Welcome to Thursday A’s fans!
We got a brand new series on tap as the A’s welcome division rival Seattle Mariners to town for three games. Seattle is falling in the standings fast and has to be in panic and desperation mode right now. They can’t afford to drop a single game to the Athletics this weekend. That means they’ll be all tense and tight with the pressure of the playoffs bearing on them. The A’s meanwhile don’t have that expectation of a much-needed win. We can play care free and mess with the Mariners all we want.
We’re playing with house money and any wins are gravy, especially against a division foe.
The pitching matchups this weekend are set beginning with tonight’s rematch between lefty Jeffrey Springs and righty George Kirby. Springs is in the final stretch of his A’s tenure as the flyball pitcher has made it known he doesn’t think his style of play is conducive to the Athletics’ current home ballpark. He’s not wrong as his ERA on the road is 4.76 compared to the 7.18 mark at Sutter Health. The 33-year-old just saw these guys last time out, firing seven shutout innings with just a pair of hits and walks allowed. That was in Seattle however and this’ll be in his home ballpark. Which Springs will show up tonight? If his season is any indication the A’s bats will have to show up tonight.
Kirby is going to be a tough task for them. The right-hander is in the midst of a solid if unspectacular campaign, sporting a 4.18 ERA through 27 starts. He hasn’t reached the peaks that the M’s envisioned for him when they made him a first round pick seven years ago but he’s settled into a reliable arm for them nonetheless. His most recent start, against our A’s, was the epitome of Kirby as he provided Seattle with nearly seven full frames and three earned runs allowed in a loss. It’s the reverse for Kirby compared to Springs: he’s pitched very well at home but struggles a bit on the road. Oh yea, expect a high scoring game tonight.
Saturday will be another righty-versus-lefty matchup as the Athletics have young southpaw Gage Jump getting the ball for the 20th time this year. The rookie has seen the highs and lows that come with pitching at the big league level and he’s being given runway to work through those issues, which he’s having plenty of recently. The experience he’s getting right now, in these exact type of games, is going to be the building blocks of the future success he’s going to have helping get this squad back to October baseball.
Jump will be opposed by right-hander Bryan Woo. Now wrapping up his fourth season, Woo has been a lot like Kirby in that he’s been reliable to pitch every five days. But like Kirby he’s been more of a mid to backend type of pitcher this season. The 26-year-old has a solid 4.03 ERA but again, those home/road splits are crazy to look at. When pitching in Seattle he’s almost an ace with a 2.36 ERA, but on the road his 5.63 ERA makes him look more like a quadruple-A pitcher. He’s probably not looking forward to pitching in Sacramento.
Then we wrap the series and homestand on Sunday with a Jacob Lopez versus Bryce Miller matchup. Lopez has come all the way back from the lows he experience this summer to be one of the best pitchers over the past couple of months. The lefty has pitched himself back into the A’s plans for the offseason. Whether it’s been enough to guarantee him a rotation job or be more of a depth piece is something the front office will have to decide but for now he’s doing all he can to be a rotation front-runner next spring. He had his first hiccup since rejoining the rotation in his last start where he allowed four runs to the Blue Jays. Hopefully teams aren’t beginning to figure him out with winter around the corner.
Miller meanwhile missed the first month of the year due to injury and that might have thrown him off all year. He started strong enough but has faded back here down the stretch, part of why Seattle has too. He’s 0-4 over his past seven starts with a sky-high 7.22 ERA during that span. It’s going to be a long day at the ballpark all weekend and don’t expect that to change for Miller on Sunday.
And while most of the focus on tonight will be on the A’s versus Mariners, today also marks the 25th anniversary of the 2001 attacks in New York. While the people that perpetrated that disaster sought to tear us apart baseball was one of the things that helped Americans come together during a difficult time. Today we should all remember those feelings of unity to remember those lost on that day.
First pitch is at 6:40. Who’s ready for a win to start our weekend?
A’s Coverage:
- 2027 Infield Landscape Ever Changing
- A’s Shut Out Blue Jays 2-0 to Win Series
- Blue Jays Win 4-2 to Even Series
- A’s Walk Off Blue Jays 6-5
- Mariners Defeat A’s 2-0 in Road Trip Finale
- “Fast Movers” Might Be Key To Contention
- Bi-Polar Performance Arcs Make Evaluation Difficult
- A’s Escape Texas With A Win, Beat Rangers 9-2
- A’s Designate José Suarez For Assignment
- Q&A: Clarke determined to finish strong with A’s after long IL stint
- White exits with back tightness as A’s injury woes continue
- It’s Been a Bummer Summer in Sacramento
- The A’s valuation rises with sales of 2 MLB clubs as Las Vegas move looms
- Your 2026 Hacktastic A’s
- Athletics Considering James Click For GM Vacancy
- Daejon Love case brings back Eric Byrnes’ bizarre story of an A’s bat boy impersonation
- Get the best of Athletics Nation on the new SB Nation app
- How defensive whiz Clarke’s return will impact A’s
- How A’s catcher Bruce Maxwell brought taking a knee to MLB and what happened afterwards
- A’s Plan to Test Top Pitching Prospect Jamie Arnold at Next Level
- Separating The Wheat From The Chaff Not So Easy
- Amidst The Despair: The Position Player Talent Is There
- What Are The Next Steps For The A’s? ($)
- Where Each A’s Player’s Contract Stands Entering Offseason
- Why Athletics Will Have Scary Offense in 2027
- Underdog Athletics prospect Cole Conn playing like a big dog for Aviators
- Behind the Plate, the A’s Face an Offseason Reckoning
- Why The New GM Needs To “Clean House”
- A Seemingly Rock Bottomless Glass
- MLB Trade Grades: A’s Have Quiet Trade Deadline
- Fustercluck 2026: The Real Reasons For A Disappointing Season
MLB News and Interest:
- Salvador Perez Going “Year By Year” With His Career
- Pirates’ Braxton Ashcraft has arm discomfort, lands on IL
- Kaima Taira Expected To Be Posted For MLB Teams This Offseason
- Back with Yankees, Volpe playing second base for first time in bigs
- Braves’ Lane Thomas headed to IL after batting cage injury
- Which Hitters Will Receive The Qualifying Offer?
- Brewers’ Brandon Sproat demoted after struggles vs. Cubs
- Today in Baseball History
Best of X:
Another pitching prospect that could make it to the big leagues next year:
Not shocking with LV around the corner:
Some of the names:
Former 8th rounder promoted to Las Vegas:
Playing spoiler is fun too!
