Game #126: Athletics at Royals Game Thread

The A’s dropped their first game in Kansas City last night, losing 9-5 and dropping the club to 49-76, tied with the Angels for the worst record in the sport. If the club ever needed a win, tonight’s the night.

Before the game the A’s made a minor move for some extra bullpen depth, adding the recently-claimed Taylor Rashi to the active roster:

The right-hander has very minimal big league experience, with 10 games last year and three this season. The former Giants and Diamondbacks farmhand has generally put up good numbers in the minors, including a 2.56 ERA in 24 appearances this year. With the state of the bullpen Rashi is as good as any reliever to give a shot and see if the A’s can catch lightning in a bottle.

To make room on the roster right-hander Mason Barnett was optioned to Triple-A. He was in the rotation the past couple turns but he struggled in his chances and will now head back to the minors and continue to work on honing his craft. The A’s will need to make a move for a new starter sometime later this week.

It’ll be right-hander Jack Perkins getting the ball this evening for his 12th start this year. It hasn’t been an easy year for the rookie, who began in the bullpen before being asked to take on a starter’s role halfway through the year. The results have been unexpected as he’s struggled to an 8.17 ERA during his starting assignments so far. He’s not exactly trending in the right direction either as he’s gotten smacked for at least five runs in his past three starts. Hopefully he’ll be able to turn things around tonight in Kansas City against a fellow bottom-dweller in the Royals, though last night should warn everyone that they still got some big bats in that lineup of theirs.

Here’s how the A’s starting lineup shakes out tonight:

No Jacob Wilson again tonight. That shoulder injury has kept him out of recent games and it’s a real possibility that he’s done for the year. Manager Mark Kotsay spoke about his shortstop yesterday:

“He came up, tried to hit today and couldn’t really get full range of motion,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay said after the game. “He’s day-to-day.”

Darell Hernaiz will handle shortstop duties today and could see more time there moving forward. The rest of the lineup is fairly standard. We’ll see Tommy White return to third base while Jeff McNeil handles the other corner.

Meanwhile, the Royals kept it close to the chest but have now announced that Daniel Lynch IV is getting the start for them tonight. Lynch was a solid reliever all year long for the Royals but with them out of the playoff hunt they’re going to try him as a starting pitcher the rest of the season. His first two starts weren’t great as he allowed three runs in each short outing. They’ll be looking for more length from him tonight and it’s the A’s job to get him out as fast as possible.

And the KC lineup:

Win #50 is waiting for us! We need this one. Let’s go A’s!

Follow the Game:
Watch:
Athletics – NBCSCA

Listen:
Athletics -Talk 650 KSTE, A’s Cast