It’s hard to place all that much importance on an April series against a division rival, but the Mariners series win over the Rangers last weekend was pretty important. Not only did it serve as a reset after a tough stretch of games — not unlike the Astros series a few weekends ago — it also ensured Seattle has a much better chance to win the season series — and the all-important tiebreaker — later on this season. It’s probably too early to start worrying about things like that. First, the M’s need to take care of business against another upstart division rival.
The Athletics have gotten off to a bit of an up-and-down start to the season. A few weeks ago, they won consecutive series against the Astros, Yankees, and Mets but just dropped a three-game set against the White Sox last weekend. The young offense that looked so impressive last year has gotten off to a bit of a slow start this season. They’re just 19th in baseball with 4.14 runs scored per game.
There are a ton of high-whiff, high-power guys populating the A’s lineup and then there’s Jacob Wilson and Jeff McNeil. Those two high-contact hitters aren’t enough to offset the high strikeout rates from guys like Nick Kurtz, Lawrence Butler, or Shea Langeliers; the team’s strikeout rate is fifth highest in baseball right now. After taking a pretty big step forward last year, Langeliers has been even better this season. He’s already blasted six home runs and is currently sporting a 163 wRC+. Kurtz, in particular, has gotten off to a slow start at the plate. The reigning Rookie of the Year has hit only two home runs this year, though he’s walking in more than a quarter of his plate appearances; opposing pitchers are treating him a lot more carefully after he torched the league last summer. He isn’t the only guy off to a slow start; Tyler Soderstrom (87 wRC+ so far), Wilson (68), and Butler (58) have all scuffled in April.
J.T. Ginn has spent the last few seasons bouncing between the rotation and the bullpen for the A’s. He’s dealt with a number of injuries over the years, stunting his development, but the stuff models really love his sinker-slider combo. He gets a ton of groundballs with those two pitches and can turn to a pretty good changeup to get a whiff if he needs it. Considering the problems the A’s have had developing mid-rotation arms, and Ginn’s penchant for groundball contact, it’s surprising they haven’t given him a longer look in the rotation.
Jacob Lopez was a surprise last year. Never regarded as a top prospect, and a throw-in in the Jeffrey Springs trade a few years ago, he had a stretch of 13 starts last summer where he ran a 2.64 ERA and a 3.08 FIP. He ran into the Mariners on August 24, allowed nine runs, and was placed on the IL with an elbow strain the next day. His raw stuff just isn’t that impressive; his fastball barely averages 90 mph and a slow looping slider is hardly optimized for whiffs. Still, some deception in his throwing motion allows his stuff to play up a bit.
The A’s signed Aaron Civale in February to give them another veteran innings eater while their top pitching prospects continue to develop in the minors. Pitching for his sixth team in four years, he’s a prototypical back-end starter with a deep repertoire. He doesn’t stand out in any one area, but average skills across the board help him work through a lineup a couple of times without courting disaster. His best pitch is a hammer curveball and he’ll mix in five other pitches to keep batters off balance.
The AL West standings are currently a big ol’ mess. The Rangers and A’s are tied in first with matching .500 records with the Angels and Mariners following close behind. And then there’s the Astros who are limping along at the bottom with the second worst record in the AL. Texas returns home to begin a long homestand beginning with a series against the Pirates, Los Angeles hosts the struggling Blue Jays, and Houston will try and turn things around in Cleveland this week.
