Los Angeles Angels vs Oakland Athletics Picks and Predictions May 19th 2026

After thwarting no-hit bid, Angels aim to flummox A’s again

The Los Angeles Angels were three outs away from a seventh straight loss and didn’t have a single hit in Monday’s series opener with the Athletics.

Two batters later, the script was triumphantly flipped for the Angels. They will report to the ballpark with much-needed enthusiasm when they face the Athletics on Tuesday night at Anaheim, Calif.

The major-league-worst Angels parlayed Adam Frazier’s single and Zach Neto’s dramatic two-run homer to center into a 2-1 victory Monday night to avoid falling 16 games below .500.

Even with the victory, the Angels have just 11 runs over the past seven games. As part of those struggles, they were outscored 31-3 in a three-game weekend set with the Los Angeles Dodgers before Monday’s stunning rally.

The slump-ridden Neto felt the weight of the team’s tough start dissipate a bit when his homer cleared the fence and he ferociously slammed his bat into the ground.

“That was a heavy one, you know,” Neto told reporters. “Six-game losing streak. That one was big for us, not only me but for the team. Just to be able to get it off our shoulders and go to sleep good and be able to enjoy it and come in (Tuesday) with a better attitude and know that we still trust each other.”

Neto is batting just .207 in May and .225 overall. The homer was his eighth of the season as he tied Jorge Soler for second on the Angels. Mike Trout leads with 11.

Even with the Angels on the verge of being no-hit for the first time since 1999, Los Angeles manager Kurt Suzuki said the vibe in the dugout was highly optimistic.

“Guys were up. They’re ready to rock,” he said. “They believed we were going to win that game. And that’s something that’s huge in this game. You can be struggling, but I think that belief, having that belief is special, and it’s going to keep you going.”

Of course, the Athletics were crushed with what occurred. Right-hander J.T. Ginn was closing in on the franchise’s first no-hitter since Mike Fiers tossed one in 2019 and instead ended up with a crushing setback, the team’s sixth in the past eight games.

“Obviously, it’s a tough game,” Ginn said. “It’s just the nature of the game that we play. I attacked the zone (on Neto), and I’ll live with that.”

Nick Kurtz doubled in the fifth inning to extend his streak of reaching base to 41 games, the longest single-season stretch for the Athletics since Mark McGwire reached in a franchise-best 48 straight in 1996. Kurtz is one behind Hall of Famer Jimmie Foxx (1933) for the fourth-longest streak in A’s history.

A pair of left-handers will square off Tuesday when the Angels’ Reid Detmers (1-4, 4.38 ERA) and Jacob Lopez (3-2, 5.80) take the mound.

Detmers is 0-3 over his last five starts since beating the New York Yankees 7-1 on April 14. He lost to the Cleveland Guardians 4-2 last Wednesday when he gave up four runs (two earned) and five hits over 5 2/3 innings.

Detmers, 26, is 2-1 with a 5.73 ERA in seven career appearances (one start) against the Athletics. Jonah Heim is 5-for-18 with two doubles against him.

Lopez has served up two homers in each of his last three outings and has allowed 10 in 40 1/3 innings this season. He received a no-decision against the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday when he gave up three runs (two earned) and four hits over five innings. The A’s lost 5-4.

Lopez, 28, will start against the Angels for the first time. He tossed one inning of scoreless relief vs. them in 2023 as a member of the Tampa Bay Rays.

–Field Level Media