Tag: Oakland A’s

Preview: Montas and Trivino head to the Big Apple; Oakland A’s and Los Angeles Angels open three game series at the Big A in Anaheim Tuesday

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By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s are set to start a three-game series with the Los Angeles Angels Tuesday night. The A’s had scheduled Frankie Montas to pitch in the opening game. All that went out the window Monday afternoon as the A’s announced they had traded Montas, along with reliever Lou Trivino to the New York Yankees for four prospects.

Montas was under team control through 2023, but the A’s moved him to continue selling assets for prospects. Trivino was not having a good year as the A’s closer. Both players will now be in the playoffs as the Yanks have the best record in baseball. New York sent four Minor Leaguers to Oakland for Montas and Trivino. Here’s how the trade went down: left-hander Ken Waldichuk (the club’s number five prospect, per MLB Pipeline), right-hander Luis Medina number ten, lefty JP Sears number 20, and second baseman Cooper Bowman number 21.

“I feel great. I’m excited about it,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “[Montas] is a great pitcher. There have been rumors around him most of the first half of the season. I’m excited we could push through on a deal for him. I’m just excited to get him into the mix because of his talent, especially with how he’s pitched the last couple of years.”

TRADE DETAILS

Yankees get: RHPs Frankie Montas and Lou Trivino

A’s get LHPs Ken Waldichuk and JP Sears, RHP Luis Medina, 2B Cooper Bowman. 

Tuesday night in Anaheim: The A’s have scheduled Cole Irvin to pitch Tuesday night. Irvin has pitched well. He is 6-7, and his ERA is 3.01. The A’s have not announced the starters for the Wednesday or Thursday night game. The Angels’ Noah Syndergaard (5-8, 3.83 ERA) goes Tuesday night. The American League’s reigning MVP, Shohei Ohtani (9-6, 2.81 ERA), will pitch on Wednesday, and lefty Jose Suarez will handle the chores for the Halos Thursday.

The Angels have had a very disappointing season this year. The Halos hoped to improve both the starting rotation and the bullpen. They thought they would contend for the AL West crown this year. They played well early in the season, but a 14 game losing streak derailed those hopes. They fired their manager, Joe Maddon, and replaced him with Phil Nevin. Injuries have also played a key role in the Angels’ frustrations.

The Angels gave the former Washington Nationals’ third baseman a huge contract before the 2020 season. Rendon has not played a full season yet. Currently, Rendon is on the 60-day IL. Their sparkplug shortstop/ second baseman, David Fletcher, has played sparingly due to injury.

Fletcher loves to see the Green and Gold. He has tormented the A’s in the past and hopes to get things going in the three-game set. The Angels’ three-time MVP, Mike Trout, is on the 10-day IL. Trout has a back injury. The A’s want him to get well soon, but not until the three-game series is over.

Some of the other players that the A’s will hope to contain are first baseman Jared Walsh, second baseman/shortstop Luis Rengifo, and David Fletcher. The Angels’ outfielders include Brandon Marsh, Taylor Ward, Magneuris Sierra, and Dillon Thomas. Like the A’s, the Angels love players that can play multiple positions. Shohei Ohtani will be the designated hitter. There were rumors the Yankees were in the market for Ohtani. The Angels’ management quickly said they were not trading Ohtani.

Raisel Iglesias is the closer. He is 2-6 with 16 saves. Other relievers include Ryan Tepoera, Jimmy Herget, Jaime Barria, Andrew Wantz, Touki Toussaint, Jason Junk, and lefties Jose Quijada and Aaron Loup.

The Angels are 43-59 and are 23.5 games behind the Houston Astros. They are in fourth place in the AL West. The A’s are 39-65 and trail the Angels by five games. 

The trading deadline closes at 3 pm on Tuesday. The A’s may continue the fire sale. Other players that they may trade are Ramon Laureano, Chad Pinder, or Sean Murphy. The A’s players must be wondering who will be the next guys to go. Time will tell.

