ATLANTA BRAVES NOTES:
Series Loss
Atlanta fell to Oakland, 2-1, last night, and has dropped the first two games of this set to guarantee a loss in the series. The Braves entered play this week 16-8 (.667) against teams with a record below .500, and had not lost a series to such a team this season. Atlanta had batted .275 (223-for-810) and averaged 5.08 runs per game against teams under .500 entering this series, but has hit just .161 (10-for-62) and scored three total runs in these two games versus the A’s.
TODAY’S GAME: The Braves and Athletics today conclude a three-game series in what is the only scheduled meeting between the clubs this season… Atlanta and Oakland played just last season, with the Braves winning all four contests.
- Oakland has won each of the first two games of this series and will play for the sweep this afternoon… Atlanta had dropped the season set to Oakland just once in the six seasons in which the two teams have met, going 1-2 over three games in 2005.
- The A’s had won consecutive games just once this season prior to this week, beating the Royals on back-to-back nights, May 5 and May 6.
- The Braves and A’s are playing in back-to-back seasons for the first time in history, and have played just 21 total games since the advent of interleague play in 1997…Atlanta is 15-6 (.714) all-time against Oakland, its best record against any A.L. team.
- The Braves have played just 10 games all-time here in Oakland, and entered this series with a seven-game winning streak here…The Braves had not lost in this stadium since 2003 before dropping their first two games this week.
- LH Jared Shuster is set to make just the sixth start of his major league career, and his first against Oakland…The 6-foot-3, 210-pound left-hander is 1-2 with a 5.33 ERA (15 ER/25.1 IP) over his first five turns, but 11 of the 15 runs he has allowed came in his first three appearances…In his last two starts, he is 1-0 with a 3.09 ERA (4 ER/11.2 IP).
- RH James Kaprielian has never faced Atlanta, nor has he pitched against a member of the Braves current roster…The 6-foot-3, 210-pound native of Laguna Hills, CA, is winless in nine games and six starts this season, going 0-5 with an 8.45 ERA (31 ER/33.0 IP) and 66 baserunners allowed.
LOSS: Atlanta jumped out to a 1-0 lead for the second consecutive game last night, but Oakland rallied to walk off with the win, 2-1…The A’s five walk-off victories are tied with the Yankees for the most in baseball this season.
- The walk-off defeat was Atlanta’s second this season, joining a 6-5 loss at Toronto on May 14.
- With the loss, the Braves no longer have the best road record in the majors…Baltimore has gone 18-9 (.667) away from home, one more win than Atlanta’s 17-9 (.654) record…The Braves are just 2-6 over their last eight road games.
- Atlanta opened the scoring with a run in the third inning, the 41st time this season the Braves have scored the game’s first run…That total is most in the majors…However, Atlanta is 30-11 (.732) when scoring first, just the 10th-best record in baseball.
- Bryce Elder went 7.1 innings in the start for Atlanta, the Braves first loss this season in which its starter went at least 7.0 innings.
MAY: The Braves play their final game of the month of May this afternoon, and enter play 14-14 (.500) over 28 games…Atlanta has not played to a losing record in a calendar month since going 13-15 (.464) in May of 2022.
- Atlanta was 18-9 (.667) in March and April, the fourth-best record in baseball…The Braves’ 14-14 (.500) record thus far in May is 16th in the majors.
- The Braves lead the National League with 50 home runs this month, while their .794 OPS trails just the Dodgers (.820) for tops in the N.L.
KEVIN PILLAR: Collected two of Atlanta’s four hits last night, going 2-for-3 with a double and his sixth home run of the season…Through 32 games and just 84 at-bats, Pillar is hitting .262/.292/.524 with an .816 OPS.
- His six home runs are second most in baseball among hitters with as few at-bats on the season, trailing just the Cubs’ Christopher Morel…Morel has nine homers in 70 at-bats for Chicago.
- Pillar is homering once every 14 at-bats this season, easily the highest rate of his career…He hit a career-most 21 homers in 2019, but homered just once every 29.10 at-bats that season.
