Last night, the Athletics dropped the third game of this four-game series against the Boston Red Sox in frustrating fashion. The A’s had the game-winning run just 90 feet away in the ninth inning, but failed to bring it home, eventually falling 4-2 in ten innings. As a result, the “Green and Gold” must quickly turn the page and find a way to win to avoid yet another series loss.
Right-hander Mason Barnett will start the series finale for the A’s. The 25-year-old enters his 15th appearance and first
start of the season with a 1-1 record, a 4.74 ERA, a 1.38 WHIP and 23 strikeouts over 24 innings. Tonight marks a change for Barnett, who has worked exclusively in relief for the Athletics this season, earning a pair of saves. However, he made five starts with the A’s last season and has spent the majority of his minor league career as a starting pitcher.
Barnett last took the mound five days ago against the Minnesota Twins. He took the loss after allowing two runs on four hits over 3 1/3 innings of relief. With four innings standing as his longest outing in the majors this season, the A’s will hope the right-hander can at least match that workload, if not complete five frames. Regardless of how Barnett fares, the hosts will likely turn to their bullpen early and often.
Here’s the Athletics’ lineup this evening:
It is good to see first baseman Nick Kurtz back in the starting lineup after he exited yesterday’s game early with an injury. The Jacob Wilson leadoff experiment did not produce the desired results, so the A’s will hope the free-swinger finds more success batting second.
The A’s are rolling out a slightly different defensive alignment. Wilson will serve as the designated hitter, with Donovan Walton taking over at shortstop. Struggling rookie Henry Bolte is on the bench, prompting Lawrence Butler to shift to center field while Carlos Cortes gets the start in right.
If the Athletics want to salvage a series split, they must score more runs, while avoiding costly defensive miscues. Last night, third baseman Tommy White dropped a foul popup that led to the Red Sox scoring the game-tying run. Today, the team cannot afford mistakes like that. The A’s must play error-free defense behind a pitching staff that has, for the most part, held its own through the first three games of this week.
The A’s offense could have difficulty scoring runs today, as former Athletics ace Sonny Gray is set to start for the Red Sox. Gray began his career with the A’s, anchoring the team’s rotation from his 2012 debut until he was traded to the New York Yankees at the 2017 trade deadline.
Since then, Gray has pitched for several teams, finding success at every stop. That trend has continued in 2026, his first season with the Red Sox. The 36-year-old right-hander enters his 20th start with a 12-2 record, a 2.78 ERA, a 1.16 WHIP and 93 strikeouts over 106 2/3 innings.
He suffered his second loss of the season in his last start against the Toronto Blue Jays, allowing five runs on ten hits over five innings. Gray will look to bounce back in his eighth appearance against the first MLB team he played for. Since being traded away, the veteran pitcher has posted a 2-2 record with a 4.58 ERA and 32 strikeouts in 7 appearances against the Athletics.
And Boston’s starting nine:
The Red Sox are running it back with mostly the same lineup. Shortstop Andruw Monasterio will look to continue his heroics after hitting the game-winning home run last night. Additionally, A’s pitchers must be careful when facing center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela, first baseman Willson Contreras and third baseman Caleb Durbin, three more threats in the visitors’ lineup.
Will the A’s hand Gray his second straight loss, or will he remind the franchise of the talent it traded away nearly a decade ago? Either way, it is time to end this series with a win. Let’s go A’s!
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Watch:
Athletics – NBCSCA
Listen:
Athletics – Talk 650 KSTE, A’s Cast