Oakland A’s podcast with Barbara Mason: A’s open three game series with Angels Tuesday at the Big A

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Oakland A’s starter Frankie Montas could very well be making his last start on Mon Aug 1, 2022 at the Big A in Anaheim against the Los Angeles Angels (AP News photo)

On the A’s podcast with Barbara Mason:

#1 The Chicago White Sox Jose Abreu and Eloy Jimenez both homered against the Oakland A’s (39-65) in the final meeting between the two clubs on Sunday the Sox did most of the damage in the bottom of the second inning on Sunday at Guarantee Rate Field in Chicago scoring three runs in the 4-1 win.

#2 Chicago starter Dylan Cease threw for six innings giving up one earned run, four hits and seven strikeouts.

#3 The White Sox with the win move to a game over .500 (51-50) Chicago was predicted to win the AL Central now trail the first place Minnesota Twins by 2.5 games that could turn out to be an interesting race in the central.

#4 Trade deadline is upon the A’s and starter Frankie Montas is on the top of the A’s shopping list on Sunday. The New York Yankees showed interest in Montas and if they could get him they would consider him to be their number one starter.

#5 The A’s have the day off Monday and open a three game series in Los Angeles against Shohei Ohtani and the Angels at the Big A in Anaheim on Tuesday night.. Starting pitcher for the A’s Frankie Montas (4-9, 3.18) and for the Angels Ryan Syndergaard (5-8, 3.83) a 6:38 pm PDT first pitch.

Oakland A’s podcasts with Barbara Mason is heard Mondays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Cease, Desist, Refrain: A’s have no success with ChiSox ace in 3-1 loss

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By Morris Phillips

These days, Dylan Cease has everyone fooled. The foolish Oakland A’s just happened to cross paths with the Chicago’s AL Cy Young contender on Sunday.

Again, Cease was flawless, capping a July in which he went 5-1 with an ERA of 1.87, beating the A’s 4-1 in a neat, eventless stint that lasted six innings.

Framber Valdez, Justin Verlander, Alex Manoah, Martin Perez and Logan Gilbert are also among the American League’s ten best starting pitchers in 2022, and all six pitchers have seen the A’s in the last six weeks. It’s unlikely the A’s would say that any of the other five impressed them as much as Cease, who had balls darting in and–at last second–out of the strike zone throughout.

“You have to give credit to Cease, because we came out aggressive on the fastball and Cease immediately went to his breaking ball,” manager Mark Kotsay said. “It’s a plus breaking ball and a wipeout pitch.”

Cease improved to 11-4 on the season, winning each of his last four starting assignments. In an unearthly stretch dating back to May 24, the right hander’s allowed five earned runs in 12 starts, and no more than one run in any of the 12.

Adam Oller took the loss, allowing homers to Jose Abreu (2nd inning) and Eloy Jimenez (7th) while pitching quite effectively in between those two bookmarks. Oller’s record fell to 1-4 with a 7.68 ERA but this particular outing was one of his best.

“I thought I executed pretty well, and threw two cutters that backed up,” Oller said afterwards. “Aside from those two, I made good catches and was ahead in the count a decent amount.”

The A’s started the post All-Star break with wins in seven of nine games before dropping the last two in Chicago. The team’s spirits are up, their play has been sharp, and their home run numbers have made a sharp increase. On Sunday, Ramon Laureano homered, and later on, doubled with both blows coming against Cease.

Outside of those two Laureano highlights, the A’s did little offensively, including an unsightly two at-bats all afternoon with runners in scoring position that both ended their respective innings. Not only was Cease good, but the A’s saw familiar faces Kendall Graveman and Liam Hendricks, also good, with Hendricks pitching the ninth and earning his 20th save.

The A’s have a pair of off-days this upcoming week before facing the Giants at the Coliseum on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Frankie Montas faces Noah Syndergaard on Tuesday in the A’s next game at Anaheim.

NOTES: The A’s improved play hasn’t immediately impacted their century-low offensive numbers with the team batting average at .214 and the A’s scoring one run or no runs in 34 of their 104 games. This week is the critical one in regard to the team’s streak without at least one triple, which reached 64 games on Sunday. The major league mark for a team going without a triple is 68 games.

