A’s vs. Royals game thread

The Oakland Athletics’ are officially in a downward spiral. Following a surprising run in which they went 8-1, they’ve gone on to lose 11 of their last 13, including an ongoing streak of 6 straight losses.

To halt that skid, they’ll have to take one against the ascending Kansas City Royals tonight, with veteran Ross Stripling taking on re-converted starter Seth Lugo, who shockingly has a 1.66 ERA in 9 starts so far this season. The pitching’s also been less reliable, both due to mounting injuries and just general ineffectiveness.

And the A’s offense, despite ranking as the 7th-best offense in the league so far in May, have proven that those numbers are inflated by 5 games in which they scored between 8 and 20 runs. In 9 of the other 11 May matched, the offense has sputtered to generated 3 or fewer runs. Tyler Soderstrom’s mini-breakout in the middle of the order has been a breath of fresh air but Zack Gelof, who just returned from the IL, has yet to produce anywhere close to his 2023 level. Here’s the full lineup:

Meanwhile, the Royals have a similarly mediocre lineup with just a few standouts like 24-year-old star Bobby Witt Jr. and clubhouse leader Salvador Perez: