OAKLAND ATHLETICS NOTES:
ABOUT THE A’S: Have won three of the last four games and are 4-4 over the last eight contests…are 7-14 (.333) in the month of August and have clinched a losing record for the seventh consecutive full month and 11th time in the last 12 months…are 25-41 (.379) over the last 66 games dating back to June 6 after going 12-50 (.194) over the first 62 contests…are 37-91 (.289) overall, which is the lowest winning percentage in the majors…the last two Major League teams to finish with a winning percentage under .290 are the 2003 Tigers (43-119, .265) and 1962 Mets (40-120, .250)…have been swept 17 times this year, which ties the Oakland record set in 1978…have swept two series…are 9-14-1 over the last 24 series after going 1-16 over the first 17… have a run differential of -301, which is the lowest in the majors…the lowest in Oakland history is -287 in 1979 and the lowest in Athletics history is -344 in 1915.
OUCH: The A’s were hit by a pitch for the sixth consecutive game yesterday, which matches the Athletics record (sixth time, previous: June 9-15, 2019)… have 10 hit by pitches during the streak and 73 for the season, which is tied for fourth most in the majors and ififth most in Oakland history (98 in 2021, 88 in 2001, 87 in 2019, 76 in 2018)…A’s pitchers have hit 79 batters, which is the most in the majors, an Oakland record and two short of the Athletics record of 81 set in 1911.
OFFENSE: The A’s hit a season-high tying five home runs last night (April 24 at Los Angeles) and now have 10 home runs in the last four games…have 32 home runs in August, which is one short of their best month this year (33 in April)…have 132 home runs for the season, which is eighth fewest in the majors but five short of the season total of 137 last year…rank last in the majors in batting (.223), slugging (.367), OPS (.667), runs (461) and extra base hits (325), third in fewest doubles (175) and lowest on-base percentage (.300), tied for third in most times shut out (13), seventh in most strikeouts (1171) and tied for ninth in most grounded into double plays (97)…have 25 sacrifice hits, which is second most in the majors and is the most by an A’s team since 2012 (27).
IN THE PINCH: A’s pinch hitters have 35 hits, which is tied for second most by an A’s team over the last 32 years (had 57 in 1997)…the A’s lead the majors in pinch hits, rank second in plate appearances (153), tied for fifth in doubles (5) and extra base hits (8), tied for seventh in walks (13) and tied for 10th in home runs (3).
PITCHING: The A’s have a 5.52 ERA (112 er in 182.2 ip) in August after posting a 4.77 ERA in June and 4.90 in July…have a 5.76 ERA overall, which is the highest in the majors and the highest in Oakland history (5.48 in 1997)…also have the highest opponents on-base percentage in the majors (.357), the second highest slugging percentage (.463) and OPS (.820) and third highest batting average (.271)…have a ML leading 540 walks, which are the most by an A’s team since 2008 (576)…are tied for the most wild pitches in the majors (55), rank fourth in fewest shutouts (4), fifth in most home runs (175) and sixth in fewest strikeouts (1030).
STARTING PITCHING: Zach Neal is scheduled to make his first start of the season today and he will become the A’s seventh different starting pitcher in the last eight games and the 10th in the last 16…he will become the 21st different pitcher to start a game this year, which matches the 2019 Blue Jays for the most by a Major League team over the last 108 years…the only team in ML history to use more than 21 starting pitchers is the 1915 Philadelphia A’s, who had 24…A’s starting pitchers are 2-10 with a 5.47 ERA (61 er in 100.1 ip) over the last 23 games dating back to July 29 and both of the wins are by Paul Blackburn…are 12-57 with a 6.03 ERA for the season…have the fewest wins and highest ERA in the majors and are tied for the most losses… the fewest wins from starting pitchers in Major League history is 21 by the Pirates last year…the ERA is currently the highest in Athletics history (5.94 in 1997)…have tossed 7.1 innings or fewer in each game and have the second fewest innings pitched (580.1).