Oakland A’s podcast with Charlie O: Sox edge A’s 3-2: Tim Anderson is not talking suspension

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Chicago White Sox Gavin Sheets (right) scores at home after hitting a seventh inning two run homer off Oakland A’s pitcher Austin Pruitt is congratulated by teammate Andrew Vaughn (left) at Guarantee Rate Field in Chicago on Sat Jul 30, 2022 (AP News photo)

On the podcast with Charlie O:

#1 Charlie during the Oakland A’s and Chicago White Sox first game on Friday shortstop Tim Anderson let plate umpire Nick Mahrley got an earful after arguing ball and strikes in the bottom of the seventh inning. Anderson was suspended for three games when the bill of his helmet made contact with Mahrley and Sox manager Tony LaRussa said Mahrley moved forward to get beaked by Anderson.

#2 Charlie, Anderson did play in Saturday’s game in Chicago and got two hits. Anderson has protested the suspension by MLB and said to the media after the game that he was not talking about the suspension after Saturday’s game.

#3 Meanwhile Gavin Sheets was the key player in Saturday’s game after hitting a two run homer in the bottom of the seventh that tied up the game and later Sheets scored the game winning run.

#4 The A’s who had the lead just couldn’t shut the door as reliever Zach Jackson gave up a double to Sheets and advanced to third when teammate Josh Harrison laid down a bunt and Jackson threw a ball that took a bounce with Anderson at the plate.

#5 The A’s will try and see if they can win another series again if they can pull it off with a win at Guarantee Rate on Sunday the A’s will be starting Adam Oller (1-3, 8.07, 4.15) he’ll be matched up against the White Sox Dillion Cease (10-4, 2.03) first pitch 11:10 am PDT

Join Charlie O for the A’s podcasts every other Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Ninth Inning Letdown Gives Chicago a Walk Off Win Over A’s 3-2

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Oakland A’s starter Paul Blackburn deals in the first inning against the Chicago White Sox at Guarantee Rate Field in Chicago on Sat Jul 30, 2022 (AP News photo)

Ninth Inning Letdown Gives Chicago a Walk Off Win Over A’s 3-2

By Barbara Mason

Friday night the Oakland A’s (39-64) won game one in their series with the Chicago White Sox (50-50) 7-3. Home runs came raining down for Oakland in the first game of the series and they kept on coming in game two.

Saturday game recap: In the first inning Sean Murphy had a solo home run and Seth Brown had another in the third inning. Saturday Brown had two home runs and did not disappoint in game two. Oakland held the 2-0 lead into the seventh inning.

The White Sox tied up this game in the seventh off a Gavin Sheets home run with Andrew Vaughn aboard. The 2-2 score would persist into the ninth inning.

Oakland played a very good baseball game that ended on a very sour note in the bottom of the ninth. Closer Zach Jackson threw a wild pitch with Adam Engel on third and that was the ball game in a Chicago walk off 3-2.

It was a good ball game for Paul Blackburn who went five innings giving up five hits, with four strikeouts and no runs. The A’s had eight hits and Chicago had nine which was the difference maker. It was a tough decision for the A’s after playing so well.

Seth Brown continued on the same pace that we have seen since the All-Star game. He is hitting .440 since that game, an amazing stat. Seven A’s had hits in this game and really did play well enough to come away with a win. It was the letdown in the ninth inning that was the difference.

The rubber game will be played tomorrow at 11:10 AM PT. Adam Oller (1-3, 8.07) will take the mound for the A’s. Oakland offense will be facing Dylan Cease who comes in with a 10-4 win loss record and an 2.03 ERA.

Oakland Continues Their Winning Ways Beating Chicago 7-3

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Oakland A’s pitcher Lou Trivino (left) and teammate Seth Brown (right) shares congratulations after defeating the Chicago White Sox at Guarantee Rate Field in Chicago on Fri Jul 29, 2022 (AP News photo)

Oakland Continues Their Winning Ways Beating Chicago 7-3

By Barbara Mason

After sweeping the Houston Astros earlier this week, the Oakland A’s (39-63) took on the Chicago White Sox (49-50) Friday night at Guaranteed Rate Field for a three game series. Oakland has been a far improved team since the All-Star break and despite their record they have been playing some winning baseball.