- Just two Braves have homered more frequently than Pillar this season…Matt Olson has gone 12.12 at-bats per homer, while Marcell Ozuna is homering once every 13.27 at-bats.
OFFENSE: Atlanta has combined for just 10 hits and three runs through the first two games of this series, batting .161 (10-for-62) as a team versus the A’s… Oakland’s 6.68 ERA (371 ER/500.0 IP) is highest in the majors by nearly 1.50 runs.
- In the game prior to the start of this series, Atlanta had 11 runs and a season-most 20 hits versus Philadelphia.
- The Braves have been held to two-or-fewer runs in back-to-back games for just the third time this season, and have gone three straight games just once this year…Atlanta scored four total runs over three games from May 10-13 against Boston and Toronto.
- Atlanta has scored no more than two runs in 13 games this season, tied for fewest in the National League with the Dodgers…The Braves are just 1-12 (.077) this season when scoring two-or-fewer runs.
INTERLEAGUE: Atlanta fell to 10-12 (.455) against the American League with last night’s loss, including just 4-8 (.333) in its last 12 such games.
- Both teams to sweep Atlanta this season play in the American League…Houston swept all three games at Truist Park, April 21-23, while Toronto won all three from May 12-14…The Braves need a win today to avoid a sweep to Oakland.
- The Braves went 13-7 (.650) against the A.L. last season, tied for the third-best interleague record in the majors. Only the Brewers and Dodgers, both at 15-5 (.750), were better.
Tonight’s Starting Pitcher – #45 Jared Shuster LHP
2023 Record: 1-2, 5.33 ERA • 2023 MiLB Record: 2-0, 3.28 ERA
vs. RHB: .215 (14-65), 1 HR • vs. LHB: .192 (5-26), 1 HR
Home: 1-0, 4.60 ERA (7/9.2) • Away: 0-2, 6.52 ERA (7/9.2)
Tonight’s Game
- Set to make his sixth career start.
- Went 5.2 innings pitched while allowing three hits, three runs, and three walks with five strikeouts in his last start against Philadelphia.
- Pitching to a 3.78 ERA through three starts since being recalled on May 16.
- Owned a 8.31 ERA in his first two outings before being optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett on April 17.
- Has a 0.78 WHIP in his last three starts and a 2.42 WHIP in his first two.
- Is 2-0 with a 3.28 ERA and 23 strikeouts in five starts with the Stripers.
- Averaging 8.39 strikeouts per nine innings with Gwinnett while having a 6.86 rate with Atlanta.
2023 Recap
- On May 21 Shuster became just the second pitcher in Braves franchise history (dating to 1901) to hold an opponent to one hit or less while pitching at least 6.0 innings and recording seven or more strikeouts in one of his first five career starts… Ian Anderson became the first pitcher in the organization to do so on September 9, 2020.
- Held Seattle to one hit, a solo home run, with seven strikeouts over 6.0 innings of one-run ball.
- Recalled to Atlanta on May 16.
- Was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett after last start against San Diego on April 7.
- Made his major league debut against Washington on April 2.
- Allowed six hits, four runs and five walks through 4.2 innings pitched.
- Was the third player from the Braves’ 2020 First-Year Player Draft to debut with the club.
- Joined Spencer Strider and Bryce Elder as the other hurlers from the ‘20 draft class to play for Atlanta.
- Became the eighth Braves pitcher to debut with a start against the Nationals/Expos.
- Pitched to a 1.74 ERA in six appearances, four starts, with 19 strikeouts through 20.2 innings pitched in Spring Training.
- Began the Spring without allowing a run in his first four outings (12.2 IP).
- Made his firs Opening Day Roster
OAKLAND ATHLETICS NOTES:
ABOUT THE A’S: Have won back-to-back games for the second time this year (May 5-6 at Kansas City)…the winning streak snaps an 11-game losing streak, which tied for fourth longest in Oakland history…have snapped a six-series losing streak by winning the first two games of this series…this is just the A’s second series win (May 5-7 at Kansas City) and Oakland is now 2-16-0 in series play…will be going for their first sweep of the season today…have been swept eight times…have lost 19 of the last 23 games and are 12-45 (.211) overall, which is the third worst record after 57 games by an AL, NL or FL team since 1900…the worst is 9-45 (.167) by the 1904 Senators (had three games called with the score tied) and the 1932 Red Sox (11-46, .193) are second worst.
