Pitching Matchups:
Game 1: Eric Surkamp (0-1, 4.00) vs. Michael Pineda (1-1, 6.55)
Pineda bounced back from his horrid season debut with six innings and two earned runs allowed in a respectable outing against the Toronto Blue Jays last Wednesday.
In his career against the Athletics, Big Mike is 2-1 with a 2.00 ERA with 19 strikeouts in 18 innings of work. Thus far, Surkamp is 0-1 with a 4.00 ERA but has failed to last five innings of work in two starts this season.
Game 2: Kendall Graveman (0-1, 2.38) vs. Nathan Eovaldi (0-1, 6.94)
At some points in his last outing in Toronto, Eovaldi’s splitter make the right-hander looked absolutely unhittable. However, it started rising on hitters as the game progressed resulting in two home runs in his last two innings of work.
In four career starts against Oakland, Eovaldi has a 5.09 ERA and has given up 32 hits in 23 innings against them.
Graveman made one start against the Yankees and surrendered three runs on seven hits in 5.2 innings pitched. In that game, Brian McCann had his number as he went 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBI.
Game 3: Rich Hill (1-2, 4.15) vs. Luis Severino (0-2, 5.91)
Many do not remember, but Rich Hill sported Yankee pinstripes in 2014. In 14 relief appearances that year, he had a 1.69 ERA with nine strikeouts in 5.1 innings pitched.
With the A’s in 2016, he is 1-2 with a 4.15 ERA. He also leads the league in hit by pitches.
Opposing him for the Yankees is struggling sophomore Luis Severino.
After giving up three runs on ten hits in five innings of work in his first outing against the Detroit Tigers, he put together a similar line in Friday night’s loss.
In 5.2 innings, Sevy surrendered four runs (all earned) on eights hits and only struck out two batters.
It’s way too early to say if Severino is about to struggle all year, but his season ERA is at 5.91 and his dominant arsenal is being figured out by his opposition.
