ARLINGTON, Texas — Coming off their first series against a division opponent, and perhaps the biggest threat to their crown with the tension high against the Houston Astros, the Texas Rangers will see how they measure up by welcoming another American League West foe to town.
This time, it’s the hapless Oakland Athletics. The A’s, whose on-field product has long been overshadowed by the off-field drama surrounding their home, come to Arlington in the basement of the AL West.
Indeed, on paper Oakland tends to present a far less stressful challenge than Houston. In the middle of a stretch of 17 games in 17 days, and before they go face Houston again this weekend, the wayward A’s have to feel like an oasis during an early-season challenge. Texas would be wise to not let likely wins become permanent losses against an inferior opponent, however.
Oakland Athletics (3-7, 5th Place AL West) @ Texas Rangers (6-4, t-1st Place AL West)
Previously, for Oakland…
The A’s actually make their first visit to North Texas with a bit of momentum on their side, having taken two of three from the Detroit Tigers. Prior to that, though, they were swept by Boston and lost three of four to Cleveland. So far, they’ve been outscored 50-30. But still, momentum – and rest – are on their side. The series against Detroit was bookended by days off, but all the rest in the world can’t help if the A’s can’t make plays.
Part of the reason for the Athletics’ poor start has been their defense. Over their first five games, they have committed 13 errors, a Major League high. This included an abysmal effort in the series opener against Boston, where they committed five errors. Even in their two wins against Detroit, Oakland committed a couple more miscues.
Another issue that the Athletics bring to Texas is their starters’ inability to give the team length. The two days of rest figure to be important for the Oakland staff against the top tier offense of the Rangers. As they showed against the Astros, the Rangers have a tendency to attack early and often, driving out starters and getting to the bullpen early.
While each of the starters in the series against Detroit pitched into the 5th inning, that wasn’t the case over the first seven games for Oakland, as only two starters gave the team some length. The rotation has been augmented by the offseason additions of veterans Alex Wood and Ross Stripling, both of whom Texas will see in this series.
Oakland hasn’t been scoring much either. As mentioned, they’ve been outscored by 20 runs over the first week and a half of the season. The seven-run outburst in the finale against the Tigers on Sunday was their highest offensive output of the year so far. When you give up a lot of runs and can’t score a lot of runs, the combination leads to losses which was the expectations for the A’s this season.
What to watch for
Game 11, 7:05 PM CT - LHP Alex Wood (0-1, 9.72 ERA) vs. RHP Nathan Eovaldi (1-0, 1.38 ERA)
Game 12, 7:05 PM CT - RHP Ross Stripling (0-2, 3.75 ERA) vs. LHP Cody Bradford (2-0, 2.13 ERA)
- Game 13, 1:35 PM CT - LHP JP Sears (0-1, 8.68 ERA) vs. RHP Jon Gray (0-0, 6.14 ERA)
Veteran lefty Alex Wood draws the first game against the Rangers. Wood, who Oakland brought in on a one-year deal to provide some leadership and innings, has not had a great go in his two starts thus far. In two starts, Wood has only thrown 8 ⅓ innings and has given up nine runs. With that in mind, Wood does have a history of pitching well against Texas, sporting a 2-0 record in five games with a 2.67 ERA.
Ross Stripling was traded from San Francisco right across the Bay to also soak up innings. The 34-year old righty doesn’t have a win in two outings, but has been able to pitch in and out of trouble over his 12 innings of work, giving up just five runs despite a WHIP of 1.417 and a career high 11.3 hits per nine innings thus far.
JP Sears will close out things for Oakland. Sears has had a few good outings against Texas and a few rough outings against the reigning World Champs. His season hasn’t been anything like the A’s would have hoped for either, only going 9 ⅓ innings in his two starts, giving up nine runs.
Texas sends its ace to the hill, as Nathan Eovaldi brings his bulldog mentality to the mound in the opener. Eovaldi shut down the Tampa Bay Rays last time out, striking out eight over seven innings. So far, Eovaldi has been everything that he showed Texas to be last season.
Cody Bradford, who entered the season as the last guy for the rotation for Texas, faces off against Oakland in the second game. Bradford, who may be destined for the bullpen when late spring addition Michael Lorenzen makes his season debut, has had a sterling record of 2-0 with a 2.13 ERA in 12 ⅔ innings in his first two starts of the season.
Jon Gray will take the hill to finish the series, having made two starts and pitching only 3 ⅔ innings in each. In his last start against Houston, Gray gave up only two runs, but had to work hard through his outing, prompting a hook after 84 pitches.
Texas wasn’t offensively bereft over their series against the Astros, but their pitching didn’t give them a lot of help, especially as Andrew Heaney gave up six runs over 3 ⅔ innings which necessitated early bullpen work. A series against the Athletics might be just what Texas needs to help reset their staff and regain momentum.
Do you think the Rangers will take care of business against the lowly A’s? Share your predictions with Matt on Twitter @FisherWritesMLB.
