Last night, the Athletics got off to a winning start in their three-game weekend series against the Los Angeles Angels, riding a seven-run fifth inning to a 9-3 victory. Tonight, the “Green and Gold” look to clinch the series, while extending their winning streak to three games with a second straight win over their division rivals.
Taking the ball for the road team this evening will be right-hander Jack Perkins. The 26-year-old enters his 22nd appearance and fifth start with a 2-3 record, a 6.26 ERA, a 1.37 WHIP and 57 strikeouts over 46 innings.
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After being tagged with the loss in his first start of the season earlier this month, Perkins has steadily settled in, improving with each outing. He has gone without a decision in each of his last three starts, a streak he hopes to end in his second consecutive start against these Angels.
Last Sunday, Perkins allowed four runs on four hits over five innings while recording a season-high eight strikeouts. He exited with the Athletics holding a three-run lead and in line for the win, but the A’s bullpen surrendered the lead as the Angels rallied for a comeback victory. Still searching for his first win since joining the starting rotation, Perkins will look to change that, though he will need his teammates to hold the lead this time around.
Speaking of the A’s beleaguered bullpen, the team made a trade today to address that weakness.
Juenger, the Blue Jays’ sixth round draft pick in 2021, brings an MLB-ready arm to the A’s relief corps. The team has not yet announced whether he will join the major-league club or report to Triple-A Las Vegas.
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In 21 appearances with Triple-A Buffalo, Juenger posted a 1-2 record with a 2.59 ERA. His strong minor league performance to start the season led to his first MLB promotion. The right-hander allowed three earned runs over two innings in his brief time with the big-league club before the Blue Jays designated him for assignment earlier this week.
The other player in this trade, Carapellotti signed with the A’s as an undrafted free agent following four years at Georgetown. He was off to a good start with Single-A Stockton, hitting eight home runs in 20 games.
Lastly, corner infielder Brett Harris’ time with this franchise could be coming to an end. The 28-year-old has been up and down between the A’s and the minors over the past three seasons, yet failed to make much of an impact and has now been overtaken by younger, higher-ceiling players.
Back to the game, here’s the A’s Saturday night lineup:
The A’s starting nine is nearly identical to last night’s lineup. The lone change comes in right field, where right-handed hitter Colby Thomas gets the start in place of Lawrence Butler, who started there in the series-opener. Both catchers also remain in the lineup for a third straight game, though their roles are reversed. Jonah Heim moves behind the plate, while Shea Langeliers shifts to designated hitter.
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The bottom three hitters, who sparked the Athletics seven-run fifth inning, will look to deliver again. Alika Williams, one of the team’s most unexpected contributors this season, gets another start at shortstop as Jacob Wilson continues to recover from a re-aggravated left shoulder injury.
That lineup will be facing Angels left-hander Reid Detmers, who has pitched well as a starter after spending all of last season in relief. The 26-year-old enters his 17th start with a 3-5 record, a 3.93 ERA, a 1.05 WHIP and 104 strikeouts across 94 innings.
This game features the same pitching matchup as last weekend’s series finale between these two teams, when the A’s tagged Detmers for five runs on six hits over six innings.
The Athletics potent offense will look to have a similar level of success against the southpaw tonight at Angel Stadium.
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And the Angels’ lineup, brought to you by old friend Kurt Suzuki:
The Angels are still without Mike Trout, yet their lineup still features several dangerous bats, including shortstop Zach Neto, right fielder Jo Adell and designated hitter Jorge Soler. Following a blowout loss yesterday, the “Halos” will look to bounce back and even the series. Can Perkins limit mistake pitches and work deep into the contest, or will the Athletics need to dig deeper into their bullpen ahead of tomorrow’s series and road trip finale?
Tune in to find out whether the squad can make it three in a row. Let’s go A’s!
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