OAKLAND ATHLETICS NOTES:
ABOUT THE A’S: Have lost five straight and eight of the last nine games after winning the opener…are 2-8 (.200) overall, which is the worst record in the majors behind the Tigers (2-7, .222)…it is the A’s worst record after 10 games since the 2001 club also started the year 2-8…with a loss tonight, the A’s would match the worst record after 11 games in Oakland history (1979, 1987, 1998, 2001)…have lost the first three series of the season for the fourth time in Oakland history (1979, 1987, 2001)…lost the first four series in 1987 and 2001…this is the A’s 56th season in Oakland where they have won 17 American League West titles, four AL Wild Cards, six AL pennants and four World Championships…only the Atlanta Braves (22), New York Yankees (20) and Los Angeles Dodgers (20) have more division titles than the A’s…since the A’s moved to Oakland in 1968, only the Yankees (11), Cardinals (8) and Dodgers (8) have more league championships and only the Yankees have more world championships (7)…have a 4495-4182 (.518) record over the previous 55 seasons in Oakland…only four teams have won more games over that span (New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston, St. Louis)… this is the Athletics franchise 123rd season in the American League…since 1901, the A’s have 17 AL West titles plus 15 AL pennants and nine World Championships…only the Yankees (27) and Cardinals (11) have won more World Championships…the A’s are 9210-9654 (.488) in their previous 122 seasons…that includes a 3886-4248 record from 1901-54 in Philadelphia and 829-1224 from 1955-67 in Kansas City.
OFFENSE: The A’s scored one run yesterday after being shut out in each of the previous two games…have been held to one run or fewer in five of the first 10 games and have been shutout three times, which is tied with the Brewers and Royals for the most in the majors…have scored just 28 runs overall, which is second fewest in the majors (Tigers, 27)…also have the second lowest batting average in the majors (.198) and the third lowest OPS (.595) on-base percentage (.270) and slugging percentage (.325)…are tied for the fourth most grounded into double plays (11) and tied for the fifth fewest home runs (8)…are a perfect 7-for-7 in stolen bases attempts and are one of six teams without a caught stealing.
PITCHING: The A’s have allowed three home runs in each of the last three games after surrendering five home runs on Friday…the streak of four consecutive games with three or more home runs is tied for second longest in Athletics history…the longest is a five-game streak from Aug. 31-Sept. 4, 2021…have allowed 20 home runs for the season, which is the most in the majors…also have the highest ERA (7.36), opponents on-base percentage (.375), slugging percentage (.500) and OPS (.875) and the second highest batting average (.276)…have the second fewest strikeouts (69), the second most hit batters (9) and are tied for the third most walks (49) and wild pitches (7).
STARTING AND RELIEVING: The A’s ERA breaks down to 9.53 by the starting pitchers and 5.06 by the bullpen…the starters ERA is more than two earned runs higher than the next closest team (Tigers, 7.49)…the A’s are the only team without a win from their starting pitchers…the season-opening streak of 10 consecutive games without a win from a starter matches the longest such streak in Oakland history (1979, 1997)…starters have 45.1 innings pitched, which is tied with the Red Sox for second fewest in the majors (Tigers, 39.2)…the bullpen had the save on Opening Day but has none since then…the one save is tied with six other teams for the fewest in the majors.
HOME AND AWAY: The A’s 0-4 on their first road trip of the season, a seven-game trip to Tampa Bay (0-3) and Baltimore (0-1)…went 31-51 (.378) on the road in 2022, which was the third worst road record in the American League…return home following the game Thursday for a six-game homestand against New York-NL (three games) and Chicago-NL (three games)… went 2-4 on the season-opening six-game homestand against Los Angeles-AL (1-2) and Cleveland (1-2)…were 29-51 (.362) at home last year, which set an Oakland record for lowest home winning percentage…had the second worst home record in the majors to Washington (26-55, .321).
NIGHT AND DAY: The A’s are 2-3 in night games and 0-5 during the day…are one of three teams in the majors without a win in day games (Dodgers, 0-2; Tigers, 0-5)…are batting .267 (46-for-172) with 23 runs at night, .119 (18-for151) with five runs during the day…have a 5.52 ERA (27 er in 44.0 ip) at night, 9.20 (45 er in 44.0 ip) during the day.
