Month: May 2023

San FranciscoTorched by Twins 7-1

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San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Anthony DeSclafani (26) throws during the first inning against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field in Minneapolis on Wed May 24, 2023 (AP News photo)

San Francisco Torched by Twins 7-1

By Barbara Mason

Wednesday afternoon, the San Francisco Giants (24-25) were looking to sweep the division leading Minnesota Twins (26-24). As this game went on it became very clear that the Twins had a far different mindset and prevented themselves from getting swept coming up with a six run 7-1 win at Target Field in Minneapolis.

San Francisco had to come from behind Tuesday to take game two winning it 4-3. Anthony Desclafani took the mound for the Giants in Wednesday’s game. DeScalfani took the loss dropping his record to a 3-4 and raised his ERA to 3.43. San Francisco wanted to continue building on the three game winning streak they but the Twins were taking their hacks on DeScalfani and the Giants. Joe Ryan who was on the hill for the Twins improved his record to 7-1 W-L and lowered his ERA to 2.21.

Wednesday game recap: The Twins got on top of the Giants from the first inning and they did not take their foot off the pedal for the rest of the game.

Minnesota took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Edouard Julien hit a home run. San Francisco was able to tie up the game 1-1 when Casey Schmitt singled Mike Yastrzemski home in the second inning but that was all that the Giants could muster through the rest of the game.

The Twins scored a couple more runs in the second inning to lead 3-1. Minnesota added two more runs in the third inning and the Twins were on a roll leading 5-1. Scoring another run in the fourth inning and the sixth as well gave the Twins a 7-1 lead.

The Giants had an awful game with some ugly errors. Brandon Crawford had a fielding error in the third inning which advanced the runner. In the same inning Brett Wisely missed a line drive that flew between his legs and this game had an ominous tone from the start.

The Giants had a real opportunity in the sixth inning loading the bases with no outs. They could have at the very least cut the deficit by a few runs but came up completely empty. This was the straw that broke the proverbial camel’s back. San Francisco had three innings to get something going in this game and it just didn’t happen. It was all Twins in this one even though the Giants had more hits than Minnesota 10-7. The Twins took the Giants by six runs.

The Giants scored on a single in the second inning but it was no match to the two homers, the double, a sacrifice, and a couple of steals from the Twins. Those awful errors were the icing on the cake although the Twins had a few errors of their own; it just didn’t hurt them to the extent that it did San Francisco.

Thursday the Giants will travel to Milwaukee for a four game series against a very good Brewers team (27-22). The Brewers are first in the NL Central division and so this will challenge the Giants who will be looking to get back on track in this series. Left hand starter Scott Alexander (4-0 ERA 4.42) will take the mound for San Francisco Thursday. Right now assignment on the hill for the Brewers is undecided. First pitch is scheduled for 4:40 PM.

NBA Playoffs podcast with David Zizmor: Celtics escape to stay alive with 116-99 win over Heat

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On the NBA Playoffs podcast with David:

#1 The Boston Celtics avoided getting swept by the Miami Heat 116-99 in Miami on Tuesday night. The Celtics led by Jayson Tatum led with 34 points and 11 rebounds.

#2 The Celtics also got scoring help from Derrick White and Jaylen Brown who each had 16 points and the Celtics had a strong second half to hold off the Heat.

#3 What had been absent for the Celtics in the first three games to put them behind the eight ball early and quickly.

#4 Dave game five comes back to the Boston on Thursday night and it might be the best chance for the Celtics to pick up one more win on their home floor but the Heat can put this away in a game six in Miami.

Join David for the NBA post season podcasts Wednesdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

M’s send A’s down to sixth loss in a row Seattle wins 3-2

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BY Jerry Feitelberg

There was good and bad news for the Oakland A’s in Tuesday night’s game against the Seattle Mariners. The good news was that the A’s played better than Monday night. The bad news was they still lost.

The Mariners ruined a good start by the A’s starter, Luis Medina. The 24-year-old Dominican Republic Medina pitched well for four and 2/3rd innings. Luis allowed a single in the first inning and held the M’s hitless until there were two out in the fifth.

