by Jerry Feitelberg

The A’s begin a three-city, 10-game road trip Friday night with a visit to the Texas Rangers Friday night. The A’s would love nothing better than to play the role of spoiler and upset the Rangers’ apple cart. The A’s helped the Rangers out by winning two of the three games played with the Houston Astros this week. The Astros were two games ahead of the Rangers before the series with the A’s and left Oakland still ahead by two games.for the division lead. The Rangers lost to Seattle Wednesday and Thursday and now trail Houston by 2 1/2 games. Houston plays a big series with the Los Angeles Angels this weekend, and the Rangers have to face the A’s. The Rangers and Astros then play each other starting Monday in Arlington.

The A’s, without question, are not going to be in the playoffs this year, but they could play a role in determining the division champ as well as the second Wild Card team. The Rangers are currently the second Wild Card, but the lead over the Minnesota Twins is just one game. The Rangers cannot take the A’s lightly this weekend. The A’s, as mentioned earlier, are not having a great season, but A’s manager Bob Melvin will not let them lay down. There is no question that the A’s are in a rebuild mode and disappointments. Injuries have affected the A’s, too, but the Rangers were not exempt either. Coco Crisp, known as the engine that drives the team, missed most of the season. A’s starting pitching has seen Jesse Hahn, Kendall Graveman, Chris Bassitt go down with an injury. Jarrod Parker and A.J.Griffith had Tommy John surgery last year, and both players were lost 2015. Parker also had a setback to fix an elbow issue.

The A’s offense, however, is not bad. The A’s don’t have any player with more than 18 home runs, but the many of the players are solid. Billy Burns, taking over for Coco, has been a force.He is hitting a shade below .300 but once he reaches base, he can create havoc with his speed. The infield of Danny Valencia, Marcus Semien, Brett Lawrie and Mark Canha all contribute to the offense, and they all have pop in their bats. In fact, every one of them had double-digit home run performance. Catching is solid with Stephen Vogt and Josh Phegley. Josh Reddick made a nice comeback this year from injury, and he has hit sixteen dingers and knocked in sixty-eight to lead the team. Left Field has been a problem, but Coco is back and still contributes. The big problem for Oakland has been the arson squad, the bullpen.

So, the A’s have a chance to do damage in Texas with the potential to derail their playoff hopes. The Rangers made one pitching change for the weekend series. The Rangers are pushing back Cole Hamels one day. Hamels will start Monday against Houston, and he will be available to face the Astros when they play in Houston a few days later. The Ranger bullpen is solid. The Rangers have had success with Sam Freeman, Sam Dyson, James Diekman, Keone, Kela, Tanner Scheppers and their closer Shawn Tolleson. Tolleson has recorded thirty-one saves in thirty-three chances.

The Rangers have Colby Lewis (14-8) pitching Friday night. Yovani Gallardo (12-9) will go on Saturday and Chi Chi Gonzalez is set for Sunday. The A’s pitchers are Jesse Chavez, Sean Nolin, and Felix Doubront. Rangers’ manager Jeff Bannister, in his first year, is doing a great job in Texas. The Rangers lost Derk Holland and Matt Harrison last year. This year, they lost their ace, Yu Darvish, to Tommy John surgery. Holland has returned and is 3-2. Darvish is out but Harrison was traded to Philadelphia in the deal that brought Hamels to Texas. The Rangers have played well since Hamels arrived and they have shocked everyone as they are within grasp of not only the Wild Card slot but the AL West crown as well.
Adrian Beltre, Mitch Moreland, Prince Fielder, Elvis Andrus, Rougned Odor and Mike Napoli are the big boppers for the Rangers on offense. The A’s pitchers will have to work hard this weekend to keep those bats quiet.

Notes-

OAKLAND -– The Oakland A’s acquired left-handed pitcher Daniel Coulombe from the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for cash considerations, the club announced today. To clear a spot on the 40-man roster, the A’s placed right-handed pitcher Evan Scribner on the 60-day disabled list with a torn right lat muscle.

Coulombe appeared in five games over five stints with Los Angeles and had no decisions and a 7.56 ERA. He walked six batters in 8.1 innings and allowed a .265 opponents batting average. The 25-year-old left-hander was most recently with the Dodgers for a one-day stint July 5 when he pitched two innings and allowed a run on three hits and a walk against the Mets. Coulombe spent the balance of the season at Triple-A Oklahoma City where he compiled a 3-1 record, one save and a 3.27 ERA in 38 relief appearances. He was originally drafted by the Dodgers in the 20th round of the 2012 draft and made his Major League debut with Los Angeles in 2014.

The A’s also Bought up Max Muncy and Craig Gentry from Nashville.Also, the A’s announced that manager Bob Melvin has been given a two-year contract extension that will keep him at the helm through the 2018 season.

Scribner was 2-2 with a 4.35 ERA in 54 games with the A’s. He struck out 64 batters in 60.0 innings but also allowed 14 home runs, which were the most among ML relievers.