THIS AND THAT: The A’s have committed 10 errors over the first 10 games, which is the most in the majors…both of the A’s wins have been one-run decisions and Oakland is 2-1 in one-run games…are tied for the sixth most one-run games in the majors…have a run differential of -49, which is the lowest in the majors (Tigers, -35)…are 2-4 when the opponent starts a left-handed pitcher, 0-4 when they start a right-hander…are 2-2 in games decided in the last at bat…the A’s average time of game is 2 hours and 39 minutes…have not averaged under 2:43 per game since 1979 when they averaged 2:34.
A’S VS. ORIOLES
• The A’s won the season series last year 4-3 and are 18-9 (.667) against the Orioles over the last five years…that includes 10-3 in Oakland and 8-6 in Baltimore.
• The A’s are 1017-954 all-time against the Orioles/Browns/Brewers…the only other of the seven original American League franchises that the A’s have a winning record against is the Twins/Senators.
TODAY’S TIDBITS
Zach Jackson struck out a career-high tying three batters last night for the second time this year and fourth time in his career…has nine strikeouts in4.2 innings and is tied for eighth among Major League relievers in strikeouts…Adam Oller leads ML relievers with 9.2 innings.
TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER: Kyle Muller (0-0, 2.53 ERA)
FOR STARTERS: Is scheduled to make his third start of the season and the 14th of his career…was the A’s Opening Day starter and became the first rookie pitcher in Oakland history to make a start on Opening Day…prior to that, the last Athletic rookie to start an opener was Eddie Smith on April 19, 1937 for the Philadelphia A’s…Muller had just 11 career starts entering the opener and the only Opening Day starting pitchers in Oakland history with fewer career starts entering the game are Sonny Gray (2014), Carlos Reyes (1996) and Vida Blue (1971), who all had 10 career starts…at the age of 25 years and 174 days, Muller was the youngest Opening Day starting pitcher for the A’s since Sonny Gray in 2015 (25 years, 150 days)…was the A’s third different Opening Day starting pitcher in the last three years (Montas, Bassitt) and the fifth in the last six (Fiers, Graveman)…begins his third season in the majors and is on his first Opening Day roster…was acquired from Atlanta in the three-team, nine-player trade on Dec. 12, 2022 that sent Sean Murphy to the Braves.
FIRST START: He had a no decision in the A’s 2-1 win over Los Angeles (AL) on Opening Day, March 30 in Oakland…retired each of the first seven batters and blanked the Angels on two hits over the first four innings…allowed his only run in five innings of work when Urshela singled, advanced to second on a Kemp error and third on a wild pitch before scoring on an O’Hoppe single…the A’s scored twice in the eighth for the win. LAST START: He had a no decision in the A’s 6-4 loss to Cleveland in 10 innings last Wednesday in Oakland…matched his career high with 5.2 innings pitched…did not allow a run over the first five innings, scattering three hits and three walks…retired the first two batters in the sixth inning before hitting Gimenez and allowing a single to Straw…was relieved by Acevedo, who allowed both runners to score, giving the Guardians a 2-0 lead…Cleveland added two more in the seventh before the A’s tied the game with a four-run eighth inning to get him off the hook.
BALTIMORE ORIOLES NOTES:
BACK IN THE WIN COLUMN: The O’s defeated the A’s last night, 5-1, in the opener of the four-game set…Improved to 4-0 in series openers and 2-0 in series openers at Oriole Park…Snapped a two-game skid…Marked Baltimore’s first win of the year when their opponent scored first.
O’s batters clubbed three homers in a game for the second time this season (also 4/1 at BOS); the O’s are 1-1 when homering three times in a game this year after going 16-4 in games where they hit at least three homers in 2023.
O’s pitchers fanned double-digit hitters for the second game in a row, the first time the O’s have recorded back-to-back double-digit strikeout performances since August 2-3, 2022.