Another bit of good news was the two runs the A’s scored in the first inning. The bad news was they managed just two hits over the next eight innings. Seattle’s three runs in the fifth were enough to give them a 3-2 win over the A’s. The loss marks the worse MLB start since the 1932 Boston Red Sox.

The A’s put two runs on the board in the top of the first. Esteury Ruiz got the rally going with a single to left. The hit extended Ruiz’s hitting streak to eight games. Ruiz stole second to get into scoring position. For Ruiz, it was his Major League-leading 25th steal.

Ramon Laureano singled to shallow right. Ruiz scored, and Laureano went to second on the throw home. Jesus Aguilar grounded out 5-3, and Laureano went to third on the play. Catcher Carlos Perez singled to drive in Ramon with the A’s second run. The Mariners did not score in their half of the first. The A’s lead 2-0

The Mariners scored three times in the fifth. Luis Medina had not allowed a hit since the first inning. Medina retired the first two Mariner hitters in the fifth. With two out, catcher Tom Murphy doubled. The next hitter, left-handed hitter J.P. Crawford, took Medina deep.

Crawford’s home run was his second of the year. The ball went out of the park in right-center field. Medina now had to face Ty France. Median retired France the first two times he faced him. Not this time, as France homered to left-center field to give the Mariners a 3-2 advantage after five.

The Mariners’ starter Marco Gonzales settled down and allowed the A’s two hits before he left the game after the sixth inning. The Mariners’ outstanding bullpen set the A’s down in order in the seventh, eighth, and ninth innings to secure the win.

Game Notes- with the loss, the A’s have lost six in a row and nine of the last ten played. The A’s are 10-40 for 2023. The Mariners evened their record at 24-24.

The line score for Oakland was two runs, five hits, and one error. The Line for Seattle was three runs, five hits, and no errors. Home runs by J.P. Crawford and Ty France were the big hits in the game.

Luis Medina was the losing pitcher. His record in 0-3. Marco Gonzales was the winning pitcher.
The A’s sent lefty Kyle Muller to Triple-A. Muller was the losing pitcher Monday night. Oakland activated pitcher Trevor May from the 10-day IL. May saw action in the eighth inning, and what an inning it was.

May hit Ty France on the wrist with a wayward fastball. May was barely moving due to the pain. He did get up and made his way to first base. Sam Haggerty replaced him. The next hitter Julio Rodriguez hit a ball down the right-field line.

As Ramon Laureano went to catch the ball in foul territory, it appeared a fan interfered with it. The first base umpire ruled the batter out. The M’s challenged the call, but the review upheld the call. May retired Jarred Kelenic for the second out.

He then hit Eugenio Suarez with a pitch. The Seattle fans were enraged at the events. May stayed in the game to get the third out.

There was more bad news for the Oakland fans. The Nevada Independent reports that the A’s and major Nevada state officials have reached a loose agreement for a public financing package including $180 million in transferable tax credits and $120 million in bonds issued by Clark County.

The A’s still have two games left to play with Seattle before returning home to face the Houston Astros Friday night. It will be a battle of left-handed pitchers. Ken Waldichuk (1-3 ERA 6.85) will pitch for Oakland, and Bryce Miller (2-1 ERA 1.42) will be on the hill for the Mariners. The game will start at 6:40 pm.

San Francisco Comes From Behind To Beat Twins 4-3

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San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Alex Cobb winds up to deliver during the second inning against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field in Minneapolis on Tue May 23, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

After beating the Minnesota Twins (25-24) 4-1 in game one of their series on Monday night, the San Francisco Giants (24-24) picked up their second win Tuesday defeating the Twins 4-3 to reach the five hundred mark on their 2023 season.

San Francisco came from behind to beat the Twins. The Giants faced Twins pitcher Sonny Gray who had been throwing lights out, having the best ERA in the league. Gray pitched five innings, giving up six hits and two runs. The Giants had a good one on the mound as well in Alex Cobb who went seven innings, six hits and three runs.

