While the first two games of this three-game series saw the A’s barely lose, there was no doubt who the better team was today in the last game of the set. The Athletics got smacked in the finale on Thursday afternoon, losing to the play0ff-bound Rays 10-1 to wrap up their time in Florida. Just one more road series of the season left!
Springs solid early, falters late
Making what is likely one of the final starts of his A’s tenure, veteran Jeffrey Springs got the call for the finale against his former
team. It’s been an overall rough season for him but he seemed to be sprinting through the finish line here at the end. The game started out well enough for the lefty as he allowed just one hit the first time through the Rays’ lineup.
Things hit the wall in the fourth however for the southpaw. If you want to look up the exact details of what happened then be my guest but it was ugly. When the inning had ended the Rays had put up a six-spot, chasing Springs from the game after he managed just one out in the frame.
- Jeffrey Springs: 3 1/3 IP, 5 H, 6 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 66 pitches
Another dud from Springs and his season ERA now stands at 6.18 through 28 starts. Today was probably he second-to-last start in an Athletics uniform, with his final start scheduled for next week at home against the Angels. He’ll certainly be glad to not call Sutter Health Park home next year.
A’s offense struggles against an ace
On the other side of things, the Athletics’ offense was going up against Tampa’s co-ace in Drew Rasmussen. The right-hander has had a fantastic season up to this point and today was no different. The Athletics managed just four hits and a pair of walks against the right-hander as he looked dominant from the jump. The A’s had a chance to push across a run against him in the third when a double-steal put runners at second and third, but with two outs they needed a base hit and Jeff McNeil couldn’t deliver. That was their best chance against Rasmussen but just couldn’t cash in. That’s why he’ll be starting a playoff game for Tampa Bay soon enough.
The A’s would not be shutout in this one though. Rasmussen was done after five full innings, making way for the bullpen for the final four frames. Right fielder Lawrence Butler greeted the first arm out of the ‘pen with a leadoff blast to start the sixth, putting the A’s on the board:
No shutout today! That was Butler’s 17th of the year and 20 home runs is definitely within reach. That should be a personal goal for him in the final week-plus we have here in the 2026 season. He started the year slow but he’s sure ending it on a high note.
The final frames
That was just about it though. The A’s would work one more walk from Alika Williams but the Rays would continue to add on, first two more in the sixth before another pair in the eighth for good measure to make it double-digits for them on the day. Funnily enough Tampa only collected seven hits this afternoon, but they also worked nine (!) walks. Can’t win like that.
Not a good day at all in Tampa. The A’s couldn’t escape Florida with at least one win and now head to their final road destination of the year with a 61-92 record. With just nine games to go the A’s should be able to avoid a 100-loss season, but the sooner we get that 63rd win the better. Hopefully it comes this weekend.
The A’s now head to Cleveland for what will be their final road series of the season. The Guardians are holding onto the AL Central lead by a thread so it’s an excellent time for the A’s to play spoiler. The A’s have yet to announce their starter for tomorrow but it could be right-hander Mason Barnett, who could get one or two more looks here in the final stretch. Cleveland does know who they’re going with as right-hander Daniel Espino gets the nod as an opener. We’ll have to wait and see how Cleveland follows him up.
