Oakland A’s slugger Ramon Laureano get congratulated upon returning to the Oakland dugout after hitting a two run home run against the Los Angeles Angels at Anaheim Stadium in Anaheim on Thu Aug 4, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND–The annual Bay Bridge series between the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants resume this Saturday in Oakland. The team split the two-game series played at Oracle Park in late April.

Both Bay Area teams are not having a good season. The A’s are in a rebuild mode as they traded away three of the best pitchers. They sent Matt Olson to Atlanta and Matt Chapman to the Toronto Blue Jays. The team has the worst record in the American League.

The A’s, however, have played better since the All-Star break. Oakland won their last two games and are 6-4 in the last ten. The Giants, winners of 107 games last year, entered the season with high hopes.

They lost Buster Posey to retirement, and Kevin Gausman signed a free-agent deal with Toronto. The Giants had most of the players back for the 2022 season. In his third year at the helm, Giants’ manager Gabe Kapler has not seen his team play as well as they did last year.

The Giants are 51-55 and are in third place in the National League West Division. They currently trail the Philadelphia Phillies by six and 1/2 games in the race for the third Wild Card slot. The Giants have lost four in a row to the hated Dodgers and are 3-7 in their last ten games.

The Giants are hoping to get back on track this weekend in Oakland. They will send their best two pitchers to face the A’s. Lefty Carlos Rodon (9-6, 3.00 ERA) will pitch on Saturday. Righty Logan Webb (9-5, 3.20 ERA) will be on the mound on Sunday.

The A’s will counter with Adam Oller (1-4, 7.68 ERA). The A’s have not announced their starter for Sunday. There is speculation that the A’s will use one of the pitchers acquired in the trade that sent Frankie Montas and Lou Trivino to the New York Yankees. The platers are Ken Waldichuk and J.P.Sears. Both are currently with the Triple-A Las Vegas Aviators.

The Giants have a lot of familiar names on their roster. They won’t see Brandon Crawford, Evan Longoria, Thairo Estrada, or Joc Pedersen. All those players are on the IL. However, Brandon Belt will be at first base, as usual.

Belt has missed a lot of playing time this season to injury. Tommy La Stella or the versatile Wilmer Flores will play second. Dixon Machado will be the shortstop. J.D Davis, acquired from the New York Mets for Darrin Ruf, or rookie David Villar will be at third.

Luis Gonzalez will patrol left field for the Giants. Mike Yazstremski or Austin Slater will be in center. LaMonte Wade, Jr will play in right. Yaz or Slater can also play there if needed. The Giants have four players that can be the DH. La Stella, Flores, Davis, And Yermin Merceded will be inserted as the DH when needed.

The A’s big three power guys right now are Ramon Laureano, Sean Murphy, and Seth Brown. Brown and Murphy had two RBIs in the wild win over the Angels on Thursday. Laureano had four RBIs in the game.

The A’s are using Nick Allen, Jonah Bride, and Vimael Machin in three different infield spots as needed. Tony Kemp has played second base and left field for Oakland. Chad Pinder, Skye Bolt, and Stephen Piscotty have played in different outfield positions.

The outcome of the games will depend on the bullpens. Right now, the A’s pen has pitched well. The Giants are using Camilo Doval as the closer.

The A’s Zach Jackson earned a save Wednesday night against the A’s. He may not remain in that role as Dany Jimenez is off the IL. Jimenez pitched the eighth inning against the Angels Thursday. He struck out the side.

The A’s are expecting large crowds for the series. The teams love to beat each other and win bragging rights. It should be a fun weekend.