Much as the Giants opened Tuesday’s game in the first inning; the Twins got an early lead to start the game. Byron Buxton hit a home run with Donovan Solano on base taking a 2-0 lead.

The Giants will have their work cut out for them. Gray has numerous options and what is even more concerning is that he had command of all of them. He has not allowed a home run so far this year.

For the second inning in a row, the Giants had two runners on base with two outs. Much as it played out in the third inning, the Giants left two runners stranded in the fourth inning. They had two golden opportunities in both innings but came up empty.

In the fifth inning, Cobb would get burned for a second time with a pitch similar to the one that hurt him in the first inning. He threw a splitter that sailed out of the park off the bat of Michael Taylor. The solo shot gave the Twins a 3-0 lead going into the sixth inning.

In the sixth inning the Giants loaded the bases and knocked Gray out of the game, Jovani Moran would relieve Gray followed by another relief pitcher Brock Stewart and the Twins were in all kinds of trouble. They walked two runners home before the inning was over the Giants had cut into their lead 3-2.

Michael Conforto would break the game wide open with a two-run home run in the seventh inning. Thairo Estrada scored from second base and the Giants now held a 4-3 lead.

Scott Alexander would relieve Cobb in the eighth inning. Cobb had a terrific game going seven innings finishing with eight strikeouts. San Francisco had climbed back to the five hundred mark for the season.

Wednesday’s game three will feature an early first pitch at 10:10 AM. The Giants will send Anthony Desclafani to the mound while the Twins will assign Joe Ryan. Ryan has a 6-1 W-L record and a 2.25 ERA. Desclafani has some good stats as well with a 3-3 W-L record and a 3.09 ERA.

Oakland A’s commentary with Stephen Ruderman: Vegas residents express skepticism over $395 million tax credits for ballpark

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Oakland A’s fan at the Oakland Coliseum on Fri Apr 28, 2023 thumbs down the idea of the A’s moving to Las Vegas (Las Vegas Review Journal file photo)

On the Oakland A’s Commentary with Steve:

On the Oakland A’s podcast:

#1 How practical is it for the Nevada tax payers to front the A’s some $200 million to 75 million to cover the existing gap to cover the $395 million to pay towards the $1.5 billion A’s new ballpark at the Tropicana site in Las Vegas. Some people interviewed in Las Vegas are against paying for a ball club that’s deliberately not trying to win and bringing them to Vegas.

#2 The A’s currently have a $59 million payroll while most of the other MLB clubs have a $100 million which keeps most of them somewhat competitive. If the A’s are in Vegas and fans are only showing up to see Shohei Ohtani or Aaron Judge will the A’s be able to sustain business as usual?

#3 The A’s manager Mark Kotsay said that losing is 100% his responsibility. That Kotsay beats himself up everyday about it and he doesn’t know how to hide it. It’s a constant struggle. It’s not going to change much at this point because A’s Money Ball genius Billy Beane and general manager David Forst are not going on the free agency market anytime soon.

#4 The A’s as it turned out could have pushed during their times of trying to move to San Jose that the San Francisco Giants no longer had territorial rights because those territorial rights that the A’s gave them so they could have moved to San Jose were used so they could try and build a stadium in the South Bay and once they had built their own stadium in the City they should no longer have those territorial rights anymore and the A’s should have had a chance at trying to get a ballpark in San Jose which they are being blocked by the Giants.

#5 Taxpayers in Las Vegas are skeptical about spending the $395 million of public money for the stadium tax credits towards the Tropicana Ballpark when they see how A’s owner John Fisher is not putting any money into trying to be competitive. Most likely Fisher and the A’s will be competitive after they get the new ballpark at Tropicana but on the face of it the taxpayers in Vegas are wondering if the A’s come will they continue compete with a low payroll.

#6 Do you see any outside chance that the A’s Tropicana deal could fail and Fisher would go back to Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao and try to iron out a deal at Howard Terminal?

#7 The NBC Bay Area Sports fired TV broadcaster Glen Kuiper for using the N word on a pre game broadcast during a series in Kansas City. Kuiper joined the A’s broadcast team in the early 90s. Some critics say you don’t use that word unless you use that word.

