A’s-Giants rivalry returns to West Sacramento this weekend. 5 storylines to watch
The Bay Area rivalry might be a thing of the past, but games between the Giants and A’s always feel notable to Northern California baseball fans.
The next chapter begins Friday, when San Francisco comes to West Sacramento for a three-game weekend series at Sutter Health Park.
The A’s have gotten off to a better start to their season thanks to a potent lineup overcoming their mediocre pitching staff.
The Giants, meanwhile, have struggled out of the gates with first-year manager Tony Vitello, who saw his team win the first two games of a four-game road series against the defending World Series Champion Los Angeles Dodgers this week but lost 4-0 on Wednesday night with superstar Shohei Ohtani pitching seven shutout innings for the Dodgers.
The atmosphere should be lively at Sutter Health Park in what will be one of the most attended series of the season in West Sacramento.
Role reversal for A’s and Giants
When the Giants and A’s last met, July 4 weekend of last season, the standings looked far different for each team.
The Giants entered series with a record of 47-41 and were in the thick of the National League playoff race, within two games of a wild card spot. The A’s were well out of playoff contention, last place in the American League West division at 36-53.
The A’s won on July 4, but the Giants took the next two games and the series. The Giants also swept the A’s in San Francisco last May.
Just over a quarter of the way through 2026, it’s now the A’s looking far more likely than the Giants to make the postseason.
With a 22-20 record, the A’s ended Wednesday in first place in the AL West — and they’ll enter the Giants series in first place regardless of the result of Thursday’s day game vs. the St. Louis Cardinals, as they lead the Texas Rangers by 1 1/2 games. The Giants are 18-25, the third-worst record in the National League.
Can Kurtz continue his streak?
Nick Kurtz extended his Major League-leading on-base streak to 36 games on Wednesday when he belted a grand slam in the sixth inning of the A’s 6-2 win against the St. Louis Cardinals. It was the reigning American League Rookie of the Year’s sixth home run on the season, and third grand slam of his short career.
The streak is the longest active in the big leagues and the longest by an A’s hitter since Jack Cust had a 40-game streak from late in 2008 to April 2009. The franchise record is owned by Mark McGwire, who had a 62-game streak from September 1995 to June 1996.
Attendance will continue to climb
The A’s are seeing a noticeable increase in their attendance in their second season in West Sacramento. They’re averaging 10,509 fans per game through Wednesday, up almost 11% from last season’s 9,487 at Sutter Health Park. The weekend series is expected to be sold out given the Giants remain the most popular team in the region.
The increase in attendance can be attributed to a few changes from 2025.
Notably, the A’s have made more of an effort to embrace their temporary home and have Sacramento themed giveaways and activations on Saturdays when they wear their new gold jerseys with “Sacramento” across the chest.
They’ve also been in first place in the AL West for the majority of the season, and came into Wednesday’s action as one of four teams in the AL with a winning record.
Finally, ticket prices have normalized after they were among the most expensive in MLB last season. Get-in prices for the three weekend games start at $66 for access to the lawn area in right field. There will be a K-Pop themed fireworks show after Friday’s game, a cross-body bag giveaway on Saturday and a kids socks giveaway Sunday.
A Bolte strike to the lineup?
Up-and-coming prospect Henry Bolte, a Palo Alto native and second-round draft pick in 2022, had an eventful first Major League appearance on Wednesday. He got his first big league hit in his first at-bat with a hard ground ball that got past Cardinals third baseman Nolan Gorman, and added another infield hit two innings later. He finished 2-for-2 with a walk and an RBI on a sacrifice fly.
His time in center field was an adventure, misplaying a line drive from Alex Burleson that went for a double over his head, and then allowing a pop fly to drop in shallow center in what appeared to be a miscommunication with left fielder Brent Rooker in the ninth. Sandwiched between those mistakes was a diving grab on a sinking line drive by Gorman in the sixth.
Suffice to say, Bolte will make his mark with the A’s with his bat while he continues to progress defensively. He was called up this week after leading all minor leaguers in runs (41), hits (55) and total bases (104). His 12 home runs were the most in the Pacific Coast League and his 17 stolen bases ranked second.
Missing Sacramento connections for the Giants
All-Star pitcher and Rocklin High School alum Logan Webb landed on the 15-day injured list this month due to right knee bursitis and will miss the weekend series in his hometown. It’s the first time Webb, the Giants’ ace, has been on the injured list in five years.
Meanwhile, catcher Daniel Susac, a Roseville native who went to Jesuit High School in Carmichael, has been on a rehab assignment with the Triple-A Sacramento River Cats after dealing with right elbow neuritis. Susac has a chance to earn more of a role with the Giants when he’s recalled after the team traded top catcher Patrick Bailey to the Cleveland Guardians on May 9.
