After dropping two of three vs. the San Francisco Giants, the Athletics won their series vs. the Atlanta Braves.
Results
FRI: ATH 11, SF 2
The Athletics delivered quite a Fourth of July performance in the series opener vs. San Francisco. They jumped all over Justin Verlander as the legendary pitcher allowed seven hits and six earned runs in just three innings. That included a trio of RBI doubles in the 2nd inning. Mason Black relieved Verlander and gave up homers to Nick Kurtz and Denzel Clarke. JP Sears pitched six innings of shutout, three-hit ball before Jack Perkins went the rest of the way.
SAT: SF 7, ATH 2
Another rough outing for Luis Severino as he allowed five earned runs in 4.1 innings. With the A’s down 4-1 entering the 5th inning, Sevy came back out to start the inning. Heliot Ramos greeted him with a 416 ft. solo homer to extend the Giants’ lead. Nick Kurtz doubled home a run in the 6th, then the Athletics only tallied one hit across the final three innings.
SUN: SF 6, ATH 2
Jacob Lopez walked Willy Adames with the bases loaded to allow the first run of the game in the 1st inning. That would set the tone for the rest of the day as Adames played a key role in tormenting the Athletics in the series finale. He took Lopez deep for a solo homer in the 4th inning, then walked again with the bases loaded in the 5th. This time, Luis Matos added to the damage with a two-run ground rule double. Tyler Fitzgerald added a home run in the 8th. The offense for the A’s came from a Tyler Soderstrom home run and an RBI groundout by Lawrence Butler.
TUE: ATH 10, ATL 1
The first at-bat for the Athletics served as a perfect intro to an exhilarating offensive display. Lawrence Butler’s drive to right-center took an unexpected redirection off the wall, leading to an inside-the-park home run. Per Sarah Langs, it was the first leadoff inside-the-park home run for the A’s since 1943.
Brent Rooker and Max Muncy each two-run homers in the 1st inning. Nick Kurtz followed up with a grand slam in the 2nd. Then, Butler hit one over the fence in the 3rd to finish off the scoring for the home team. Eli White’s solo homer off of Jeffrey Springs was the only blemish as he went six innings and earned the win. Justin Sterner and Elvis Alvarado allowed zero hits across the final three innings. The only downside of this game was Jacob Wilson exited after getting hit on the wrist by a pitch (x-rays were negative per MLB’s Theo DeRosa).
WED: ATL 9, ATH 2
The Atlanta Braves took out their frustration from a five-game slide on Mitch Spence. Ronald Acuña Jr. and Drake Baldwin (three-run shot) hit home runs in the first inning. Then, Austin Riley hit one in the 2nd before Acuña added another in the 4th. Lawrence Butler knocked in a run with a groundout to get the Athletics on the board. Spence, saving the bullpen by grinding through his outing, allowed a final home run from Marcell Ozuna in the 6th. A Gio Urshela RBI single and a Jurickson Profar RBI double brought us to the final line of 9-2. The Braves only had two more hits (11-9) than the A’s, but when five of your 11 hits leave the yard, that’s how a blowout happens.
THU: ATH 5, ATL 4 (11 innings)
Tyler Soderstrom started the party and ended it as well for the Athletics. He hit a three-run home run in the 1st inning off of Spencer Strider. The Braves tied things up in the 4th, courtesy of an RBI double from former A’s catcher Sean Murphy and a home run by Jurickson Profar. Ozzie Albies took J. T. Ginn, who relieved JP Sears, deep to put Atlanta ahead in the 7th. With Dylan Lee on the mound in the 8th, Nick Kurtz hit the game-tying home run. Neither team could deliver in the 9th or 10th, then Soderstrom singled home Brent Rooker to walk it off.
What Else?
- Brent Rooker has joined the field of 2025 Home Run Derby participants, the first A’s player to do so since Matt Olson in 2021. He also will be joining Jacob Wilson in the All Star Game as the slugger will make his second appearance in the Midsummer Classic. A steady veteran bat in a young lineup, Rooker has 19 home runs, 21 doubles, and carries a .272/.346/.493 slashline.
- Speaking of Jacob Wilson, he’s been scuffling a bit at the plate recently. It’s nothing to be concerned about as it could be the various injuries he’s been dealing with (absent from the lineup since his HBP on Tuesday) or pitchers adjusting to him. But, he’s hitting just .218 over his last 15 games. Of his 26 strikeouts this entire season, seven have come during that stretch.
- Yesterday, Osvaldo Bido was recalled from Las Vegas and Mitch Spence was optioned to Triple-A. After putting up a 2.70 ERA in six June appearances, Spence had crashed back down to Earth in July. Across his first two starts this month (11 innings), he gave up eight home runs and tallied a 9.82 ERA.
- The 2025 MLB Draft is just days away. Sunday will include the first three rounds (plus comp picks). Then, the remainder of the selections will be made on Monday. The latest projections for the 11th pick to the Athletics are: Tyler Bremner, RHP, UC Santa Barbara (USA Today, The Athletic, Just Baseball), Ike Irish, C/OF, Auburn (Bleacher Report, The Sporting Tribune), Gavin Kilen, 2B, Tennessee (MLB.com), and Kyson Witherspoon, RHP, Oklahoma (ESPN).
System Spotlight
Luis Morales: After getting shelled in a 6/21 start (six runs in 2.1 IP), the highly-regarded pitching prospect has appeared four times out of the Las Vegas bullpen. In nine innings, he has allowed just two runs and has six Ks. It will be worth monitoring if the organization is giving him a bit of a reset (and limiting his innings) or if they feel he’s better suited as a reliever.
Ramon Landaeta: An international free agent signing in 2023, Landaeta made his Arizona Complex League debut in May. The 19-year-old catcher is hitting .264 in 33 games. He’s also thrown out 14 runners attempting to steal bases.
Tucker Novotny: The club’s 18th round pick last year has been dynamite on the mound for Stockton in his first professional season. After making twenty appearances out of the bullpen, he made his first start on Sunday. He allowed just three hits in five innings, giving up zero runs, and striking out seven. Overall, he has a 1.63 ERA and 55 Ks in 38.2 innings.
What’s Next?
The Toronto Blue Jays will come to town to face the Athletics for the final three games before the All Star break.
(Top photo of Lawrence Butler, courtesy: Athletics)
