The Oakland Athletics season comes down to the final week of the season. Heading into the All-Star break the Athletics held the best record in baseball and looked ready to steamroll their way into the postseason. After sending seven players to the All-Star Game and acquiring Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel from the Chicago Cubs, the Athletics were anointed World Series favorites. The season has flown south ever since, with Oakland stumbling behind the Los Angeles Angels for the AL West crown and struggling to hold onto one of the Wild Card spots.
The final week of the season puts the A’s against two divisional rivals with a Wild Card spot on the line. Barring a major shift/collapse, three teams are aiming for the two Wild Card spots, the A’s, the Seattle Mariners and the team that doesn’t win the AL Central between the Detroit Tigers and Kansas City Royals. It is hard to say who has the advantage going into the last week of the season based on a number of variables. However, the A's and Royals have a 1 1/2 game lead heading into Monday.
Oakland will play three games at home against the Angels and then four games on the road in Arlington against the Texas Rangers. The Angels have nothing to play for having already captured the AL West and will be looking to stay healthy and set their rotation for the postseason. The Rangers have the worst record in baseball but just swept the A’s in Oakland last weekend. The Seattle Mariners play four games in Toronto against the Blue Jays and then close out the season at home in a three-game series against the Angels.
The AL Central teams seem to have an advantage though as both the Tigers and Royals have a lighter schedule the last week of the season. Look for both teams to make the playoffs with the A’s or Mariners. The Tigers play the Chicago White Sox for three games and then close out the season with a four-games series against the Minnesota Twins, with all seven games being in Detroit. Conversely, the Royals will play all seven games on the road with three games in Cleveland and four games in Chicago against divisional foes that have struggled for most of the season.
Shifting the focus back to the A’s, here are the expected pitching match-ups for the series against the Angels:
- Monday, 9/22, 7:05pm PT, CJ Wilson (13-9) vs. Jeff Samardzija (4-5)
- Tuesday, 9/23 7:05pm PT, Wade LeBlanc (0-1) vs. Sonny Gray (13-9)
- Wednesday, 9/24, 12:35pm PT, Hector Santiago (5-9) vs. Jon Lester (16-10)
Predictions: The A’s have their three aces going in this series to have them pitch again to close the season and to give Jon Lester the ball for the potential, one game playoff. Each game is a must win but look for the A’s to win two of three.
The Athletics looked like a team that was beaten down and about to give up on the season this past week against the Rangers. They were able to turn it around a bit against the Philadelphia Phillies but will need to exact some revenge to close out the season against the Rangers. The Rangers have the worst record in baseball but have won eight of fifteen against the A’s this season. Here are the expected pitching match-ups for the weekend series:
- Thursday, 9/25, 5:05pm PT, Jason Hammel (2-6) vs. Colby Lewis (10-13)
- Friday, 9/26, 5:05pm PT, Scott Kazmir (14-9) vs. Nick Tepesch (5-10)
- Saturday, 9/27, 5:05pm PT, Jeff Samardzija (4-5) vs. Derek Holland (1-0)
- Sunday, 9/28, 12:05pm PT, Sonny Gray (13-9) vs. Nick Martinez (4-11)
Predictions: Look for Oakland to win three of four and clinch the AL Wild Card spot the last day of the season.
Who’s Hot?
While the A’s have lost the game in his last two starts, it is no fault of his own as Jeff Samardzija has been lights out to close the season. In 15 innings of work, he hasn’t allowed a single earned run while striking out 16 batters. Conversely, Jon Lester has received a good amount of run support in his last three starts and has won all three with quality performances.
There isn’t a single batter in the A’s lineup right now that you could consider as “hot”. Someone is going to have to step up this week.
Who’s Not?
Scott Kazmir hasn’t earned a win since August 19 and has been pulled in the fifth inning or earlier in half of his starts since. Similarly, Sonny Gray hasn’t earned a win since August 22 with two losses and three no decisions since.
As referenced above, the entire A’s offensive lineup could be put in the “not” column. The everyday lineup is hitting around .200 for the past week or so and is collectively crawling to the finish line of the season.
A’s Roster Movement
No movement on the roster this week as the A’s are relatively healthy minus Josh Reddick’s time off this past week due to his minor ankle/neck issues.