After taking the series opener in Minnesota last night the A’s will try to make it two in a row over the Twins, looking to both inch closer to 60 wins while burying the Twins’ dwindling playoff chances.
Rookie JT Ginn will get the ball to start tonight’s contest. His last few times on the mound have not been smooth; he’s allowed 12 runs over his past three starts spanning just 11 2/3 frames. The 26-year-old doesn’t seem like he’s in any immediate danger of losing his spot in the starting rotation
with no other obvious options to step into his spot. With the club out of contention and an eye already on the future they can afford to let Ginn work through his struggles in the big leagues but ideally he’d start turning things around against a team that is in free fall. Overall on the year he’s posted a 5.04 ERA across 16 appearances (nine starts).
Here’s how Mark Kotsay ordered tonight’s lineup for the middle contest of the series:
Then A’s will be going with the exact same lineup tonight, and after things worked out well why mess with things, right?
That starting nine’s opponent tonight? Twins right-hander Bailey Ober. It’s been a tough season all around in Minnesota but especially so for the 30-year-old Ober. Over the past three seasons Ober had been a stable arm in the middle of the Twins’ rotation with a 3.66 ERA while averaging 22 starts a year. This year he’s already made 20 starts but has struggled to a bloated 5.15 ERA that contributed to the team’s disappointing season. He’s yet to face the A’s this year but he shut down the offense a pair of times last season.
Minny’s lineup for the second game of the series breaks down like this:
Two wins in a row? Fingers crossed! Let’s go A’s!
