Author: Sports Radio Service

Luis Urias after his solo shot in the second innings of Saturday’s matinee affair.

By Jeremiah Salmonson

WEST SACRAMENTO — Yesterday, it was Jasson Dominguez launching homers out of Sutter Health Park. On Friday, Dominguez hit three home runs, including a grand slam, to lift the Yankees over the A’s.

In Saturday’s matinee affair, it was Aaron Judge and the A’s who left the yard, as the Sacramento wind was blowing strong out to right-center field. Judge hit two mammoth shots, but the A’s answered with three homers of their own en route to an 11-7 victory. 

The A’s and Yankees combined for six home runs on Saturday afternoon. 

A’s starter JP Sears delivered another solid outing as he continues to solidify himself as the A’s best starter. Sears gave up one run on four hits while striking out four and walking one over five innings. His only blemish was a solo homer by Judge in the fourth inning, and he left the game with a 4-1 lead.

The A’s offense backed Sears early with a solo homer from Luis Urías in the second inning and a Brent Rooker three-run shot in the third, putting the A’s firmly in control.

The Yankees responded with a big sixth inning, scoring five runs behind home runs from Judge and Oswaldo Cabrera to take a 6-4 lead heading into the bottom of the seventh.

But the A’s weren’t done. In the seventh, Shai Langeliers launched a three-run homer to straightaway center field, a 418-foot blast aided by the delta breeze, to put Sacramento back in front. The A’s never looked back, adding four more runs in the eighth on a two-RBI single from Tyler Soderstrom and a two-RBI double from Shea Langeliers.

Mason Miller came on in the eighth to record the final two outs, then finished the game in the ninth, allowing one run but securing the save as the A’s defeated the Yankees 11-7.

The A’s bullpen, aside from Miller, was a mixed bag in the win. Justin Sterner relieved Sears in the sixth and struggled, giving up five runs on three hits in just two-thirds of an inning. Grant Holman and Tyler Ferguson stabilized things, combining for 1.2 scoreless innings before Miller took over.

A’s reliever Grant Holman (4-0, 0.82 ERA) got the win on Saturday as Yankees reliever Fernando Cruz (1-1, 2.66 ERA) was tagged for the loss. Mason Miller locked down the save (11th save of the season).  The A’s improved to 21-19 as the Yankees fell to 22-17 in the 2025 campaign.

In the rubber game of the series on Sunday, slated for a 1:05 p.m. first pitch, the A’s will send Luis Severino (1-3, 3.62 ERA) to the hill. As of this writing, the Yankees have yet to announce a starting pitcher.

Note of the day: Jacob Wilson continues to put it all together for the A’s and Manager Mark Kotsay.

“With young players you try and manage the emotions, you try to manage the peaks and valleys as best you can, and right now Jacob is swinging the bat exceptionally well. He is showing the ability to work counts and get on base with a walk, so he’s doing everything you want him to do from the leadoff spot.”

Since being elevated to the leadoff spot on Friday, Wilson is 3-for-8 with a walk. He’s currently slashing an impressive .358 average with only eight strikeouts and a 1.1 WAR this season. His .358 average ranks second in MLB, trailing only Aaron Judge’s .396.

Brent Rooker on Friday in the game against the Yankees (Photo: Athletics on X)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

WEST SACRAMENTO–“We’re excited to be here for the next three years playing in this beautiful ballpark, but also being able to watch some of the best players in baseball, whether they be Athletics players or Aaron Judge and others, launch home runs out of this very intimate, the most intimate ballpark in all of Major League Baseball, for the next three years.”

That was A’s owner John Fisher during his press conference last year, speaking about the team’s temporary home at Sutter Health Park. On Friday, the A’s welcomed Aaron Judge and the Yankees for the first of a three-game series. But instead of Judge launching balls out of the yard, it was Jasson Dominguez who carried the load for New York. Dominguez, who had never recorded a multi-homer game in his career, hit three home runs—including a grand slam.

The Yankees handled the A’s with ease in a 10-2 victory, jumping out to a quick lead and never looking back.

A’s starter Osvaldo Bido gave the club five and a third solid innings but struggled to execute a few key pitches. His toughest stretch came in the third inning, when he gave up back-to-back homers to Paul Goldschmidt and Dominguez. Bido allowed eight hits and four runs (three earned), walked two, and struck out six.

The A’s offense didn’t show up until late. Jacob Wilson drove in Max Schuemann with an RBI single in the eighth inning to make it 10-1. In the ninth, Lawrence Butler—who has been in a slump—added an RBI single off the right-field wall that scored Shea Langeliers. That would be all for the A’s, who dropped the series opener to New York, 10-2.

The bullpen had a rough outing. Hogan Harris allowed four runs on four hits across two innings, striking out two and walking two. Elvis Alvarado made his MLB debut and pitched the final 1.2 innings, surrendering two runs on two hits with two strikeouts and two walks.

Despite boasting a strong road record (13-7), the A’s continued their struggles at home. Asked by John Shea about the team’s home woes, manager Mark Kotsay said, “Can’t explain it right now, John. I can’t explain it.”

Bido was tagged with the loss and now sits at 2-3 with a 4.75 ERA. The win went to Yankees starter Will Warren, who is now 2-2 with a 4.75 ERA.

The A’s will look to bounce back on Saturday afternoon in game two of the series. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 PM PST in West Sacramento. J.P. Sears (4-2, 2.93 ERA) is slated to start for the A’s against Yankees lefty Carlos Rodón (4-3, 2.96 ERA).

Note of the night: Nick Kurtz continues to take good at-bats and had two more hits tonight, including a ringing double to right-center field that left his bat at 113 MPH.