WINNING LATE: The A’s have scored the winning run in their final at bat in eight of their 12 wins…had their fifth walk-off win of the season last night, which is tied with the Yankees for the most in the majors…have six wins when tied after seven innings, three when trailing after seven innings and three when leading after seven innings…are tied for the second most wins in the majors when tied after seven innings and are tied for seventh in wins when trailing after seven innings…however, no other team has fewer than 13 wins when leading after seven innings…are 3-4 (.429) in extra inning games…are tied for third in the majors in extra inning losses and tied for sixth in wins and games (7).
RUN DIFFERENTIAL: The A’s won 2-1 last night to improve to 8-10 (.444) in one-run games…are tied for sixth in the majors in one-run losses and tied for seventh in games (18)…are 4-35 (.103) in games decided by two or more runs… have a run differential of -193, which is the lowest in the majors…had a run differential of -202 all last year, which was second lowest in Oakland history (-287 in 1979).
HOME AND AWAY: The A’s have won the first two games of this series for their first home winning streak of the season…it is also their first series win at home after losing each of the first nine…that fell one short of the Oakland record for consecutive home series lost (10, April 22-June 23, 2022)…are 2-3 on this six-game homestand against Houston (0-3) and Atlanta (2-0)…posted a losing record on each of the first four homestands and are 7-23 (.233) at home, which is the lowest home winning percentage in the majors…leave following the game today for a nine-game road trip to Miami (three games), Pittsburgh (three games) and Milwaukee (three games)…it is the first of two three-city road trips this year…went 0-7 on the last road trip to Houston (0- 3) and Seattle (0-4) and are 5-22 (.185) on the road, which is the worst road record in the majors.
A’s IN MAY: The A’s are 6-22 (.214) in May, which is the lowest winning percentage in the majors (Pirates, 7-18/.280)…would finish with the second lowest May winning percentage in Athletics history with a loss today (4-17/.190 in 1919) or the third lowest with a win (6-21/.222 in 1946)…would finish with the fourth lowest winning percentage in any month in Oakland history (min. 10 games) with a loss today or tied for fourth with a win…the 22 losses match the 1954 Philadelphia A’s for the most in May in Athletics history…they are tied for third most in any month in Oakland history (24 in June, 1979; 23 in April, 2023)…went 5-23 (.179) in April, which was also the worst record in the majors…set a Major League record for most losses in April…this is the 16th 20- loss month in Oakland history, the fourth in the last two years…it is the second time since 1954 the A’s had back-to-back 20-loss months…the other time was in May and June last year when they had 21 each month…have compiled a 5.60 ERA (153 er in 246.0 ip) in May, which is the highest in the majors, after posting a 7.97 ERA in April…the only time in Oakland history the A’s had a May ERA above 5.70 was in 1997 (6.62)…have surrendered 48 home runs, which is second most in May in Athletics history (57 in 1964) and tied for second most in any month in Oakland history (50 in April, 2023; 48 in Sept. 2015)…have scored 85 runs, which is third fewest in the majors…the only time in Oakland history the A’s scored fewer than 86 runs in May was in 1978 (79)…have 24 stolen bases, which is tied for fifth most in the majors and is the most by an A’s team in May since 1995 when they also had 24…are batting .211 (194-for-918), which is the lowest mark in the majors…the lowest May in Oakland history is .210 in 2012.
OFFENSE: The A’s are batting .185 (74-for-400) with 28 runs scored over the last 13 games (2.15 runs per game)…are now hitting .220 for the season, which is the lowest batting average in the majors…have the second lowest OPS (.657), third lowest slugging percentage (.356) and fourth lowest on-base percentage (.301)…rank second in fewest runs (198) and fewest doubles (73), third in most strikeouts (532) and fourth in fewest extra base hits (136)…have the most sacrifice hits (12) and second most hit by pitches (34)…have been shut out seven times, which is tied for second most in the majors (Royals, 8)…A’s pinch hitters lead the majors in hits (13) and walks (9) and rank fourth in plate appearances (58).
