By Tim Byrnes
A great start to the series in Chavez Ravine had the Athletics ruining Mookie Betts Bobblehead Night with an 11-1 drubbing of the Dodgers.
Then the wheels fell off!
Shohei Ohtani showed why he is one of the most dominating players in baseball by going 4-for-9 in the remaining two games, with three round-trippers and seven Rbi’s.
The A’s lost the remaining two games by a combined 28-5 score, and the series 2-1.
Patterns are starting to show with the Athletics. In 11 of 14 series, the A’s have allowed at least eight runs in a game, with many double-digit losses. It’s showing that the A’s lack depth on the mound and have no true #1 starter.
Luis Severino is the biggest investment in Athletics history, given his three-year-$67 million-dollar contract. He has given up twelve earned runs in his last ten innings and is currently (1-4).
A’s fans are engaged again but have issues with Manager Mark Kotsay and his player usage decisions.
Athletics Batting:
The A’s hitters owned the opener, with eight of nine hitters scoring runs, seven with multiple hits, and five with multiple extra-base hits. Five home runs and eight extra-base hits made for an exciting opening game for A’s fans.
Shea Langeliers has raised his batting average nearly 40 points by hitting almost .500 versus the Dodgers and Yankees.
Shortstop Jacob Wilson had two home runs among his four hits and is still second in the American League in hits(58) and batting average(.347).
Manager Mark Kotsay has made questionable decisions in his usage of LF Miguel Andujar. After going 4-for-9 with a double and a home run in the first two games versus L.A., Kotsay sat him for Seth Brown. The Athletics longest-tenured player, Brown, went 0-for-4, and his batting average dropped to .200.
Andujar has hit safely in 21 of his last 27 games, is batting .316, and needs to be an every-game player like Wilson.
Wilson has secured his leadoff spot as Lawrence Butler has fallen off the map. Butler is batting .167 in May and has 3x as many strikeouts as hits in the month.
Athletics Pitching:
In the series opener, A’s starter Jeffrey Springs pitched a full seven innings, a rarity for an Athletics starter in 2025, and he got the A’s lone victory.
Relievers Grant Holman and Justin Sterner each pitched a scoreless inning, and the A’s won in textbook fashion.
The rest of the series was a pitching catastrophe.
Rookie Gunnar Hoglund pitched a decent game in his third career start by throwing into the sixth inning. He did give up three home runs and took the loss in the second game.
Starter Osvaldo Bido has been hit hard all year as his velocity has increased on his fastball, slider, and sinker. In the last couple of starts, his troubles have surfaced.
Pitches that were warning track outs early this season are now extra-base hits and home runs, and he didn’t get out of the 2nd inning in the series finale.
Bido has given up a staggering 13 earned runs in his last 12 innings, and his era has ballooned to nearly 6.00.
Manager Mark Kotsay has a habit of leaving his relievers in too long when they struggle. After 15 earned runs in 10 innings, four pitchers saw their era’s balloon to over 4.00.
In other words, Kotsay leaves them in so long that it will take the rest of the season to get their statistics to look respectable again.
This pattern has plagued Kotsay since he was promoted after previous skipper Bob Melvin was shown the door.
Upcoming Series:
There is lots of history going on this weekend!
The Battle of the Bay was a long-running rivalry, reminiscent of the “Subway Series” between the Yankees and Mets in New York and the “Freeway Series” between the Dodgers and Angels in Los Angeles.
The A’s and San Francisco Giants have had a long, sometimes heated rivalry, and the intensity ramped up when the then Oakland A’s swept the Giants 4-0 in the 1989 World Series.
Game 3 of the Series was interrupted by the deadly Loma Prieta earthquake. The ten-day delay allowed the Athletics to use their #1 starting pitcher, Dave Stewart, and the #2, Mike Moore, twice, making a Giants series comeback a pipe dream. Giants fans have few fond memories of that series, and the tension is still there three decades later.
The Athletics(22-22) travel to Oracle Park to take on the Giants(25-19), who have lost 4-of-5 and five straight one-run games.
Gametime:
May 16, 2025, 7:15pm
LHP JP Sears (4-2, 2.80) versus RHP Logan Webb (4-3, 2.60)
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I have a few takeaways here, after watching all three Dodgers-A’s games from the comfort of my own home:
Wilson, Andujar, and Langeliers all look like they’re for real. Early in his career, Wilson is already close to establishing himself as one of the best leadoff hitters in major league baseball.
I think Butler will be OK, but I’m just guessing there. I believe he could be good as a No. 2 or No. 3 hitter with his combination of speed and power. The A’s have time to find out, since it’s still fairly early in the season and they haven’t been a contender for a while.
Springs looked impressive in allowing only one run to the Dodger’s potent lineup. The A’s could have a real 1-2 punch in their starting rotation if he and Sears can hold up. Otherwise, they look like the Angels on the mound, and they’ll plummet like a rock in the standings unless they find a couple more decent starters.
The Dodgers appeared to be conducting batting practice against Bido. Watching that spectacle, and looking at his stats, I believe that the Athletics’ one shot at salvaging Bido is to use him as a setup man or closer. He could be more effective with his velocity as a reliever because hitters would get to see him only once in a game.
Athletics, don’t be like the Angels.