THE BULLPEN: The A’s bullpen is 3-4 with two saves, four blown saves and a 5.77 ERA (37 er in 57.2 ip) over the last 13 games…has a 5.47 ERA overall, which is the highest in the majors and the highest in Oakland history (5.22 in 1980)…also has the most losses in the majors this year (34) and the second most innings pitched (543.1)…has set Athletics single-season records for most losses, walks (294) and runs allowed (357) by relievers…is 22-for-46 (47.8%) in save opportunities…has the second lowest save percentage in the majors to the White Sox (46.9%)…has the second fewest saves and is tied for the fifth most blown saves (24)…has allowed 94-of-244 (38.5%) inherited runners to score, which is the third highest percentage…has the second most inherited runners.
ON THE BASES: The A’s are 117-for-141 (83.0%) in stolen base attempts…rank fifth in the majors in steals, attempts and percentage…the stolen bases are the most by an A’s team since 2012 (122) and the only time in Athletics history the A’s had a stolen base percentage above 81.5 was in 2020 (89.7%)…A’s opponents are 89-for-128 (69.5%) in stolen base attempts, which is the second lowest success rate in the majors…the 39 caught stealings are the most…A’s pitchers have 12 pickoffs, which is fourth most.
HOME AND AWAY: The A’s are 1-0 on this seven-game road trip to Chicago-AL (1-0) and Seattle (three games) and have won back-to-back road games… have won more than two straight road games just once this year, a five-game streak from June 6-11…went 1-5 on the last road trip to Washington (0-3) and St. Louis (1-2) and are 17-46 (.270) on the road, which is the worst road record in the majors…have clinched a losing record on the road for the second consecutive season (went 31-51 last year)…went 2-4 on the last homestand against Baltimore (0-3) and Kansas City (2-1) and are 20-45 (.308) at home, which is the lowest home winning percentage in the majors.
ONE-RUN GAMES AND OTHER CLOSE CALLS: Nearly half of the A’s wins have been by one run as they are 18-24 (.429) in one-run games and 19-67 (.221) in games decided by two or more runs…rank third in the majors in one-run games (42) and most losses…have seven walk-off wins, which is tied for fifth in the majors…have scored the winning run in their final at bat in 15 of their 36 victories (41.7%)…are 6-7 (.462) in extra inning games…are tied for seventh in the majors in extra inning losses, tied for eighth in games (13) and tied for 10th in wins.
TRAGIC NUMBER: The A’s were officially eliminated from the American League West Sunday in game 124…it marks the earliest they have been eliminated from the West, topping the previous mark of game 129 last year on Aug. 28…this marks just the third time in Oakland history the A’s were eliminated before Sept. 1 (game 135 on Aug. 30, 1979)…have a tragic number of one to be eliminated from the playoffs.
PLAYER NOTES: The A’s have set Athletics records for most pitchers (37) and most relievers (33) in a season and an Oakland record for most starting pitchers (20)…have employed 58 players overall, which is second highest in Athletics history to the record of 64 set last year…the 58 players are second most in the majors to the Angels (60) and the 37 pitchers are third most (Rays 39, Dodgers 38)…have employed 18 rookies after using an Oakland record 34 last year…have set an Oakland record for most non-Covid IL placements (30)…used the IL an Athletics record 31 times last year (including nine times for Covid).
A’S VS. WHITE SOX
- The A’s won the first game in Chicago last night after winning two of three in Oakland June 30-July 2.
- Went 2-5 against Chicago last year and have lost the season series in each of the previous two years.
- Are 30-28 against Chicago dating back to 2014…that includes 16-13 in Oakland and 14-15 in Chicago.
- Have won 13 of the last 18 games in Oakland.
Year Home Road Totals
2023 3-1 0-0 3-1
2022 1-3 1-2 2-5
Oakland History: 325-300
at the Coliseum: 172-143
at Guaranteed Rate Field: 71-69
All-Time: 802-1163
TODAY’S TIDBITS
Zack Gelof hit his 10th home run of the season last night in his 35th career game, breaking Mark McGwire’s Athletics record for fewest games to 10 career home runs (41)…McGwire hit his 11th home run in game 42 and his 12th and 13th in game 43…his 22 extra base hits are also the most in Athletics history by a player over his first 35 career games…is tied for fourth in doubles (11) and tied for sixth in runs (24)…his 40 hits are tied for fifth most in Oakland history (Page 46, Weeks 44, Polonia 42, Grieve 41)…Shea Langeliers has four home runs in his last four games and 15 for the season, which is tied for fifth in the majors among catchers.
TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER: Zach Neal (0-0, 8.25 ERA)
FOR STARTERS: Is scheduled to make his eighth appearance and first start of the season…it will be the seventh start of his career, his first since Sept. 6, 2016 with the A’s against the Angels…was selected from Triple-A Las Vegas Aug. 3 for his second stint with the A’s this year and has an 8.31 ERA (8.2 ip, 15 h, 8 r, 8 er, 4 bb, 6 so, 3 hr) and 1.107 opponents OPS in five relief appearances since his return…was originally selected on May 11 and allowed three runs on four hits and no walks while striking out three in 3.1 innings over two games before he was optioned back to Las Vegas on May 15.
THIS AND THAT: Has walked four batters in 12.0 innings this but never more than one…has now walked one batter or fewer in each of his 38 career appearances and has issues 11 walks in 97.2 career innings (1.01 per nine innings)…has allowed five home runs in 12.0 innings this year…that includes three home runs in 19 at bats against left-handed hitters, two in 35 against right-handers…opponents are 6-for-13 (.462) with runners in scoring position…has tossed at least 2.0 innings in four of his seven appearances…the A’s are 0-7 when he pitches.
2023 DAY-BY-DAY: Was selected from Las Vegas on May 11 and had his 2023 debut on May 13 against Texas (2.0 ip, 3 h, 2 r, 2 er, 3 so, 1 hr)…the three strikeouts are a season high…it was his first Major League appearance since April 3, 2018 at Arizona while pitching for the Dodgers…also pitched on May 14 against the Rangers and was optioned back to Las Vegas the next day… was designated for assignment on May 19 but returned to Oakland on Aug. 3…allowed two runs that day against the Dodgers but then had his only two scoreless outings in consecutive games on Aug. 8 against Texas (0.1 ip) and Aug. 14 at St. Louis (1.0 ip, 1 h, 1 bb, 2 so)…inherited a bases loaded situation against the Rangers but stranded all three inherited runners.
LAST APPEARANCE: He tossed 3.1 innings of relief in the A’s 12-1 loss to Baltimore last Sunday in Oakland…had season highs in innings (3.1), hits (7), runs (5) and pitches (67)…replaced JP Sears to start the fifth inning with the A’s trailing 7-0 and blanked the Orioles on one walk over his first two innings… then allowed two runs in the seventh on a Henderson homer and Westburg RBI single, and two more in the eighth on a Rutschman RBI single and Henderson RBI double.
LAST MAJOR LEAGUE START: He had a no decision in the A’s 3-2 win over Los Angeles (AL) in Oakland on Sept. 6, 2016…allowed just two runs in six innings of work, both in the fourth inning on an Andrelton Simmons RBI double and a Kaleb Coward sacrifice fly…left after six innings trailing 2-0 and the A’s scored three times in the eighth on a RBI single by Ryon Healy and a two-run single by Joey Wendle, for the win.
CHICAGO WHITE SOX NOTES:
WHITE SOX AT A GLANCE
The Chicago White Sox have lost nine of their last 12 games and 21 of 30 as they continue a seven-game homestand tonight against Oakland.
RHP Dylan Cease, who is 2-0 with a 2.70 ERA (7 ER/23.1 IP) and 26 strikeouts in four career starts against the A’s, is scheduled to start for the White Sox.
The Sox are 1-3 on the homestand, dropping two of three games to Seattle before suffering an 8-5 loss last night to the A’s.
Following this four-game series, the Sox take a brief three-game trip to Baltimore (8/28-30) followed by a three-game homestand vs. Detroit (9/1-3).
The Sox went 2-3 on their last trip to the Cubs (1-1) and Colorado (1-2) from 8/15-20 and 2-4 on their last homestand vs. the Yankees (2-1) and Milwaukee (0-3) from 8/7-13.
