2022 Series Poll: Houston Astros @ Oakland Athletics

Quick Notes

This weekend will see the Astros and A’s meeting for just the second time this season as the two teams continue to trend in wildly different directions. While the Astros appear to be headed directly for playoff baseball, the A’s have pretty much already punched their tickets for the couch.

This turn of events must rankle the Oakland faithful to no end after watching their team come tantalizingly close to October several times over the past few years, only for ownership to tear it all down this past winter. Since then, things have gone pretty much how you would imagine, with Oakland’s record saying it all.

In an odd quirk of the schedule, Houston hasn’t really been part of the festivities when it comes to keeping the A’s under wraps in 2022. Today’s game will mark just the fourth time Houston and Oakland have met this year, setting the teams up for another 15 games, or about a fifth of the remaining schedule. That places a lot of the Astros’ future in the hands of the A’s, which should be a comforting thought when you look at Oakland’s record.

Writing these previews, I’ve grown accustomed to going to the stats page of a terrible team with the mindset that there has to be at least one bright spot somewhere. Alas, that is not the case when one looks at Oakland’s season writ large. Judging by OPS, their best offensive player is our old friend Ramon Laureano, who has a rather putrid .246/.341/.406 slash line on the season.

It’s a little different in the last 7 games though, with Laureano swinging a hot bat and a 1.019 OPS during that time. He’s joined by Sean Murphy (.333/.333/.556 in last 7) and Elvis Andrus (.250/.333/.563 in last 7) as the hot players at the plate, but it drops off very quickly and steeply after that.

Meanwhile, the As’ bullpen has been in flux in recent weeks after closer Dany Jimenez was placed on the IL with a should issue following a rather impressive start to his season. Lou Trivino has seemingly emerged to reclaim the closer role, converting all 4 of the save opportunities since Jimenez’s injury.

Trivino’s 6.94 ERA probably has Astros fans licking their chops, but he’s only surrendered one run in his past 7 outings and seems to have calmed down since earning that mark. Zach Jackson and A.J. Puk are the most trusted arms after Trivino, so expect to see them in high leverage, non-closing roles.

Last 10 Games: 3-7 Record, 1 Series Win, 1 Series Loss, 1 Series Swept, -4 Run Differential (31 scored, 35 allowed)

W/L Splits: 10-29 at home, 18-27 on the road, 14-41 against teams over .500

Injured List: Athletics: Frankie Montas: day-to-day (shoulder), Jed Lowrie: 10-Day IL (shoulder), Jonah Bride: 10-Day IL (shoulder), Dany Jimenez: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Daulton Jefferies: 60-Day IL (arm), Deolis Guerra: 60-Day IL (elbow), Brent Honeywell Jr.: 60-Day IL (elbow)

Starters

Game 1: Jose Urquidy (RHP, 7-3, 4.15 ERA, 63 K’s) vs TBD

Game 2: Framber Valdez (LHP, 8-3, 2.67 ERA, 93 K’s) vs TBD

Game 3: Jake Odorizzi (RHP, 3-2, 4.04 ERA, 24 K’s) vs TBD

It appears as though the recent injury to Frankie Montas is wreaking havoc on the A’s starting order for this series. Cole Irvin and Paul Blackburn will almost definitely get the ball in this series, so be on the lookout for them.

Adrian Martinez is a likely candidate to cover for Montas on Saturday, and he hasn’t looked great since his recent addition to the rotation. The A’s don’t have a whole lot of depth to fall back on here though, so that shouldn’t really be a factor in the decision to start him.

For Your Viewing and Listening Pleasure

Game 1: Friday, July 8th @ 8:40 pm CDT
Listen: Astros - KBME 790 AM/94.5 FM HD-2, KTRH 740 AM/99.1 FM HD-2, TUDN 93.3/KLAT 1010 / Athletics - A’s Cast, Bloomberg 960 AM, KIQI 1010
Watch: Astros - ATT SportsNet-SW / Athletics - NBCSCA

Game 2: Saturday, July 9th @ 3:07 pm CDT
Listen: Astros - KBME 790 AM/94.5 FM HD-2, KTRH 740 AM/99.1 FM HD-2, TUDN 93.3/KLAT 1010 / Athletics - A’s Cast, Bloomberg 960 AM
Watch: Astros - ATT SportsNet-SW / Athletics - NBCSCA

Game 3: Sunday, July 10th @ 3:07 pm CDT
Listen: Astros - KBME 790 AM/94.5 FM HD-2, KTRH 740 AM/99.1 FM HD-2, TUDN 93.3/KLAT 1010 / Athletics - A’s Cast, Bloomberg 960 AM, KIQI 1010
Watch: Astros - ATT SportsNet-SW / Athletics - NBCSCA