On The Horizon: Cubs vs. Athletics series preview

Last year, I chose to call the team visiting the Cubs this week the “Sacramento Athletics.” That usage didn’t really catch on, and since MLB and most media (including baseball-reference.com) are just calling them “Athletics,” that’s what I will do — until they complete their move to Las Vegas. And t

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What is the story about?

Last year, I chose to call the team visiting the Cubs this week the “Sacramento Athletics.” That usage didn’t really catch on, and since MLB and most media (including baseball-reference.com) are just calling them “Athletics,” that’s what I will do — until they complete their move to Las Vegas.

And that’s true even while I show you a photo (above) of the A’s wearing their alternate jerseys that say “Sacramento” on them.

For more on the A’s, here’s Connor Ashford, manager of our SB Nation A’s site Athletics

Nation.

The Athletics enter this series in their biggest slump of the season. They’ve lost seven of their past nine games, including a home sweep at the hand of the division-rival Mariners that dropped us to second place in the AL West for the first time in a while. Things didn’t improve this weekend as they dropped two of three to the Yankees and now sit three games below .500 as the calendar turns to June. The A’s season was derailed around this time last year as well so that’s been a cause for concern for the fanbase these past few weeks.

A lot of the team’s struggles can be tied to the pitching, which has performed about as many expected. Veteran Luis Severino has been hot and cold but just found himself placed on the IL this weekend. Lefty Jeffrey Springs was the Athletics’ best pitcher the first few times through the rotation but has come back down to earth in recent outings. Same with offseason addition Aaron Civale, who has gotten hit hard his last two times out on the bump. Things have been much worse for Jacob Lopez in his second season with the squad, and his struggles have finally caught up with him as the team announced he was being sent to Triple-A after getting crushed by the Yankees on Sunday.

It hasn’t been all bad on the pitching front, though. Righty J.T. Ginn has seemingly begun his breakout season as he has a 2.87 ERA on the year. He’s been even better since joining the starting rotation, posting a 2.56 ERA in 10 starts. And the A’s have finally promoted one of their best pitching prospects in Gage Jump, who will get the ball for his second career start tomorrow evening in the first game of the series. The team has yet to announce Thursday’s starter but all signs indicate it could be another one of our young pitching prospects in right-hander Kade Morris, who will be making his big league debut when he gets into a game.

The relief unit has been a bit up and down as well. The team hasn’t used one specific closer all season long, with manager Mark Kotsay instead going with the best option at the moment. Four different relievers have three or more saves (Hogan Harris, former CubMark Leiter Jr., Joel Kuhnel, and Jack Perkins). It hasn’t been backbreaking but the relief unit has cost this team multiple games. If the A’s are going to contend for the long haul this summer, the bullpen is one area the A’s could use some improvement in.

On the hitting side of things, the A’s big and expensive bats have all had disappointing years to date. The team shelled out huge contracts to guys like Brent Rooker, Tyler Soderstrom, and Lawrence Butler but all three have been in season-long slumps. First baseman Nick Kurtz, last year’s AL ROTY, has been an on-base machine but the power has dried up in his second season in The Show while the second-place finisher shortstop Jacob Wilson is out with a shoulder injury.

It hasn’t been all doom and gloom though. Catcher Shea Langeliers has been an absolute monster with the bat as he’s hitting .293/.365/.544 with 14 home runs while consistently batting leadoff or #2 in the batting order. A’s fans were a bit skeptical about putting him in those two top spots since he’s not exactly the fastest base runner but the results are hard to argue with. They’ve also gotten solid production out of Zack Gelof, once considered a building block but a tough couple years has changed things for him. Since third baseman Max Muncy went down with an injury a few weeks ago Gelof has more or less become the everyday option at the hot corner and held his own with the bat. The A’s have also seemingly struck gold with corner outfielder Carlos Cortes, who leads the team with a .328 batting average while batting all over the lineup. Another young outfielder in Henry Bolte only just got promoted to the big league team as well. The team’s #5 prospect has held his own through his first 17 games and is already tied for third on the team with four stolen bases. Bolte provides a different look for the offense as they’ve relied more on the long ball in recent years.

The Cubbies are catching the A’s at the right time as they deal with injuries, inconsistent performances from their offense, and a fluctuating rotation that has more questions than answers right now. But they remain in the thick of the playoff hunt, which is where A’s fans were hoping we’d find ourselves in as June arrives. Could be worse.

Fun facts

“Sacramento” might not be on the Athletics’ uniform, but this is the first time in their history that the Cubs have hosted a team based in the California city.

On March 31 of last year, the Cubs demolished the A’s, 18-3, in the first game played in Sacramento, then completed a sweep by winning 7-4 and 10-2.

They also had swept three games in their previous two series vs. the A’s on the road, at Oakland in 2016 and 2023.

The Cubs lost two of three at Wrigley Field in 2024. They had won two of three in the three previous meetings on the North Side, in 2004, 2010 and 2019, so the Cubs are 7-5 at home vs. the A’s.

They are 17-7 overall. The 24 games are the fewest the Cubs have played against any active MLB team. They have played 25 vs. the Orioles and 27 vs. the Blue Jays and Red Sox.

(Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)