The Athletics won two of three on the road vs. the Texas Rangers. Then, they returned home and won their series against the Kansas City Royals.
Results
FRI: ATH 8, TEX 1
There are a lot of ways to score runs in the game of baseball. But, the easiest is to simply hit it over the fence. Friday night was a showcase of homers by the Athletics. Nick Kurtz, Carlos Cortes, and Tyler Soderstrom all hit solo home runs in the 1st inning. Josh Jung hit an RBI ground-rule double in the 4th to make it 3-1. That was the only run Luis Severino (6.2 IP, 6 H, 5 K) allowed in his start.
Cortes mashed a three-run HR in the 5th before Zack Gelof rounded out the scoring with a solo shot in the 9th. On the evening, five of the nine hits for the A’s were home runs. Hogan Harris, Justin Sterner, and Luis Medina allowed just baserunners (two hits against Harris).
SAT: TEX 4, ATH 3
Early in Saturday’s game it seemed as if the A’s were off to another lopsided win. Darell Hernaiz singled home Jacob Wilson in the 2nd inning. Then, the visitors scored twice in the 3rd with a pair of hits, three walks, and a sacrifice fly to go up 3-0.
Jeffrey Springs had a rough bottom of the 3rd as he hit the first batter, walked the second, and allowed a bunt single to load the bases with zero outs. Brandon Nimmo registered a sacrifice fly and Corey Seager’s RBI single made it a one-run game, 3-2. Springs was still pitching in the 6th as Josh Jung hit a go-ahead, two-run home run. The A’s only had one hit in their final three frames of the loss.
SUN: ATH 2, TEX 1
The Athletics did all of their damage offensively in the 1st inning. With two outs, Tyler Soderstrom and Brent Rooker, making his return from the IL, drew back-to-back walks. Carlos Cortes worked a full count before smoking a ball to center field that Evan Carter could not reel in. Both runners scored and Cortes had an RBI triple.
On the mound, J. T. Ginn didn’t allow a run in his 3.1 innings before exiting with right arm soreness. Things got dicey in the 6th with Jacob Lopez working his second inning of relief. Josh Jung doubled to lead off the frame. Carter laid down a sacrifice bunt, but he reached safely and Jung scored after Lopez threw the ball away. Then, he walked Jake Burger before being replaced by Justin Sterner. Josh Smith loaded the bases after reaching on a bunt. But, Sterner struck out Danny Jansen and pinch hitter Sam Haggerty. Brandon Nimmo lined out to end the threat with the A’s still up 2-1. That was the last major chance for the Rangers as Hogan Harris worked a hitless 7th and Jack Perkins struck out three in his two innings of work to earn the save and a series win.
TUE: KCR 4, ATH 1 (10 innings)
Aaron Civale bounced back from a couple of bad outings with five innings of scoreless baseball on Tuesday. He allowed five hits, walked one, and struck out three. Jacob Wilson opened the scoring in the 2nd inning with an RBI single off of Kris Bubic. The score would remain 1-0 until the A’s went to the bullpen.
Relieving Civale to start the 6th, Hogan Harris got Vinnie Pasquantino to ground out before Salvador Perez took him deep to tie the game. He picked up a strikeout but departed after walking consecutive batters. Lane Thomas was thrown out trying to steal third to end the inning. Tied going into extra innings, Kyle Isbel reached on a bunt single before Bobby Witt Jr. hit a three-run HR. Former Athletic Lucas Erceg walked Carlos Cortes, then allowed an infield single to Zack Gelof to load the bases with two outs in the 10th. But, Darell Hernaiz lined out to end the series opener.
WED: ATH 5, KCR 2
The Royals got on the board in the 1st inning against Luis Severino. Bobby Witt Jr. and Carter Jensen singled before Salvador Perez scored Witt Jr. on a fielder’s choice. Jacob Wilson and Jeff McNeil hit back-to-back doubles to start the 2nd and tie the game, 1-1.
The 4th was a big inning for the A’s. Wilson and McNeil both singled, then Zack Gelof’s sacrifice bunt moved both of them over. It didn’t matter which base they were standing on after all, though. Lawrence Butler came up next and took Michael Wacha deep for a three-run HR. A replay review took another run off the board as Nick Kurtz was thrown out at home to end the inning after a Carlos Cortes single. Kurtz added an RBI double in the 6th. Sevy kept the scoreline 5-1 as he left after seven innings (4 H, 2 BB, 1 ER, 8 K). Joel Kuhnel entered in the top of the 9th. The Royals plated a run after a pair of singles, a wild pitch, and a sacrifice fly. Mark Leiter Jr. entered and walked Isaac Collin’s before striking out Jac Caglianone to end it.
