Seattle Mariners vs. Oakland Athletics Pick & Prediction SEPTEMBER 20th 2023
After watching one of their top prospects, Joe Boyle, pitch impressively last weekend, the Oakland Athletics will try again when right-hander Joey Estes makes his major league debut Wednesday afternoon in the series finale against the visiting Seattle Mariners.
The 21-year-old will have an opportunity to prevent the Mariners (83-68) from moving into first place in the American League West.
Jacob Hoffman
Seattle begins the day tied for second place with the Texas Rangers (83-68), a half-game behind the Houston Astros (84-68). For the third straight day, the Mariners will get a chance to scoreboard-watch the earlier starts for the Rangers at home against the Boston Red Sox, and the Astros at home against the Baltimore Orioles.
Acquired from the Atlanta Braves in the Matt Olson trade before the 2022 season, Estes has pitched in both Double-A and Triple-A in the Oakland organization this year. He posted a 5.23 ERA in seven appearances, including six starts, for Triple-A Las Vegas.
Boyle, who had been Estes' teammate in Las Vegas, threw three shutout innings in a no-decision against the visiting San Diego Padres on Sunday.
Estes will have to hope for more run support than what the A's (46-105) have given Boyle, JP Sears and Paul Blackburn in their past three games. After taking a 10-1 loss in Boyle's debut on Sunday, Oakland has mustered just two runs -- both on Tuesday -- in back-to-back, one-sided losses to the Mariners.
For the second straight night, one of Oakland's top hitting prospects added to an impressive season when catcher Shea Langeliers lashed his fourth triple of the season on Tuesday.
Langeliers not only leads the A's in triples, but only 30 major-leaguers have more than four, including just one catcher -- the Philadelphia Phillies' J.T. Realmuto with five.
"Shea is pretty quick for a catcher. He is athletic," A's manager Mark Kotsay said of another of the prospects pried from the Braves in the Olson deal. "It's pretty impressive for a catcher to lead our team in triples."
Seeking to continue the home team's scoring issues will be Seattle right-hander George Kirby (10-10, 3.57 ERA), who has been in a slump of his own. The Mariners are winless in his past four starts, a stretch in which he's gone 0-2 with a 6.00 ERA.
The good news for Kirby is that he hasn't lost to the A's in his two-year career, going 2-0 with a 4.28 ERA in five starts. He pitched a 5-3 win at Oakland on May 4, allowing three runs in seven innings.
The Mariners have out-hit the A's 20-11 in the series despite getting only one hit from their hottest hitter, Julio Rodriguez, as the slugger tackles the spacious Oakland Coliseum.
Rodriguez had entered the series 16-for-44 (.364) in Oakland before going 1-for-8 the last two nights in a park he believes suits his use-the-entire-ballpark style well.
"I'm not just gonna be a pull hitter," Rodriguez said. "I feel like I'm able to do damage throughout every field. And with pitchers, I can give them something more to deal with."
The Mariners will try to send the A's to their seventh straight loss.
--Field Level Media
Seattle Mariners vs. Oakland Athletics Recap SEP 20TH 2023
Dominic Canzone drove in a season-best four runs, George Kirby threw seven effective innings and the Seattle Mariners kept pace in the American League West by completing a three-game sweep of the host Oakland Athletics, 6-3 on Wednesday afternoon.
Seattle's 12th win in 13 games over the A's in the season series allowed the Mariners (84-68) to remain tied with the Texas Rangers for second place in the AL West, a half-game behind the Houston Astros. All three won Wednesday.
Playing in his 53rd major league game, Canzone teed off on debuting A's rookie Joey Estes for a two-run homer in the second inning. A fielding error by Oakland third baseman Jordan Diaz had put Ty France aboard before Canzone's sixth homer of the season.
Having seen the A's (46-106) get within 2-1 on Zack Gelof's 13th homer, the Mariners created some breathing room with a four-run fifth that ended Estes' day.
Julio Rodriguez bombed his 31st homer and Cal Raleigh his 29th leading off the fifth. Two outs later, after Estes had been lifted following a ground-rule double by Eugenio Suarez and a hit batsman, Canzone greeted reliever Adrian Martinez with a two-run double, opening a 6-1 lead.
The four RBIs were one more than Canzone's previous best, set in July at Atlanta.
Seeking to avoid a seventh straight loss, the A's got within 6-3 on a two-run homer by Brent Rooker, his 27th, in the sixth.
But Kirby (11-10) pitched a scoreless seventh and Andres Munoz a scoreless eighth, setting the stage for Justin Topa to record his third save with a hitless ninth.
Kirby was charged with three runs on eight hits in his seven innings. He struck out three and did not issue a walk.
Promoted from Triple-A to make the start, Estes went 4 2/3 innings, allowing six runs (five earned) and six hits. He walked one and struck out two.
Raleigh joined Canzone with two hits, while France scored twice for the Mariners, who now head for a three-game series at Texas.
Gelof and Seth Brown had two hits apiece for the A's, whose eight hits equaled the Mariners' total.
--Field Level Media