The White Sox got up on the scoreboard in the first inning for a 1-0 lead. Jose Abreu singled driving AJ Pollock home and Chicago had a nice start in this game. Although unable to get anything going in the first inning, Oakland did have an exceptional second inning. Stephen Piscotty homered with Ramon Laureano and Elvis Andrus on base and the A’s had taken the lead 3-1.

Oakland continued on through the fifth inning with some excellent defense as did the White Sox. The A’s got some more offense going in the sixth inning. Seth Brown and Andrus both hit solo homers to extend their lead to 5-1.

Chicago would score two runs in the seventh inning. Josh Harrison hit a homer with Eloy Jimenez on base and the White Sox were challenging Oakland trailing 5-3.

In the eighth inning Brown would hit his second homer of the game to extend the Oakland lead 6-3. The A’s had seven hits in this game so far and were making the most of every hit.

James Kaprielian had a great game going six innings. He allowed four hits, the one run and had four strikeouts. Domingo Acevedo pitched one inning, the seventh and Zach Jackson pitched a three up three down eighth inning.

In the ninth inning Nick Allen executed a perfect bunt bringing Andrus home and giving the A’s a 7-3 lead. Chicago had their last chance in this game going into the bottom of the ninth. Lou Trivino closed out the game with a three up, three down and that was the ball game. The A’s have won seven of their last eight games with a season high four game winning streak.

Tomorrow in game two of this series first pitch will be at 4:15 PM PT. Paul Blackburn (6-6, 4.35) will take the mound for the A’s and Chicago will send veteran Johnny Cueto (4-4) who is doing a great job for the White Sox with a 2.89 ERA.

Oakland A’s podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: A’s getting help from bullpen and key hitting from offense

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Oakland A’s starter James Kaprielian throws against the New York Yankees in this Fri Jun 18, 2022 photo at Yankee Stadium. Kaprielian will be the starting pitcher against the Chicago White Sox on Fri Jul 29, 2022 (AP News file photo)

On the A’s podcast with Jeremiah:

#1 Jeremiah, looks like the Oakland A’s are starting to settle down getting some key hitting and the bullpen has delivered and the A’s since Wednesday’s sweep over the Houston Astros are finding new ways to win ball games.

#2 The A’s on Wednesday got some help in the bottom of the second inning with back to back home runs by Stephen Vogt and Stephen Piscotty at the Oakland Coliseum.

#3 Earlier in the season the A’s had problems with getting hits but they’ve been managing to get clutch hits at the right time recently.

#4 The A’s bullpen has improved in July before Wednesday’s game they had an 4.03 ERA and have a 2.79 ERA over the last 22 games.

#5 The A’s open up a three game series with the Chicago White Sox Friday night at Guarantee Rate Field in Chicago’s South Side with A’s starter James Kaprielian (1-5, 4.47) and for the White Sox starter Lance Lynn (1-3, ERA 6.43)

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

Oakland A’s-Chicago White Sox preview series starts Friday at Guarantee Rate Field

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Chicago White Sox manager Tony LaRussa is in the rumor mill that he’s too old to manage and that he’s turned the players off as he will manage against his old team the Oakland A’s starting Fri Jul 29, 2022 at Guarantee Rate Field in Chicago (AP News file photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s are in Chicago to start a three-game series with the White Sox starting Friday night at Guarantee Rate Field. The A’s and the White Sox have played each other since the American League’s first season in 1901.

Over the years, the A’s have appeared in 14 World Series and won nine. The White Sox have been to the World Series just four times and won the title in 1906 and again in 2005. Former A’s skipper Tony La Russa manages the 2022 team.

La Russa is in Baseball’s Hall of Fame. Tony has won 2869 games in his career and is second place on the list of winningest managers. Only Connie Mack, with 3731 wins, is ahead of him. La Russa is 77 years old.

There are grumblings in Chicago that Tony is too old for the job. There are rumors that players have turned him off. The White Sox won the AL Central last year with a record of 93-69. Hopes were high for Chicago before the season started.

