The A’s are suddenly one of the hottest teams in baseball. What’s going right?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- The A’s won 8 of their last 11 games, sweeping the Twins before facing Seattle.
- Shea Langeliers, Tyler Soderstrom and Nick Kurtz powered a post-break surge.
- Despite a 59-70 record, the A’s hold a .542 win rate outside a 1-20 midseason slump.
The Athletics remain well out of the postseason picture but have played well since the All-Star break thanks to some of the hottest hitters in baseball.
They took their third straight game in Minnesota on Thursday, sweeping the Twins to give them eight victories in their last 11 contests ahead of their upcoming weekend series against the Seattle Mariners. The three-game set in Seattle will be key as the Mariners hold the final American League Wild Card spot after losing five consecutive games.
A’s catcher Shea Langeliers in Wednesday’s game hit a 10th-inning, two-run home run to win it and give him a Major-League-leading 16th home run since the All-Star break.
On Thursday, Tyler Soderstrom extended his hitting streak to 19 games with a 4-for-4 performance. His hitting streak is the longest active streak in MLB.
Standout rookie Nick Kurtz on Thursday hit his 26th long ball of the season, marking the third most by an A’s player in their first 87 games behind Mark McGwire (31) and Matt Olson (27). Kurtz is hitting .524 with three doubles and three home runs in his past six games and remains the odds favorite to win American League Rookie of the Year.
The A’s had a historically bad stretch from May 14 to June 4, in which they lost 20 of 21 games. With an overall record of 59-70 for the season, they are 58-49 in all other games outside that run, good for a .542 winning percentage, and they are 18-13 (.581) since the All-Star break.
The Houston Astros were in first place in the American League West with a .543 winning percentage going into their game Thursday night in Baltimore. The A’s enter the Seattle series 9 1/2 games back of the Wild Card spot, with six other teams between them and the Mariners.
Starting pitcher Jack Perkins allowed two runs in 5 innings in his fourth start of the season. A’s starters before Thursday were 13-6 with a 3.41 ERA over the previous 26 games.
The A’s on Thursday won their 33rd road game, giving them their most road victories in the past four seasons. However, their 26-37 home record at Sutter Health Park, where they began hosting games in 2025 after departing Oakland and before their planned move to Las Vegas, remains the third-worst home mark in MLB.
After Seattle, the A’s will return to West Sacramento to begin a three-game series Monday against the Detroit Tigers, who have been the best team in the American League and have the second-best record in baseball.