Cedric Mullins and manager Brandon Hyde were both ejected by home plate umpire Malachi Moore in the seventh inning; marked the first career ejection for Mullins and the 10th for Hyde (last: 8/7/22 vs. PIT).
WHAT’S NEXT: The O’s continue their season-opening, seven-game homestand with three more games against the A’s…Baltimore opened the homestand by winning the Home Opener, 7-6, on Friday against the Yankees before falling 4-1 on Saturday and 5-3 on Sunday.
LOOKING AHEAD: The Orioles will travel to Chicago to face the White Sox for three games from April 14-16, then have a scheduled off day before traveling to Washington, D.C. for two games against the Nationals from April 18-19.
AGAINST OAKLAND: The O’s and A’s are meeting for their first series of the year… Baltimore will play seven games against Oakland this season…The Orioles will travel to RingCentral Coliseum on August 18-20…The O’s went 3-4 against the A’s in 2022, dropping three of four games in Oakland from April 18-21 before taking two of three at Oriole Park from September 2-4.
GRAYSON DAY: Grayson Rodriguez is slated to make his Oriole Park debut tonight against Oakland…The first 10,000 fans ages 15 and over will receive a Grayson Rodriguez Welcome to the Show T-Shirt…Rodriguez made his Major League debut on April 5 against the Rangers in Arlington…A Texas native, Rodriguez attended Central Heights High School in Nacogdoches, Texas, roughly 180 miles southeast of Arlington…Did not factor in the decision after allowing two runs on four hits with one walk and five strikeouts in 5.0 innings; struck out Ezequiel Durán swinging to end the second inning for his first career strikeout…Threw 83 pitches, 53 strikes…Became the first Oriole to make his Major League debut this season; 13 players (7 pitchers) made their debut for the O’s in 2022…Also became the first O’s pitcher to start his Major League debut since DL Hall on August 13, 2022, and the youngest O’s pitcher (23-140) to start his debut since Kevin Gausman (22-137) on May 23, 2013.
BIG TIME RUTSCH: Adley Rutschman has homered in back-to-back games (4/9-10) for the first time in his career and has hit safely in his last four games…His home run off JP Sears in the third inning of last night’s game marked his first long ball from the right side of the plate this season. Entering today’s games, Rutschman ranks among AL leaders in hits (T-4th, 15),
average (5th, .375), on-base percentage (8th, .457), OPS (9th, 1.057), and total
bases (T-9th, 24); ranks ninth in MLB in batting average.
NEED FOR SPEED: Baltimore’s 16 stolen bases rank third in MLB behind Cleveland (18 SB) and Arizona (17 SB)…Their 16 stolen bases through their first 10 games of the season are the most in O’s history (since 1954) and tied for the third-most by a team to begin a season since 2000 (see chart at right)…The O’s have only been caught stealing once for a 94.1 percent success rate…Jorge Mateo and Cedric Mullins are tied for second in MLB with five steals…They are the only pair of teammates in MLB with at least five steals apiece and their 10 combined stolen bases are more than 22 MLB teams have this season.
PEN PALS: O’s relievers have pitched to a 2.57 ERA (4 ER/14.0 IP) with 18 strikeouts to four walks in their first four games at Oriole Park after pitching to a 4.15 ERA (12 ER/26.0 IP) with 26 strikeouts to six walks in their season-opening six-game road trip…In 2022, O’s relievers owned a 3.26 ERA (122 ER/336.2 IP) with 313 strikeouts to 114 walks in 78 games at Camden Yards, compared to a 5.94 ERA (237 ER/359.0 IP) with 363 strikeouts to 155 walks in 81 games in Charm City in 2021.
MOUNT UP: Ryan Mountcastle is tied for the MLB lead among first basemen with two Defensive Runs Saved, per Sports Info Solutions…Mountcastle compiled three DRS last season after having -6 DRS (-5 in LF, -1 at 1B) in 2021.
RISING TIDE: O’s affiliates are 13-4 to start the season, the most collective wins and winning percentage (.765) among MLB organizations…The Orioles are ranked as the No. 1 farm system by MLB Pipeline…Marks the fourth consecutive time between the preseason and midseason lists that the O’s are in the top spot…Since Pipeline began ranking systems in 2015, only one other organization has claimed the top spot four times in a row, and that was the Padres (2018 pre/mid, 2019 pre/mid)…Baltimore is also ranked as the No. 1 farm system by ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel, as well as in Baseball America’s preseason rankings for the first time since the publication began their Organizational Talent Rankings in 1984.