The White Sox are 49-49 and are in third place in their division. The Minnesota Twins have a three-game lead over the Sox. The Sox are four games back in the chase for the third slot in the Wild Card race. The grumbling will cease if the White Sox win the division and make the playoffs.

The A’s have been playing well since just before the All-Star break. Oakland has won 12 of the last 20 games played. The A’s are 38-63 and are in last place in the American League West Division. There is no question Oakland will not be in the playoffs this year. The A’s may be sellers at the trade deadline.

Frankie Montas, under club control through 2023, is rumored to be on the trading block. The A’s are in rebuild mode, and any player that will be a free agent at the end of this year may be moved. The players would love to be spoilers as there are only two months left in the season.

Let’s take a look at the pitchers for the upcoming series. The A’s will send James Kapielian to the hill Friday Night. Kaprielian is 1-5 with an ERA of 4.74. Kaprielian did not pitch well earlier in the season. He was on the IL with a shoulder injury but has returned to form as he has pitched well in his last three or four starts.

Lance Lynn will go for Chicago. The 35-year-old righty is not having a good year. Lynn is 1-3, and his ERA is 6.43. Lyn was 11-6 with an ERA of 2.39 ERA last year. On Saturday, the A’s will send Paul Blackburn out to pitch. Blackburn started well and made the All-Star team. However, in his last start, he was tagged for ten runs.

His record stands at 6-6, and his ERA has risen to 4.35. Former San Francisco starter, Johnny Cueto, will go for the Chisox.

Cueto is 4-4 and has a respectable ERA of 2.89. The A’s have not announced their starter for Sunday’s game. Dylan Cease will be on the mound for Chicago. Cease is having an outstanding season. He is 10-4 and has an ERA of 2.03.

The Key position players for Chicago include first baseman Jose Abreu. Abreu was the American League’s MVP in 2020. Josh Harrison, who played with the A’s last year, will be at second base. Tim Anderson represented the White Sox at this year’s All-Star game.

Anderson has killed the A’s in past seasons. Yoan Moncada will be at third base. The White Sox will feature Eloy Jimenez in left field, either A.J.Pollock or Adam Engel in center. Luis Robert is out until August first. Gavin Shields, Andrew Vaughn, or Leury Garcia will be in right. Andrew Vaughn is the designated hitter.

Former A’s closer Liam Hendriks is the closer for Chicago. Hendriks is having another good year with 19 saves. Their setup man is another former A’s pitcher, Kendall Graveman. Graveman is 3-2 and has five saves.

Other players that will see action coming out of the bullpen are Joe Kelly, Reynaldo Lopez, Jose Ruiz, Matt Foster, Taner Banks, and Jimmy Lambert.

The A’s bullpen has done well recently. A’s manager Mark Kotsay has received outstanding performances from Domingo Acevedo, Sam Moll, Austin Pruitt, Zach Jackson, and A.J.Puk. Puk earned a save on Wednesday, setting the Astros down in order 1-2-3 to preserve the 4-2 victory.

The White Sox have not played well at home this year. Their home record is 21-27. The road record is 28-22. The A’s, like the Sox, have played better on the road, too. It should be a fun series. The A’s have won three in a row and would love to extend their streak.

The White Sox must win to stay in contention for the AL Central crown. The only way Chicago will get into the playoffs is to win the division. This series should be interesting.

A’s sweep Astros behind Irvin’s stellar pitching; Vogt and Piscotty hit back to back home runs

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Oakland A’s hitter Stephen Piscotty takes Houston Astros pitcher Cristian Javier deep in the bottom of the second inning at the Oakland Coliseum on Wed Jul 27, 2022 (Bay Area News Group photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND–On a day when the Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry and his lovely wife Ayesha threw out the first pitch, the Oakland A’s completed a three-game sweep of the AL West first-place Houston Astros.