TONIGHT’S STORYLINES
The White Sox are hitting .293/.317/.464 (65-222) with 30 runs scored over the last five games, collecting 10-plus hits five times.
The Sox have allowed 62 runs on 76 hits (15 home runs) and 37 walks over the last seven games.
Eloy Jiménez is a career .341/.382/.610 (28-82) hitter with six home runs and 17 RBI in 22 games against the A’s, including a current 18-game hitting streak.
Luis Robert Jr. is hitting .386/.426/.636 (17-44) in 10 career games against Oakland.
Tim Anderson needs eight hits to become the 19th player in history to record his first 1,000 career in a Sox uniform (STATS).
TODAY’S TRANSACTIONS
RHP Brent Honeywell, who was DFA by the White Sox on Wednesday, cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Class AAA Charlotte.
LAST NIGHT’S RECAP
Oakland hit five home runs to overcome a pair of deficits and record an 8-5 victory over the White Sox in the series opener.
The Sox carried a 5-3 lead into the sixth inning, but the A’s scored five runs over the final four frames.
Andrew Benintendi went 2-5 with a home run (No. 4), two RBI and two runs scored, Luis Robert Jr. hit a two-run homer (No. 34) and also robbed a potential homer, and Elvis Andrus hit a solo home run (No. 5) … Tim Anderson and Andrew Vaughn collected two hits apiece.
Starter Jesse Scholtens posted a ND, allowing five runs on six hits over 5.2 IP … Jimmy Lambert suffered the loss, giving up a game-winning homer to Zack Gelof in the seventh.
The Sox went 1-7 with RISP as they suffered their 40th loss of the season after leading.
SOX FAMILIES PARTNER W/ DIGS WITH DIGNITY
White Sox players wives and significant others have partnered with Digs with Dignity to update the new home of Southeast Chicago-native and single mother Delore Shaffer.
Updating the home with furniture, linens, household items and artwork, the Shaffer family (mom and two young daughters) was surprised by volunteers today as they returned home.
Digs with Dignity is a Chicago-based non-profit that elevates the lives of those transitioning from homelessness by providing necessities to make a comfortable, dignified home.
The organization partners with social service agencies to identify those in need and utilizes a warehouse of donated and refurbished furniture and home goods to outfit homes.
UMPS CARE & CURTIS GRANDERSON
More than 20 children with aspirations to umpire will join staff from UMPS CARE at 4:30 today for a seminar and Q&A from the ballpark’s Conference and Learning Center.
Three-time All-Star OF Curtis Granderson and HOFer Harold Baines will join the group to discuss the amicable relationship between players and umpires.
UMPS CARE, founded in 2006, provides VIP experiences to participants from youth-based organizations and military families, visits to pediatric hospitals and college scholarships.
LET THE KIDS PLAY
The White Sox currently have eight rookies on the active roster: RHPs Edgar Navarro, Lane Ramsey, Gregory Santos and Jesse Scholtens, LHP Sammy Peralta, C Korey Lee, INF Lenyn Sosa and OF Oscar Colás.
The eight rookies are the fourth-highest total in the American League behind Cleveland (10), Kansas City and Oakland (nine each) … source: Elias.
WHITE SOX VS. OAKLAND ATHLETICS
The A’s lead the season series, 3-1, winning two of three games at the Coliseum from 6/30-7/2 and posting an 8-5 win last night.
The White Sox are hitting .301/.388/.493 (44-146) with 23 runs scored (5.8 R/G) but have posted a 7.07 ERA (28 ER/35.2 IP) … the A’s have scored seven-plus runs in all four games.
The Sox went 5-2 in 2022, winning two of three games at home from 7/29-31 and three of four in Oakland from 9/8-11, their first series win at The Coliseum since 2016.
Oakland defeated the Sox in the 2020 AL Wild Card Series.
HOW THE WEST WAS WON
The Sox are 10-20 vs. the American League West this season, including a 4-9 record at home.
The Sox went 18-16 vs. the division last season and 16-17 in 2021 … they are 23-23 at home vs. the AL West since 2021.
STARTING PITCHER – #84 DYLAN CEASE RHP
CEASE AT A GLANCE
Is scheduled to make his 27th start of the season, 14th at home and second against the Oakland Athletics.
