(L-R) Max Muncy #3, Lawrence Butler #4 and Jacob Wilson #5 of the Athletics celebrate after Muncy hit a walk-off sacrifice fly scoring Wilson to defeat the Chicago White Sox 7-6 in the bottom of the 11th inning at Sutter Health Park on April 18, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Mandatory photo credit: Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Athletics and the White Sox engaged in game two of their three-game series on Saturday afternoon at 1:05 p.m. PST.

After Friday night’s tough loss, the A’s bounced back to defeat the White Sox 7-6 in 11 innings.

Luis Severino got the ball for the A’s to start the game on Saturday, and he struggled in his outing. Severino ground through five and a third innings of work and gave up five runs (all earned) on five hits while walking four and striking out three. Severino needed 96 pitches to get through his outing while suffering from a three-run homer and a lack of command.

However, the A’s bullpen did its job in relief of Severino to keep the game close and the A’s in it.

Hogan Harris was first out of the pen for the A’s, and he tossed one and a third innings with his only blemish being a Munetaka Murakami solo home run. Other than that, he allowed no other hits.

Next out of the bullpen for the A’s was Joel Kuhnel. Kuhnel came on and pitched a scoreless inning and a third for the A’s. He allowed nothing more than a hit amid an otherwise perfect outing.

Mark Leiter Jr. was the third man out of the bullpen for Mark Kotsay and struggled. Leiter tossed just two-thirds of an inning, allowing two walks and striking out one prior to being lifted for Jack Perkins.

Perkins, who has been serving as a bit of a longman for the A’s, came in and got the last out of the ninth inning to keep the game tied. Perkins also tossed the 10th inning without allowing much other than a hit by pitch to keep the game tied and strand the designated runner who started the inning at second base. With the A’s unable to score in the 10th, Perkins was back out for the 11th inning, where he got into a bases-loaded jam early, but escaped without allowing a run.

On the offensive side of the ball, the A’s impressed, coming all the way back from 5-0 down to tie the game at six in the bottom of the seventh.

The A’s first scoring came in the second inning when Jacob Wilson hit a solo home run to left field to get the A’s on the board.

In the third inning, the A’s got their second run of the game courtesy of a Jeff McNeil sacrifice fly to score Lawrence Butler.

In the fifth inning, the A’s continued to claw back with an RBI single from Tyler Soderstrom to make it a 5-3 game.

In the sixth, Lawrence Butler reached on a fielder’s choice, driving home Max Muncy to get the A’s to within one, 5-4.

In the seventh inning, the A’s climb up the mountain was completed as Nick Kurtz launched a two-run homer to right field to tie the game at six apiece and give the A’s new life.

However, the rest of the action would take much longer before the A’s could truly celebrate.

The game presented numerous chances the rest of the way for either team to seize the win, but it wasn’t until the bottom of the 11th inning, when Max Muncy hit a sacrifice fly to left field, that either team would. Jacob Wilson would score from third base on the play, and the A’s would score their seventh run to walk off the White Sox 7-6.

After the game, A’s manager Mark Kotsay summed up what pretty much everyone was thinking.

“There was a lot to unpack from this game,” Kotsay said. “I don’t know if I’ll be able to unpack it all, but like I said to start this conversation, it was a pretty emotional rollercoaster.”

With the win, the A’s improved to 11-10 on the season to even the series with the White Sox at a game apiece. The rubber game of the series will take place on Sunday at 1:05 p.m. PST. The A’s will send Jeffrey Springs (3-0, 1.46 ERA) to the mound, while the White Sox will counter with Noah Schultz (0-1, 6.23 ERA).