The Oakland Athletics have a chance to pull off an incredible season series victory when they face off against the Baltimore Orioles for the sixth and final time on Sunday afternoon in Oakland, California.
The Athletics hit five home runs, including a unique McCann-vs.-McCann matchup, en route to a 19-8 thumping on Saturday that gave the team with the second-worst record in the American League three wins in five meetings against the team with the second-best record this season.
Oakland backup catcher Kyle McCann homered in the eighth inning off Baltimore backup catcher James McCann, giving the Athletics 12 home runs in five home games this week.
Oakland is 4-1 in those games, including a 3-2 loss to Baltimore in Friday’s series opener.
All-Star candidate Brent Rooker homered in three of the five games to improve to a team-leading 18 this season. Shea Langelier, Lawrence Butler and Max Schumann each had two, while McCann, Miguel Andujar and Tyler Nevin each had one.
Trying to keep Athletics hitters in the ballpark on Sunday will be right-hander Grayson Rodriguez (10-3, 3.45 ERA), who has allowed just 10 home runs in 15 starts this season.
The 24-year-old pitched 6 1/3 scoreless innings against Seattle on Tuesday to lead the Orioles to a 2-0 win over Seattle in a six-game Western series. He has won five of his past six starts, including trips to Toronto, Tampa Bay and Houston.
Rodriguez did not face the Athletics during their visit to Baltimore in April, but he did face them once in his second major league start in April 2023. He gave up five runs in 4 1/3 innings but no home runs and earned the win in a 12-8 Orioles victory.
The Orioles may have a lot on their minds Sunday, including getting revenge, staying undefeated in the season series and completing a winning trip. But there’s a growing possibility of distraction as Major League Baseball is scheduled to announce the full All-Star Game roster on Sunday afternoon.
Baltimore’s Gunnar Henderson and Adoree Rutschman have already been selected as AL starting pitchers by fan vote, and while the teams will be made through a combination of player votes and selections from the commissioner’s office, several Orioles including Ryan O’Hearn, Ryan Mountcastle, Anthony Santander, Jordan Westberg, Corbin Burns and Craig Kimbrel, as well as Rodriguez, are considered candidates to travel to Arlington, Texas, for the July 16 game.
Of that group, Mountcastle (his 12th home run on Saturday), Westberg (three hits in nine at-bats, two doubles) and Kimbrel (a save in Friday’s win) have been the most productive in the series.
“They all deserve it,” Henderson said. “I hope they all win it.”
The Orioles’ lineup will get one last chance to improve upon their performance when they face Athletics rookie right-hander Mitch Spence (5-4, 4.15 ERA), who earned his second major league win on April 26 with a 3-2 win at Baltimore, pitching three hitless innings. It was his only appearance against the Orioles.
Like Rodriguez, the 26-year-old Spence was impressive on Tuesday, holding the Los Angeles Angels to just one run over 5 1/3 innings in a 7-5 win.
–Field Level Media