THU: ATH 6, KCR 3
Both offenses got going early in the series finale on Thursday afternoon. Starling Marte’s RBI single in the top of the 1st inning was matched by Darell Hernaiz’s in the bottom of the frame. Maikel Garcia hit a solo home run in the 2nd. But, that brief lead was wiped out by a four-frame 2nd for the A’s. Shea Langeliers and Nick Kurtz hit RBI doubles. Hernaiz had a second infield RBI single to make it 5-2. Jeffrey Springs departed after three innings with hip soreness.
Hernaiz made it a hat trick of RBI infield singles, adding to the lead in the 7th. Elias Diaz hit a solo home run off of Brady Basso in the 8th to cut the lead to three. But, Jack Perkins threw a scoreless 9th to secure the save and the series win.
What Else?
- Yes, Nick Kurtz has continued his historic streak of walks. He has now walked in 19 consecutive games. That ties Ted Williams for the 3rd-longest such streak (since at least 1910 in the NL and 1913 in the AL). Next up on the list is a guy named Barry Bonds, heard of him? He had 20 consecutive across the end of 2002 and beginning of 2003. Ray Cullenbine is the top target here with 22 straight games in 1947. Kurtz is the league leader in walks drawn in 2026 with 33, one ahead of Mike Trout.
- Luis Severino had a nice week on the mound for the A’s. Against Texas, he allowed six hits but only walked one batter, struck out five, and gave up only one earned run in 6.2 innings. He followed that up with seven innings against the Royals with one run allowed, eight strikeouts, and four hits. His fastball velo is up from 95.9 MPH in 2025 to 96.6 MPH and is starting to look like the front-end starter the A’s paid him to be.
- With Brent Rooker returning, Andy Ibanez was DFA’d over the weekend (and since claimed by the Mets). Max Muncy hit the injured list with a broken finger and was replaced by Brett Harris. Tyler Soderstrom exited Tuesday’s game after a rough landing on a diving catch. He sat out both Wednesday and Thursday but is not on the IL yet. Also, there is no word on Jeffrey Springs after his early departure on Thursday.
- If you go down to the bullpen and ask the relievers there who is the closer, you might get a lot of shoulder shrugs or about five different hands going up. While bullpens naturally have some flexibility and fluidity, the Athletics are really adjusting roles constantly thus far in the season, including who is getting the ball in high leverage. Four pitchers have recorded saves and ten have registered save opportunities. Fangraphs’ closer depth chart has a closer committee of Jack Perkins, Joel Kuhnel, and Hogan Harris. Harris’ lone save came on 4/9 and he didn’t see another save opportunity until his blown save on Tuesday. Kuhnel, a 31-year-old journeyman, has been better than expected (2.70 ERA, 4/4 save opportunities). Another veteran, Mark Leiter Jr., is 3/5 in his save chances, but he has a 6.23 ERA and opponents are hitting .321 against him. Jack Perkins probably best fits the mold of a closer with his elite stuff and is the youngest option (26 years old). He’s struck out 17 batters in 13.1 and has converted all three save opportunities. I’d expect that he will eventually settle into that role, but it’s impossible to forecast anything with this current bullpen mix.
System Spotlight
Devin Taylor (High-A): Selected in the second round of the 2025 MLB Draft, Taylor is off to a great start in his first full professional season. Through 24 games, the 22-year-old outfielder has a .939 OPS and three home runs for Lansing.
Davis Diaz (High-A): A teammate of Taylor’s with the Lugnuts, Diaz is showing off his ability and versatility early in 2026. In addition to seeing time at DH, he has played catcher, 1B, and 3B through 20 games. The 23-year-old is slashing .313/.452/.478.
Nick Anderson (Triple-A): To be very clear, Anderson is not a young, intriguing prospect. He is 35 years old and has pitched nearly 200 innings in Major League Baseball. But, with the unsettled bullpen for the A’s, Anderson’s stats with Las Vegas could see him get a chance sooner than later. In nine appearances (10.1 innings), he has allowed zero hits and zero runs.
What’s Next?
The A’s will host Stephen Vogt and the Cleveland Guardians for three games before heading to the City of Brotherly Love to face the Phillies.
(Headshot of Luis Severino, courtesy: Athletics)
