Oakland looks for third-straight win against Rangers
The A’s are 2-0 on their current homestand.
The Oakland Athletics will try to make it three-straight wins Monday night when they begin a three-game series against the Texas Rangers. The A’s began their homestand with a two-game sweep of the San Francisco Giants in the Bay Bridge Series. The Rangers come in playing well having won six-straight and are trying to hold off the Astros in the AL West. Ken Waldichuk will get the start for Oakland Monday night while the Rangers will go with right-hander Dane Dunning.
It has been a disappointing season for Waldichuk who entered the season hoping to establish himself in Oakland’s rotation. Instead he has bounced back and forth between starting and the bullpen and has struggled with a 6.52 ERA and a 5.64 FIP in 88 1/3 innings. The A’s moved him back to more of a starter’s role after the All-Star break, but his struggles have continued allowing 10 hits and 11 earned runs over his last 16 1/3 innings. He does have a 3.51 FIP over that span, but has just not been able to find any sustained success. Waldichuk allowed just one hit and three walks, but was tagged for four runs in 3 2/3 innings in his last start against the Dodgers.
It appeared that Dunning was destined for more of a swing role out of the Rangers’ bullpen in 2023, but injuries in the rotation and given him another opportunity to start. He’s made the most of the opportunity and is coming off one of his best outings of the season where he allowed just one run and struck out 11 over 7 2/3 innings against the White Sox.
Oakland battled back from a 6-3 deficit to beat the Giants Sunday. Nick Allen had three hits, including the first two-homer game of his career. Zack Gelof and Seth Brown also finished with three hits each. The bullpen turned in a good showing by allowing just two runs over the final 5 2/3 innings after an early exit by Luis Medina.
Game Info
Game Date/Time: Monday, August 7, 6:40 p.m. PDT
Location: Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, California
TV: NBCSCA
Streaming: MLB.tv
Radio: A’s Cast, Bloomberg 960 AM / 103.7 HD2, KIQI 1010