PITCHING: The A’s have a 6.68 ERA, which is the highest in the majors…according to the Elias Sports Bureau, the highest ERA by an AL or NL team since the earned run became an official stat is 6.70 by the 1930 Philadelphia Phillies… also have the highest opponents OPS (.864), batting average (.278), on-base percentage (.370) and slugging percentage (.494) in the majors this year…lead the majors in most walks (262), home runs (98) and hit batters (39), have the second most wild pitches (29) and the sixth fewest strikeouts (431)…have surrendered six grand slams, which are the most in the majors and tied for fifth most in a season in Athletics history (8 in 1993 and 1999, 7 in 1954 and 1997).
STARTING PITCHING: A’s starting pitchers are 0-13 with a 5.65 ERA (67 er in 106.2 ip) in the 23 games since recording their only two wins of the season on May 5 and 6 at Kansas City…went 0-16 over the first 32 games and are 2-29 with a 6.99 ERA for the season…the ERA is the highest in the majors and no other team has fewer than eight wins from its starters…are tied for the fourth fewest innings pitched (269.0).
FOR OPENERS: The A’s have used an “opener” three times this year, all in the last seven games…A’s openers are 0-1 with a 9.00 ERA (3.0 ip, 6 h, 3 r, 3 er, 3 so) and the “main” pitchers in those games are 0-2 with a 6.92 ERA (13.0 ip, 16 h, 10 r, 10 er, 7 bb, 17 so)…have lost all three games…used an opener nine times in 2018 (all in September) and three times in 2019 (none after June 5).
THE BULLPEN: The A’s bullpen is 0-for-1 in save opportunities over the last 23 games…the streak of 23 consecutive games without a save is second longest by an A’s team over the last 19 years (25, April 19-May 17, 2019)…the A’s last save was on May 6 at Kansas City…is 4-for-14 (28.6%) in save opportunities for the season…has the lowest save percentage and fewest saves in the majors and the 10 blown saves are tied for 10th most…has the highest ERA in the majors (6.31) and the second most innings pitched (231.0)…has allowed 43- of-103 (41.7%) inherited runners to score, which is the fourth highest percentage…has the fourth most inherited runners.
ON THE BASES: The A’s are 53-for-66 (80.3%) in stolen base attempts…rank third in the majors in stolen bases and attempts…opponents are 42-for-60 (70.0%), which is the fifth lowest success rate in the majors…the 18 caught stealings are tied with the Rockies for the most…A’s pitchers are tied for second in the majors in pickoffs (6).
A’S VS. BRAVES
- The A’s have won the first two games of this series for their second ever series win against the Braves…won two of three at Atlanta in 2005
and have never swept a series from the Braves. - The win on Monday was the A’s first against Atlanta since May 17, 2008…that snapped an 11- game losing streak against the Braves, which
is their longest losing streak against a National League team and tied for sixth longest against any team. - Are 6-15 (.286) all-time against the Braves, which is the A’s second worst record against any team (5-13, .278 vs. the Cubs).
Year Home Road Totals
2023 2-0 0-0 2-0
2022 0-2 0-2 0-4
Oakland History: 6-15
at the Coliseum: 3-7
at Truist Park: 0-2
TODAY’S TIDBITS
The A’s are 11-23 (.324) in night games, 1-22 (.043) in day games…Ryan Noda leads Major League rookies in on-base percentage (.391) and walks (33), ranks fifth in OPS (.845), tied for sixth in doubles (11) and runs (27), seventh in slugging (.454), tied for seventh in home runs (6) and extra base hits (18) and tied for 10th in RBI (19)…Esteury Ruiz leads ML rookies in hits (60), stolen bases (27) and hit by pitches (12), is tied for third in doubles (13), ranks fifth in batting (.274), sixth in on-base percentage (.340), tied for sixth in RBI (24), tied for ninth in extra base hits (15) and 10th in runs (24).
TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER: James Kaprielian (0-5, 8.45 ERA)
FOR STARTERS: Was recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas May 20 for his third stint with the A’s this year…is 0-3 with a 4.24 ERA (17.0 ip, 17 h, 9 r, 8 er, 7 bb, 16 so) in three starts over his last two stints after going 0-2 with a 12.94 ERA in six games, including three starts, over his first stint…was on the A’s Opening Day roster and went 0-2 with a 12.15 ERA in three starts before moving to the bullpen…posted a 16.88 ERA in three relief appearances before he was optioned to Las Vegas on April 25…returned on May 13, started at lost to Texas that day and was optioned back to Triple-A the next day…did not pitch with the Aviators before he was recalled by Oakland on May 20.
0-5: Has started the season 0-5 for the second consecutive season…prior to that, the last A’s pitcher to start the season 0-5 was Kendall Graveman who lost each of his first five decisions in 2018…the last A’s pitcher to start the season 0-6 is Mike Mohler, who lost each of his first eight decisions in 1997… Kaprielian went 0-5 with a 5.98 ERA and .853 opponents OPS over his first 10 starts last year from May 1-June 21…then went 5-4 with a 3.30 ERA and .669 OPS over his final 16 starts.
SEVEN INNINGS OR FEWER: Has tossed 7.0 innings or fewer in each of his six starts this year and has now pitched seven innings or fewer in all 53 of his career starts…that is the longest streak of consecutive starts of seven innings or fewer in Athletics history (previous: 47, Montas, Sept. 25, 2019-April 18, 2022).
OPPONENTS BATTING: Has allowed five of his six home runs to left-handed hitters and has a 1.123 OPS against left-handed hitters compared to .786 against right-handers…opponents are 15-for-45 (.333) with runners in scoring position, including 4-for-5 (.800) with two walks, a double and two grand slams with the bases loaded…as a starter, he has a .356 (16-for-45) opponents batting average the first time through the order, .289 (13-for-45) the second time and .207 (6-for-29) after that…opponents are 8-for-13 (.615) with a double and three home runs when putting the first pitch in play.
THIS AND THAT: The A’s are 0-6 in his starting assignments and have been shut out three times in his six starts…left with an 8-5 lead in his first start but the bullpen allowed seven runs for the blown save…left with the lead in five of his starts last year only to have the bullpen blow the save…now has 21 career no decisions as a starter and has left with the lead and was the pitcher of record in 10 of those no decisions.
2023 DAY-BY-DAY: Had a no decision in his first start on April 3 against Cleveland, a 12-11 A’s loss in 10 innings…left with an 8-5 lead but the bullpen blew the save…allowed a season-high seven runs in an 11-0 loss at Tampa Bay on April 9…surrendered a career-high tying three home runs and logged a career-high 106 pitches…walked a career-high seven batters in a 17-6 loss to New York (NL) on April 14…the walks were the most by an A’s pitcher since Sonny Gray also walked seven on May 3, 2015…tossed 3.2 innings, which is a season-low as a starter…was 0-2 with a 12.15 ERA in three starts when he was moved to the bullpen following the start against the Mets…allowed at least five runs in each of those starts to join Todd Van Poppel (1994) as the only pitchers on an Opening Day roster in Oakland history to allow five or more runs in each of their first three starts…tossed a scoreless inning of relief on April 18 against Chicago (AL), but then allowed three runs in 1.0 inning on April 22 at Texas and two in 0.2 innings on April 24 at Los Angeles (AL) and was optioned to Las Vegas on April 25…was recalled on May 13 and struck out a season-high seven in a career-high tying 7.0 innings that day against Texas…allowed three runs and took the loss in a 5-0 decision and was optioned back to Las Vegas the next day…was recalled on May 20 and started and lost in the A’s 2-0 decision the next day at Houston, despite allowing just one run in 5.0 innings.
LAST START: He was the losing pitcher in the A’s 5-2 loss to Houston last Friday in Oakland…allowed a season-high eight hits in 5.0 innings…yielded a RBI single to Julks in the second and then allowed four runs (three earned) in the third…Bregman had a RBI single, a run scored on a passed ball and Julks added a two-run single.
