateful to play baseball every day.
“The hard times I had over there are kind of what shaped that,” Muncy said. “Without my struggles over there, I wouldn’t have changed to the person I am today. So, I do have to be kind of thankful for that.”
He had more to be thankful for early this week.
Muncy has started the 2021 season on a tear, along with many of his Dodger teammates, batting .400/.478/.550 through five games. Monday night was particularly special: His alma mater won the NCAA Men’s Basketball title, and he recorded three hits in Oakland.
“I can’t lie, it’s very satisfying to get several hits against your old team,” Muncy said. “It felt really good. But we’ve still got some more games, and we’ve got two more games and we’ve got to focus on what we’ve got going on tonight.”
Injury Updates
Neither Chris Taylor nor Cody Bellinger are in the lineup Tuesday after leaving Monday’s game with injuries.
Manager Dave Roberts said Taylor could be used as a pinch-runner or on defense, but extending his elbow to swing still doesn’t feel great after getting hit by a pitch Monday. Bellinger is still sore and will get further tests Tuesday after getting cleated in the back of the left calf on a play at first base.
