Current Sacramento A’s starter JT Ginn has the A’s best pitching record going into the second half of the season at 7-6 ERA 3.67 (AP photo)

A’s lost for pitching last in MLB

That;s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

Sacramento Athletics with the highest combined  Earned Run Average of any MLB team this season, 5.20

Before the season got underway a few months ago, I did not expect the A’s to do well in one key department, pitching. And, yes, I hate to say I was right. Not only the A’s recently fire their pitching coach, Scott Emerson. Scott Emerson served as the Athletics’ pitching coach for 9 years, from June 2017 to July 2026. I remember when he first got the job in Oakland; I spoke with him during a kind of group interview with other reporters at the Oakland Coliseum, and later on a one-on-one basis for our broadcast.

‘Manager Bob Melvin has always considered Emerson a good man, and he is. The problem is very simple: you can be the best coach, but you need some talent to work with. Just like a manager, as good as a manager can be, he also needs talented players. Although it is not baseball, this also applies here. Brazilian jockey Jorge Ricardo holds the official world record for the most horse racing career wins, with over 13,000 victories, however and “no pun intended” if the horse that Ricardo was riding was limping or was not performing well, he would never have won 13,000 races.

Luis Severino was the #1 starting pitcher for the Athletics at the start of the 2026 season. Manager Mark Kotsay named the right-harder as the staff leader and Opening Day starter against the Toronto Blue Jays.  Severino has spent the majority of the season on the injured list due to right arm and shoulder injuries, after an MRCI revealed a strain; he was transferred to the 50-day list in late June. Severino signed a three-year, $67 million free agent contract with the Athletics before the season. He was their Número uno pitcher, but in the real world, with most teams, he would have been at best a #3 in the rotation. In the land of the blind  a one-eye person is king,.

Are the A’s buyers or sellers?   The Athletics are trending toward being sellers at the August 3rd trade deadline. What the A’s do with a very good lineup, powerful, young, and aggressive, depends on this second half if their pitching performs, or if it just ‘ lays an egg again.

A’s begin the second half in penultimate place in the AL West with 41-55, 8 games behind the first-place Texas Rangers. How well they will do depends on whether they can make some adjustments with their pitching. They remind me of the old Volvo I had: a great car, but there was always something going wrong, and at the end, I just got rid of it.

The A’s have some young players that could bring something good in return, but they are not going to trade for Tarik Skubal, that is for sure. So they will keep playing at their temporary yard, and like an old saying, they are going to “play it by ear”. See what happens, but do not expect them to make the playoffs; however, if they do, I would be very happy for them.

Quote: The key to winning baseball games is pitching, fundamentals, and three run homers.-Earl Weaver

Amaury Pi-Gonzalez – Cuban-born Pi-González is one of the pioneers of Spanish-language baseball play-by-play in America. Began as Oakland A’s Spanish-language voice in 1977 ending in 2024 (interrupted by stops with the Giants, Mariners and Angels). Voice of the Golden State Warriors from 1992 through 1998. 2010 inducted in the Bay Area Radio Hall of fame.

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