Stephen Ruderman covers the Sacramento Rivercats and MLB for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury News and Commentary podcast with Jerry Feitelberg: Any outside chance that Las Vegas deal would fail for A’s?

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Oakland A’s manager Mark Kotsay looks out of the A’s dugout at the Oakland Coliseum the A’s who are in Seattle dropped the first game of a four game series on Mon May 22, 2023. Kotsay he beats himself up everyday about the struggles of the A’s. (San Francisco Chronicle file photo)

On the Oakland A’s podcast:

#1 How practical is it for the Nevada tax payers to front the A’s some $200 million to 75 million to cover the existing gap to cover the $395 million to pay towards the $1.5 billion A’s new ballpark at the Tropicana site in Las Vegas. Some people interviewed in Las Vegas are against paying for a ball club that’s deliberately not trying to win and bringing them to Vegas.

#2 The A’s currently have a $59 million payroll while most of the other MLB clubs have a $100 million which keeps most of them somewhat competitive. If the A’s are in Vegas and fans are only showing up to see Shohei Ohtani or Aaron Judge will the A’s be able to sustain business as usual?

#3 The A’s manager Mark Kotsay said that losing is 100% his responsibility. That Kotsay beats himself up everyday about it and he doesn’t know how to hide it. It’s a constant struggle. It’s not going to change much at this point because A’s Money Ball genius Billy Beane and general manager David Forst are not going on the free agency market anytime soon.

#4 The A’s as it turned out could have pushed during their times of trying to move to San Jose that the San Francisco Giants no longer had territorial rights because those territorial rights that the A’s gave them so they could have moved to San Jose were used so they could try and build a stadium in the South Bay and once they had built their own stadium in the City they should no longer have those territorial rights anymore and the A’s should have had a chance at trying to get a ballpark in San Jose which they are being blocked by the Giants.

#5 Taxpayers in Las Vegas are skeptical about spending the $395 million of public money for the stadium tax credits towards the Tropicana Ballpark when they see how A’s owner John Fisher is not putting any money into trying to be competitive. Most likely Fisher and the A’s will be competitive after they get the new ballpark at Tropicana but on the face of it the taxpayers in Vegas are wondering if the A’s come will they continue compete with a low payroll.

#6 Do you see any outside chance that the A’s Tropicana deal could fail and Fisher would go back to Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao and try to iron out a deal at Howard Terminal?

#7 The NBC Bay Area Sports fired TV broadcaster Glen Kuiper for using the N word on a pre game broadcast during a series in Kansas City. Kuiper joined the A’s broadcast team in the early 90s. Some critics say you don’t use that word unless you use that word.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is taking this week off and Jerry Feitelberg is filling in for That’s Amaury News and Commentary heard Tuesdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Mariners trounce A’s 11-2; Fifth loss in a row for Oakland

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Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Kyle Muller reacts after walking Seattle Mariners’ AJ Pollock during the second inning at T Mobile Park in Seattle on Mon May 22, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Seattle Mariners welcomed the A’s to T-Mobile Park Monday night. The Mariners sent righty Luis Castillo to the hill to face the A’s. Oakland countered with lefty Kyle Muller. The A’s were hoping to snap a four-game losing streak. The Mariners wanted the win to get to just one game below the .500 mark. The Mariners got their wish by punishing the A’s 11-2. The game summary follows below.

The Mariners put the A’s into a 5-0 deficit after the game’s first two innings. In the first inning, with two out and a man on first, Jarred Kelenic blasted his tenth dinger of the year to give the M’s an early 2-0 lead. The M’s added three more in their half of the second. M’s catcher Cal Raleigh singled to get things going for Seattle. A’s starter Kyle Muller issued A.J.Pollock a walk to put two men on with one out. The Mariners’ second baseman Jose Caballero sent his second dinger of the year over the wall in center field. The Mariners lead 5-0.

