The Athletics had a much-needed day off yesterday to reset and, hopefully, figure out how to play better at home. The team opened its latest homestand by being swept in three games by the Seattle Mariners, who knocked the A’s out of first place in the American League West for the first time in several weeks.
Now 10-15 at Sutter Health Park, things will not get any easier for the A’s. Tonight, the team begins a three-game weekend series against the New York Yankees, who own one of the best records in baseball. The “Bronx Bombers” enter on a four-game winning streak after sweeping the Kansas City Royals in Kansas City. Led by Aaron Judge and Ben Rice, the Yankees will look to bounce back after the Athletics took two of three from them in the Bronx earlier this season.
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For the A’s, however, it is imperative that they bounce back and take this series to avoid dropping both series this week. Veteran right-hander Luis Severino will take the mound in today’s series-opener. Severino was originally supposed to start Tuesday. The A’s moved his next start back a few days, adjusting the rotation to allow the team top pitching prospect, left-hander Gage Jump, to make his first MLB start that day. Jump wound up allowing four runs on nine hits in five innings.
Facing his former team on seven days’ rest, Severino will likely pitch with extra motivation tonight. The 32-year-old enters his 12th start of the season with a 2–5 record, a 4.23 ERA, and 64 strikeouts over 61.2 innings pitched. He is coming off one of his best starts of the season, allowing two runs over seven innings against the Los Angeles Angels while recording a season-high 10 strikeouts. The Yankees’ offense is much more potent than the Angels and this game will be at hitter-friendly Sutter Health Park, a place where Severino and the entire A’s pitching staff has struggled to replicate their success on the road.
If the A’s want to snap their losing streak, they will need a strong performance from Severino and the bullpen to limit the Yankees’ opportunities and keep runs off the board. The Athletics’ offense must also improve after scoring just four runs in their previous three games.
Here’s how the Athletics’ lineup looks for the series opener:
A’s manager Mark Kotsay is rolling out a lineup that looks very similar to the ones used over the past few games. Designated hitter Brent Rooker is back in the lineup and hoping to snap out of his slow start to the season.
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The biggest change comes at the top of the order. Right-handed hitter Colby Thomas gets the start in right field and will bat leadoff in place of the usual starter, left-handed hitter Carlos Cortes. Additionally, Henry Bolte draws another start over fellow outfielder Lawrence Butler, whose playing time has diminished significantly amid his season-long offensive struggles.
Butler and Cortes are on the bench because left-handed pitcher Carlos Rodón will start for the Yankees. The 33-year-old veteran missed the first month of the season while completing his rehabilitation from offseason elbow surgery. Rodón enters his fourth start of 2026 with an 0-2 record, 4.15 ERA and 17 strikeouts over 13 innings pitched. He seems to be rounding into form, limiting the Toronto Blue Jays to one run over five innings in his most recent outing.
The southpaw aims to win his first game of the year against an A’s lineup that has been scuffling lately. For the A’s offense to succeed, they will need to be patient at the plate, work counts, and capitalize on any mistake pitches over the heart of the zone.
And the Yankees’ starting lineup this evening:
The Yankees, led by their dynamic trio of Judge, Rice and Cody Bellinger, have hit the most home runs in MLB and rank fourth in runs scored. Last year, A’s owner John Fisher said he was looking forward to watching Judge hit home runs at Sutter Health Park, and that possibility looms again this evening.
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The matchup between Luis Severino’s power arsenal and the Yankees’ slugging lineup will likely hinge on traffic ahead of the heart of the order. If Severino wants his third win, he’ll need to consistently retire the bottom of the Yankees lineup and avoid letting Judge and Rice come to the plate with runners in scoring position in a park that punishes mistakes.
With a win tonight and a Mariners loss, the Athletics can jump right back into first place. More importantly, they need this victory to close the week strong and secure their first win of the homestand. Let’s go A’s!
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