The Athletics are showing no signs of astonishment as they push for a three-game sweep of the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday afternoon, wrapping up their road trip with growing confidence.
“We always expected this level of performance,” said Athletics manager Mark Kotsay. “As a team, we’ve improved every year. Defense has been a major focus, and on the mound, our priority is throwing strikes and avoiding free bases. We executed that well on Saturday, and these areas of growth have brought consistency to our game.”
Saturday’s 6-2 victory marked only the second time this season the Athletics have won three straight games, extending their lead to 2½ games atop the American League West.
“The group has matured,” Kotsay added. “Of course, you always want to speed things up, but we’re pleased with the progress.”
The Orioles, meanwhile, are struggling, having lost three consecutive games and eight of their last 10. Baltimore manager Craig Albernaz expressed concern over his team’s 11 strikeouts on Saturday.
The Athletics are pleased with Zack Gelof’s transition to third base. Originally groomed as an outfielder, Gelof made several impressive defensive plays in the infield on Saturday.
“His athleticism really stood out,” Kotsay said. “He’s settling in and looks very comfortable at third base.”
Athletics slugger Nick Kurtz heads into Sunday’s game with a 33-game on-base streak, the longest active streak in Major League Baseball. On Saturday, he scored three of the team’s six runs.
Right-hander Luis Severino (2-3, 4.15 ERA) will take the mound for the Athletics, aiming for his fourth consecutive solid start. After winning two straight outings, he suffered a loss Tuesday in Philadelphia, giving up one run over five innings. In each of his last three starts, he has allowed only one run, with two of them lasting at least seven innings.
Severino holds a 7-4 record with a 5.38 ERA in 15 career appearances (13 starts) against Baltimore. Among his 75 career wins, he has more against the Orioles than any other team.
The Athletics’ bullpen has been reliable over the past few games.
“There will be games where the bullpen struggles, that’s part of the season,” Kotsay noted. “It’s never perfect, but our bullpen has been a strength for us.”
The Orioles will counter with right-hander Chris Bassitt (2-2, 5.91 ERA), who had his second-shortest outing of the season Tuesday against Miami, lasting four innings and allowing four runs in a no-decision. Baltimore has won each of Bassitt’s last five starts.
Bassitt is 3-1 with a 4.20 ERA in eight career appearances (seven starts) against the Athletics.
The Orioles had infielder Blaze Alexander available off the bench after he missed Friday’s game with a calf injury.
“I felt something different in my calf,” Alexander said, noting the issue only kept him out for one day.
The Orioles had infielder Jose Barrero called up from Triple-A Norfolk on Saturday in case Alexander needed to go on the injured list, but that proved unnecessary.