The 9,367 made the loudest noise in the ninth inning as A’s reliever A.J.Puk retired the Astros 1-2-3 to win the game 4-2. A’s starter Cole Irvin continued to pitch well. Irvin went seven innings and allowed four hits and two runs. His one mistake was a gopher ball to Houston’s DH Yordan Alvarez. Alvarez’s home run traveled 429 feet deep into the right-field seats.

The A’s drew first blood in the bottom of the second. With one out, A’s catcher Stephen Vogt took Christian Javier deep. The ball went over the fence in right field. It came o a 1-1 pitch. Now facing Stephen Piscotty, Javier saw his first pitch go out of the park. The back-to-back home runs gave the A’s an early 2-0 lead.

The Astros put one on the board in the top of the fifth. With one out, former SF Giant, Mauricio Dubon, singled. The next hitter, Jake Meyers, tripled to deep right-center-field to drive in Dubon. Irvin retired the next two hitters to end the inning.

The A’s lead got the run back in their half of the fifth. A’s first baseman Jonah Bride singled. Bride stole second and went to third on a wild pitch. Tony Kemp drove him in with a double to right. The A’s lead 3-1 after five complete.

In the top of the sixth, the Astros’ DH Yordan Alvarez hit a blast ten rows deep in right-field. As they say in baseball: “there was no doubt about it” when it left the bat. The Astros trail the A’s 3-2 after six.

The A’s added an insurance run in the bottom of the seventh. Stephen Piscotty led off the frame with a single, his second hit of the afternoon. Piscotty went to second on a passed ball and scored on Skye Bolt’s single. The A’s lead 4-2. 

Cole Irvin left after pitching seven innings. Domingo Acevedo kept the Astros off the board in the eighth. Lefty A.J.Puk earned his second career save, setting the Astros down 1-2-3 in the ninth to secure the win for Oakland. The A’s win 4-2.

Game Notes: With the win, the A’s are now 38-63. Oakland has won three in a row, six of the last seven, and are 6-2 since the All-Star break. The A’s are 12-8 in their last 20 games. The bullpen is 3-0 and has converted their six save opportunities in the last 12 games. 

Cole Irvin was the winning pitcher. His line was seven innings, four hits, and two runs allowed. His record is 6-7. The Astros’ Christian Javier was the losing pitcher. The Astros are now 64-35. 

Stephen Piscotty hit his fourth home run of the year. He also singled. Tony Kemp had two doubles and a single. Stephen homered for the fifth time this year.

Houston’s Yordan Alvarez blasted his 29th dinger.

The time of the game was two hours and twenty-nine minutes. Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred will be smiling when he hears the news.

The A’s are off on Thursday. They travel to Chicago for three games this weekend against the White Sox. James Kaprielian will go for Oakland. Chicago will counter with Lance Lynn. The game will start at 5:10 pm.

Oakland A’s podcast with Jerry Feitelberg: It was the Stephen and Stephen and Stephen show at the Oakland Coliseum

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Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry and his wife Ayesha take turns at throwing out the first pitch at the Oakland Coliseum before Wed Jul 27, 2022 game against the Houston Astros (AP News photo)

On the Oakland A’s podcast with Jerry Feitelberg:

#1 Jerry, back to back home runs in the bottom of the second inning from catcher Stephen Vogt and leftfielder Stephen Piscotty that got the A’s off to a 2-0 lead.

#2 The A’s have been showing consistency of late in improved offense including a Tony Kemp double for an RBI that scored Jonah Bride for a for a 3-1 bottom of the fifth inning lead.

#3 Sky Bolt struck again with a RBI single in the bottom of the seventh inning and it was the A’s win for keeps and a sweep over the Houston Astros the second best team in baseball 4-2.

#4 The A’s starter Cole Irvin kept the Astros off balance who pitched seven innings four hits, two runs and struck out four hitters. Quite and accomplishment against one of baseball’s best teams.

#5 The A’s are headed to Chicago for a three game series which opens up at Guarantee Rate Field in Chicago with the Chicago White Sox. Starting pitcher for the A’s on Friday night right hander James Kaprielian (1-5, 4.74) and for the White Sox Lance Lynn (1-3, 6.43) a 5:10 pm PDT first pitch.

Join Jerry for the A’s podcasts each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com