At the start of the Athletics weeklong trip to New York City to play the New York Yankees and Mets, few thought the team would walk away with two series wins. The A’s have proved doubters wrong as they enter today’s series finale against the Mets with a chance to sweep their first series of the season and finish their time in “The Big Apple” with five wins in six games.
Yesterday, the A’s finally snapped their multi-game home run drought. By doing so, the team introduced its new home run celebration,
a cool but somewhat creepy looking elephant mask and gold chain featuring an elephant’s head. Left fielder Tyler Soderstrom donned the mask twice, his second home run coming at a critical moment in the game. The Mets had scored five unanswered to cut the A’s lead from 7-1 to 7-6. In the eighth inning, with the game’s momentum firmly on the hosts side, Soderstrom hit a three-run home run to right-center, his blast all but sealing the A’s series-clinching victory.
Right-hander Aaron Civale will be on the mound today as the A’s vie for the sweep. Through two starts, Civale (1-0, 2.70 ERA) has been the solid veteran pitcher the A’s needed. He does not throw hard, yet he moves the baseball around and gets batters out. Having gone five innings in each of his first two starts, the A’s would love for him to pitch at least that many innings today against a reeling but talented Mets lineup.
The A’s lineup on this fine Sunday:
This morning’s A’s lineup is nearly unchanged from yesterday, except designated hitter Carlos Cortes moves up after his three-run homer Saturday. Backup infielder Darell Hernáiz starts at shortstop with Jacob Wilson getting the day off. Recently promoted infielder Zack Gelof, who took the injured Brent Rooker’s place on the team’s roster, is on the bench again. A’s manager Mark Kotsay should give Gelof, who has significantly regressed since his impressive rookie performance, some playing time in Sacramento this week to evaluate whether he is worth keeping around or not.
Civale will be opposed by Mets right-hander Freddy Peralta this morning. The Mets acquired Peralta from the Milwaukee Brewers in one of this past offseason’s biggest trades. The longtime Brewers ace is 1-0 with a 4.80 ERA through his first three starts with his new team. Peralta will pose a stiff challenge for the Athletics’ offense. A’s hitters will have to bring the solid approaches they displayed yesterday and pounce on any mistakes Peralta makes.
The Mets’ lineup:
Can the Athletics complete the sweep? Who will earn the elephant mask today? Let’s go A’s!