The Mariners added another run in the bottom of the fifth. Kyle Muller kept the M’s off the board in the third and fourth innings. He appeared to be in a groove. The A’s were hoping Muller could give them six innings. The M’s, however, had other thoughts. Julio Rodriguez, leading off in the fifth, doubled. The next hitter Jarred Kelenic singled to drive in Rodriguez with Seattle’s sixth run of the night. It was Kelenic’s third RBI of the night to put the M’s ahead 6-0.

The A’s mounted a threat in the top of the sixth. The M’s starter Luis Castillo held the A’s to just two hits in the first five innings. In the sixth, the A’s loaded the bases with two outs. Singles by Ryan Noda and Seth Brown put men on at first and third with two out. Castillo walked JJ Bleday to load the bases. Castillo retired Jace Peterson for the third out.

The Mariners continued to torment the A’s pitching staff. Seattle plated two more runs in the bottom of the sixth. Adrian Martinez was pitching for the A’s. Martinez walked A.J. Pollock to start the M’s rally. Martinez retired the next two hitters. Ty France singled, followed by Julio Rodriguez’s second double of the game. Kelenic walked to load the bases. Eugenio Suarez singled to drive in Ty France with M’s eighth run.

The A’s made it 8-2 in the top of the eighth. They put together a single walk, a wild pitch to advance the runners and two ground outs to put the runs on the board.

The Mariners answered with three more runs in the bottom of the eighth to put the game out of reach. Shintaro Fujinami, after retiring the M’s in order in the seventh, lost command of the strike zone.

He walked a batter, hit another with a pitch, and a single by Kelenic drove in the M’s ninth run. Suarez singled to drive in Rodriguez with the tenth run. Kelenic went to third on the play and scored on an infield out. 11-2 M’s after eight. M’s reliever Chris Flexen set the A’s down in order in the ninth to secure the win.

Game Notes- With the loss, the A’s are 10-39. The Mariners improved to 23-24.Kyle Muller was the losing pitcher. He is now 1-4, and his ERA is a horrendous 8.04. The winning pitcher was Luis Castillo. Castillo won his third game of the year. When Castillo struck out Shea Langeliers in the fifth inning, the crowd gave Castillo a standing ovation as he notched his 1000th career strikeout.

The A’s line was two runs, five hits, and no errors. Seth Brown, just of the IL, had two hits. Esteury Ruiz’s single in the eighth extended his hitting streak to seven games.
The line score for Seattle was 11 runs, 13 hits, and no errors. Eugenio Suarez, Jarred Kelenic, and Jose Caballero each had three RBIs. Kelenic and Caballero homered for Seattle.

On Tuesday, Luis Medina (0-2, 6.88 ERA) goes for Oakland. Lefty Marco Gonzales (3-1,6-10 ERA) will be on the hill for the M’s. The game will start at 6:40 pm.

Giants Start Minnesota Series with 4-1 win

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San Francisco Giants’ LaMonte Wade Jr. rounds third base and scores against the Minnesota Twins on a J.D. Davis double in the first inning at Target Field in Minneapolis on Mon May 22, 2023 (AP News photo)

Giants Start Minnesota Series With a Win 4-1

By Barbara Mason

After falling beneath the five hundred mark in early May, the San Francisco Giants (23-24) have been turning things around lately. While they struggled against Arizona losing three of four games they did go on to sweep the Phillies. They most recently won a series against the Marlins and Monday they traveled to Minnesota (25-23) to open a three game series against the Twins at Target Field and came away with a three run 4-1 win.

John Brebbia took the mound for San Francisco and Bailey Ober was on the hill for Minnesota.

San Francisco jumped all over the Twins in the first inning. J.D. Davis got the inning going with a double and Lamonte Wade Jr. scored for the early 1-0 lead. Michael Conforto finished off the inning in Giants style hitting a home run driving in Mike Yastrzemski and J.D. Davis giving San Francisco a 4-0 lead.

Sean Manaea took over on the mound in the second inning. Manaea did allow a couple of walks and a couple of singles but generally kept it quiet for Minnesota as the Giants continued to hang onto the 4-0 lead going into the fifth inning. Going into the bottom of the fifth inning Manaea was already working on 73 pitches.

