The Athletics continued their free fall as they dropped six straight games against the Marlins and Tigers.
Results
FRI: MIA 12, ATH 5
Jack Perkins got this series started off on the wrong foot in a major way for the A’s. He allowed three straight singles to start the game before walking home a run. The second run scored on a passed ball, followed by a three-run home run for Heriberto Hernandez. Then, Perkins finally got an out. In between the final two outs of the 1st inning, Jakob Marsee hit a solo HR to make it 6-0. A sacrifice fly for Xavier Edwards in the 2nd added to the lead. Perkins did end up with eight strikeouts in 3.2 innings, but that was obviously overshadowed by the seven hits and seven earned runs allowed.
Nick Kurtz hit a two-run HR in the 3rd and Jeff McNeil had a three-run double in the 4th to cut the lead to 7-5. But, Kyle Stowers hit home runs in the 6th and 8th before Owen Caissie added a two-run shot in the 9th to remove all doubt. Mason Barnett pitched the 8th and 9th and allowed four runs on those two final homers.
SAT: MIA 7, ATH 2
Aaron Civale gave up home runs in the 3rd inning to Joe Mack (solo) and Otto Lopez (2-R). Lopez added an RBI double in the 5th, which ended Civale’s outing. His final line was 4.2 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 6 K. Kyle Stowers extended the lead to 6-0 in the 7th with a two-run HR off of Kade Morris.
After a pair of singles, Jeff McNeil’s sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 7th got the Athletics on the board. Xavier Edwards responded with an RBI single in the 9th. That added to a rough relief outing for Morris, who pitched three innings and allowed three runs on seven hits with zero strikeouts and two walks. Sandy Alcantara (8 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 8 K) was replaced for the 9th inning by Tyler Zuber. He allowed a leadoff RBI double to Carlos Cortes. Henry Bolte reached on an infield single and Cortes scored on a throwing error. Zuber walked Joshua Kuroda-Grauer, but McNeil grounded into a double play and Alika Williams struck out to end the threat and the game.
SUN: MIA 9, ATH 8
The Marlins dominated the first seven innings of the series finale. Heriberto Hernandez took Gage Jump deep in the 1st inning to get Miami on the board. Otto Lopez hit an RBI ground-rule double in the 2nd to go along with Liam Hicks’ sacrifice fly to make it 3-0. Another multi-run inning (two-run HR and sac fly) in the 3rd bounced Jump (3 IP, 8 H, 6 ER, 1 K). Lopez and Hernandez each hit solo homers in the 6th to extend the lead to 8-0. In the meantime, Miami starter Eury Perez had not allowed a baserunner. He struck out eight over his seven perfect innings. As Perez is still working his way back from injury, manager Clayton McCullough elected to not send him back out for the 8th.
Lake Bachar immediately lost the perfect game with a leadoff walk. Then, Joshua Kuroda-Grauer singled. Carlos Cortes’ RBI double got the Athletics on the board. Max Muncy drew a walk to load the bases, still with zero outs. Jonah Heim hit a grand slam to cut the lead to 8-5. After one more single, the threat ended with a fielder’s choice, a caught stealing, and a strikeout. Hicks picked up a run for the Marlins in the 9th with an RBI groundout, which proved to be crucial. Pete Fairbanks came on to close the game out and allowed a single to Zack Gelof and a double to Lawrence Butler to start the inning. Gelof scored on a passed ball. After retiring two batters, Muncy drew another walk and Heim drove home two with an RBI single to make it a one-run game. But, Brian Serven grounded out to end the game and secure the sweep.
TUE: DET 6, ATH 2
After a leadoff walk, Colt Keith hit a two-run home run off of J. T. Ginn in the 1st inning. Those would be the only two runs Ginn (4.0 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 4 K) would allow in his outing. Henry Bolte answered with a solo HR in the 3rd off of Tarik Skubal. The two-time reigning Cy Young winner struck out nine over five innings.
Jacob Lopez, recalled from Triple-A earlier in the day, relieved Ginn. After pitching a scoreless 5th, the soft-tossing lefty allowed four runs on four hits in the 6th. That extended the Detroit lead to five runs, 6-1. Shea Langeliers picked up an RBI single in the 7th, but the Athletics went down in order in the final two frames. The series-opening loss was the fourth consecutive defeat for Mark Kotsay’s squad.