STARTING PITCHER – #30 GRAYSON RODRIGUEZ – RHP
QUICK HITS: Making his Oriole Park debut tonight against the A’s…The first 10,000 fans ages 15 and over will receive a Grayson Rodriguez Welcome to the Show T-Shirt…Had his contract selected to the 40-man roster on November 15, 2022…Originally selected by the Orioles in the first round (No. 11 overall) of the 2018 First-Year Player Draft.
WELCOME TO THE SHOW: Made his Major League debut on April 5 against the Rangers in Arlington…A Texas native, Rodriguez attended Central Heights High School in Nacogdoches, Texas, roughly 180 miles southeast of Arlington…Did not factor in the decision after allowing two runs on four hits with one walk and five strikeouts in 5.0 innings; struck out Ezequiel Durán swinging to end the second inning for his first career strikeout…Threw 83 pitches, 53 strikes…Became the first Oriole to make his Major League debut this season; 13 players (7 pitchers) made their debut for the O’s in 2022…Also became the first O’s pitcher to start his Major League debut since DL Hall on August 13, 2022, and the youngest O’s pitcher (23-140) to start his debut since Kevin Gausman (22-137) on May 23, 2013.
PROSPECTING: Currently ranked as the No. 5 overall prospect by MLB Pipeline and No. 7 by Baseball America…He is ranked as the top Orioles prospect and the No. 2 pitching prospect by both outlets…At 23 years, 146 days old, he is currently the youngest pitcher on the O’s and the second-youngest player overall behind Gunnar Henderson at 21 years, 286 days.
SPRING TRAINING: Attended his second Major League Spring Training and made five starts with the O’s, going 0-1 with a 7.04 ERA (12 ER/15.1 IP) and 19 strikeouts. HIGH TIDE: Started Norfolk’s 2023 season opener on March 31 at Durham; did not factor in the decision after allowing three runs (2 ER) on four hits (1 HR) with four walks, two strikeouts, and a wild pitch in 4.0 innings…Threw 75 pitches, 48 strikes…Went 6-1 with a 2.20 ERA (17 ER/69.2 IP) and 97 strikeouts in 14 starts for the Tides in 2022…Named International League Pitcher of the Month for May 2022, going 3-1 with a 2.25 ERA (8 ER/32.0 IP) and 48 strikeouts in six starts… Left his start on June 1 vs. Jacksonville with a strained right lat muscle…At the time of his injury, he led the International League in starts (11), ERA (2.09), innings pitched (56.0), batting average against (.168), WHIP (0.84), and strikeouts (80).
2022 HIGHLIGHTS: Owned a 6-2 record with a 2.62 ERA (22 ER/75.2 IP) with 109 strikeouts in 17 starts between High-A Aberdeen, Double-A Bowie, and Norfolk…Started the season with Norfolk and made his Triple-A debut on April 8 vs. Charlotte, allowing just one hit with seven strikeouts to one walk in 4.0 shutout innings…Pitched to a 1.19 ERA (2 ER/15.1 IP) in his first three Triple-A starts…Spent time on the Injured List with a strained right lat muscle…Made three rehab starts, one with Aberdeen and two with Bowie, pitching to a 7.50 ERA (5 ER/6.0 IP) with 11 strikeouts and five walks…Reassigned to Norfolk on September 11 and made his next start on September 16 vs. Charlotte, allowing two hits with four strikeouts to one walk in 5.0 scoreless innings…Allowed just two home runs across three levels in 2022.
COLLECTING HARDWARE: Rodriguez was named the Orioles Jim Palmer Minor League Pitcher of the Year in consecutive seasons (2019, 2021)…Orioles player development and scouting awards were not administered in 2020 due to the cancellation of the Minor League Season because of the COVID-19 pandemic… Named Eastern League Pitcher of the Year in 2021.