He had struck out eight through four innings. The Twins made some noise in the 5th inning with runners on second and third with two outs. Tristan Beck came in to relieve Manaea and get the Giants out of the inning unscathed. Beck did get the dangerous Byron Buxton out and it was on to the sixth inning.

The Twins would walk the first two at bats in the sixth. Emilio Pagan relieved Bailey Ober who went five innings. Minnesota followed those two walks with two strikeouts and a fly out to keep the Giants from advancing the score which still remained at 4-0.

The Twins would finally get up on the scoreboard in the eighth inning. Kyle Garlick hit a solo home run to left center and the score was 4-1.

The Giants left a runner stranded on second in the top of the ninth inning and San Francisco was three outs away from their first win of this series.

This was a well-pitched ball game for both teams. Sean Manaea had his best outing yet this season. The Giants got on the board early and were able to hold on for the win. San Francisco is now within one game of .500.

The Giants Alex Cobb will take the mound tomorrow in game two. Cobb has a 3-1 W-L record and a 1.94 ERA. For the Twins, a familiar name Sonny Gray who is having a nice season so far with a 4-0 W-L record and a 1.64 ERA. First pitch is scheduled for 4:40 PM.

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast with Marko Ukalovic: Is it late early for Stars and Hurricanes as games 3 &4 loom this week

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Vegas Golden Knights celebrate after Vegas Golden Knights center Chandler Stephenson (20) scored against the Dallas Stars during overtime of Game 2 at the T Mobile Center in Las Vegas on Sun May 21, 2023 (AP News photo)

On the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast with Marko:

#1 The Vegas Golden Knights Chandler Stephenson scored at 1:12 in the overtime stanza on Sunday against the Dallas Stars in a 3-2 win. The Knights picked up their second win for a 2-0 series lead over Dallas.

#2 Stephenson said it was his first overtime goal in post season and said that being the game winner was something special.

#3 Marko, talk about the advantage of having home ice at the T Mobile Center for the Knights and quickly jumping to a two game lead going back to Dallas.

#4 Taking a look at game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Florida Panthers and the Carolina Hurricanes. The Panthers were neither intimidated or feeling under pressure opening up their series in Carolina in taking the first two games.

#5 Both wins for the Hurricanes were one goal wins and on the road now they open the next two games, games three and four on Sunrise Florida ice can the Panthers wrap this series up or can the Hurricanes turn things around and take one or maybe two games or is that a stretch and would you assume based on what’s in front of you the next two games it’s gonna take a miracle for the Hurricanes to get back into this?

Marko does the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs post season podcasts Mondays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Oakland A’s podcast with Barbara Mason: A’s open up series with Mariners tonight after getting swept in Houston

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Oakland Athletics’ Esteury Ruiz (1) reacts after initially being called out by second base umpire Brennan Miller, left, during the sixth inning against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid in Houston on Sun May 21, 2023 (AP News photo)

On the Oakland A’s podcast with Barbara Mason:

#1 Sunday afternoon the Oakland Athletics (10-38) played game three of their series with the Houston Astros (27-19) and couldn’t avoid getting swept by the Astros at Minute Maid Park 2-0.

#2 Saturday’s game was not decided until the eighth inning. Oakland played a very competitive game but just didn’t have enough to get past Houston in the Saturday contest and couldn’t get a run on Sunday getting shutout.

#3 There were some really encouraging moments in the Saturday game that started with pitcher JP Sears who was outstanding after digging out of a deep hole in the first inning. Another highlight were the two stolen bases from Esteury Ruiz who has been a standout this season. 

#4 Sam Moll had relieved James Kaprielian in the sixth inning. Jordan Alvarez did score on a wild pitch from Moll and Houston had taken a 2-0 lead.

#5 The A’s open a four game series with the Seattle Mariners on Monday night at T Mobile Park in Seattle starting pitchers Kyle Muller will take the mound for Oakland with an 1-3 record 7.71 ERA. Luis Castillo will be on the hill for Seattle with a 2-2 record and a 3.31 ERA. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 PM.

Join Barbara for the Oakland A’s podcasts Mondays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com