WED: DET 6, ATH 1
Riley Greene opened the scoring with an RBI single in the 1st inning off of Jeffrey Springs. In the following inning, Jake Rogers hit a two-run home run to extend the lead to 3-0. The Athletics answered in the 4th. After a Tyler Soderstrom double, Jacob Wilson reached on a throwing error by Zach McKinstry that also allowed Soderstrom to score from second.
Springs allowed a couple more singles in the 5th before Spencer Torkelson hit a three-run home run to make it 6-1. He walked the next batter and that ended his outing (4.1 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 4 BB, 4 K). The bullpen trio of Justin Sterner, Mason Barnett, and Jose Suarez kept the Tigers off of the board the rest of the game. But, the A’s didn’t have the offense to take advantage, especially with Nick Kurtz leaving early in the game with an illness.
THU: DET 4, ATH 1
Jose Suarez pitched as the opener for the A’s in the series finale. The lefty didn’t allow a hit in 1.1 innings and struck out two. Jack Perkins replaced him and was slated to be the bulk man. He allowed a solo home run to Jake Rogers in the 3rd inning. Henry Bolte tied things up with an RBI groundout in the 4th as his speed allowed him to prevent Detroit from turning a double play.
Zach McKinstry hit a two-run shot off of Perkins in the 5th to put Detroit back in the lead. Pinch hitting for his first MLB plate appearance, catcher Eduardo Valencia took Hogan Harris deep in the 7th. That offense was more than enough as Framber Valdez went seven full innings, allowing just three hits and striking out nine. This defeat made it back-to-back series in which the Athletics were swept.
What Else?
- The Athletics have two starters in next week’s MLB All Star Game. Shea Langeliers won the fan vote to be the starter behind the plate. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was the top vote getter at first base, but he elected to not participate and the honor then went to Nick Kurtz as he won the player vote. Neither player will feature in the Home Run Derby on Monday.
- While the A’s do have some offensive firepower on the IL (Rooker for the season, plus Soderstrom and Wilson recently), it is still the pitching staff that has the team scuffling. Among the starters, J. T. Ginn has been much better than expected. Gage Jump has shown flashes, but he is battling with the inconsistency that most rookies do. Similar to Jump, Jack Perkins is working through adjusting to the majors and has also bounced between the bullpen and rotation. Even with Luis Severino on the shelf, there are still two well-established veterans in the mix with Jeffrey Springs and Aaron Civale that should be leading the staff. Instead, they are arguably the two weakest links. Springs, making over ten million dollars this season, has a 6.08 ERA and an absurd 10.34 ERA in his last seven outings. Civale had a decent start to the year, but it didn’t seem sustainable based on the metrics. That proved to be true as his ERA is now up to 5.10 and 8.51 in his last seven starts.
- The recent struggles for the Athletics have them stuck in 4th in the AL West, six games behind division-leading Texas. Is that an insurmountable lead? Of course not. But, it does make the fast-approaching trade deadline an intriguing discussion. If the team was clicking and needed a boost, the front office could’ve considered bolstering the aforementioned woeful pitching staff to help down the stretch. But, with the roster where it is and the standings how they are, it’s perhaps more plausible that the team tries to offload some veteran contracts like Jeffrey Springs or Jeff McNeil for next to nothing in return.
- The MLB draft gets underway tomorrow in Philadelphia. The vast majority of the final mock drafts have the Athletics slated to draft a college hitter at #8 overall. SI.com and The Athletic have that player being Georgia Tech CF Drew Burress. Fangraphs predicts they will select Christopher Hacopian, a 2B from Texas A&M.
System Spotlight
Bobby Boser (AA): An 11th round pick in 2025, Boser has worked his way up to Double-A Midland. He has an .814 OPS on the season, split close to evenly between Lansing and Midland. He’s turned it on recently with a .404 OBP in his last ten games and collected 13 total bases in the RockHounds’ Wednesday and Thursday games this week.
Yunior Tur (AAA): Working mostly out of the bullpen (26 appearances, five starts), the 26-year-old Cuban RHP has 62 strikeouts in 50 innings in 2026. Hitters have a .157 xBA against his splitter, and his fastball can touch 99 MPH. He could work his way into a shot in the big league bullpen this season.
Darwing Ozuna (DSL): The 18-year-old outfielder is tearing up the Dominican Summer League early in the season. Through 26 games, he has a .430 OBP and an .835 OPS. Ozuna picked up five hits across their last two games, including his second triple of the season.
What’s Next?
The Athletics travel to the Windy City to play the Chicago White Sox in a three-game set. Then, it’s time for the All Star Break.
(Top photo by Joshua Kuroda-Grauer, courtesy: Athletics)