Ranks among American League leaders this season in starts (T2nd, 26), HR/9.0 IP (4th, 0.91), SO/9.0 IP (4th, 10.63) and strikeouts (6th, 163).
Is 1-3 with a 6.66 ERA (18 ER/24.1 IP), .303 (30-99) opponents average, 16 walks and 25 strikeouts over his last five starts … tossed 6.0-plus IP in just one of those starts.
Has allowed one run or less while tossing 5.0-plus IP in 30 starts since 2022 … the 30 starts are the most in baseball ahead of the Dodgers’ Julio Urias (27).
According to Elias, he is the fastest White Sox pitcher to reach 700 career strikeouts (583.0 IP).
Is tied for second in MLB since 2021 in starts (90), ranks fourth in SO/9.0 IP (11.37) and fifth in strikeouts (616).
Was the 2022 AL Cy Young Award runner-up and has been named American League Pitcher of the month twice in his career (June and July 2022).
LAST START
Received a no decision on 8/20 at Colorado, allowing five runs on eight hits with two walks and six strikeouts over 4.2 IP … allowed one run in the third inning (Charlie Blackmon solo homer), one in the fourth (Michael Toglia RBI single) and three in the fifth (Ezequiel Tovar RBI single and Harold Castro two-run single).
Departed the game in the fifth with two outs, a runner on first and the White Sox trailing, 5-2 … threw 105 pitches (67 strikes) … Chicago scored seven runs in the eighth to win, 10-5, and avoid the sweep.
Owned a 58.3 first-strike percentage and 21.0 swinging-strike percentage (23 swing and misses) vs. 24 batters … threw 48 four-seam fastballs (96.5 mph avg; 98.0
mph max), 37 sliders (87.2 avg; 89.2 max), 17 knuckle curveballs (80.2 avg; 82.6 max) and three changeups (70.1 avg; 71.6 max).
HE GONE!
Needs 37 strikeouts to join Chris Sale (2013-16) and Ed Walsh (1910-12) as the only White Sox pitchers to record three straight 200-plus strikeout seasons … Is on pace for 206 strikeouts in 2023.
Has recorded 362 swing and misses this season, the eighth-most in the majors … recorded a season-high 24 swing and misses on 6/20 vs. Texas.
35TH AND SHIELDS
Is 6-7 with a 2.49 ERA (43 ER/155.1 IP), .206 (117-567) opponents average and 169 strikeouts in his last 26 starts at home dating back to 5/29/22 … his 2.49 ERA at home is the fourth-lowest in the American League in that span.
Owns a 16-11 record, 3.03 ERA (98 ER/291.0 IP), .208 (220-1,060) opponents average and 348 strikeouts in 52 starts (26 quality) at Guaranteed Rate Field since 2020.
Ranks among American League home leaders since 2020 in strikeouts (2nd), ERA (5th), opponents average (9th) and wins (T10th).
NO FLY ZONE
Is averaging 0.91 home runs allowed per 9.0 IP (30 HR/322.0 IP) since 2022, the eighth-lowest mark in the American League.
Has allowed multiple homers in just four games since last season (zero in 2023) … nine of his 14 home runs allowed this season have come with the bases empty.
OVER WORKED
Has thrown 2,541 pitches in 27 starts this season, the fifth-most in the majors … his 97.7 pitches per game are the eighth-most in baseball.
Is averaging 18.4 pitches per IP and 4.17 pitches per batter faced, are the highest and second-highest marks in MLB respectively.
VS. OAKLAND ATHLETICS || A.L. WEST
Is scheduled to make his fifth career start against Oakland and third at Guaranteed Rate Field.
Received a no decision in his last start against the Athletics on 7/1 at the Coliseum, allowing three runs on six hits with three walks and five strikeouts over 5.1 IP.
Has gone 1-0 with a 3.00 ERA (4 ER/12.0 IP) and .186 (8-43) opponents average in his two starts at home.
Is 5-1 with a 2.74 ERA (22 ER/72.1 IP), .200 (53-265) opponents average and 91 strikeouts over his last 13 starts vs. the American League West.
