Oakland Athletics Vs. New York Yankees: Series Preview
Yesterday I had the great honor to join Ricky Keeler of Yankes Go Yard on his radio show. We previewed the upcoming series against the New York Yankees.
We discussed Bob Melvin’s job security, the reasons for Oakland’s poor start, and what to look for in the four-game set vs. the Yankees.
Next: Hear Our A's-Yankees Series Preview
Some notes and stats to preview the series:
Game 1: LHP CC Sabathia vs. RHP Kendall Graveman, Thursday, May 28 @ 7:05 PM
Game 2: LHP Chris Capuano vs. RHP Sonny Gray, Friday, May 29 @ 7:05 PM
Game 3: RHP Nathan Eovaldi vs. RHP Jesse Hahn, Saturday, May 30 @ 7:05 PM
Game 4: RHP Adam Warren vs. RHP Jesse Chavez, Sunday, May 31 @ 1:05 PM
- A’s hold the advantage of starting rotation: Top AL team in SP WAR and ERA.
- Yankees have a superior bullpen: Top AL team in RP WAR, 3rd in ERA.
- A’s hitters have the 3rd lowest K-rate in baseball, Yankees bullpen has best K/9 in the AL.
- A’s have the 3rd best lineup vs. RHP, Yankees have the 9th best.
- A’s have the 3rd worst lineup vs LHP. They face LHP in each of the first two games.
MATCHUP TO WATCH: Game 3 (Eovaldi vs. Hahn)
- Eovaldi is very hittable, evidenced by his 1.500 WHIP. A’s are middle-of-the-pack vs. fastball and slider (Eovaldi’s two most used pitches)
- Hahn has electric stuff but going deep into games has been his problem. The Yankees are a top-10 team vs. fastball and curveball (Hahn’s most often used pitches)
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
- Ben Zobrist, OAK – The switch hitter can neutralize the Yankees matchup advantage in the first two games.
- Kendall Graveman, OAK: Can he build upon his recent gem vs TB? Yankees have 4th lowest GB-FB ratio in baseball and Graveman’s best bet is to generate lots of ground balls.
- Chris Capuano, NYY: He’s been lit up in his two starts, can the LHP limit the A’s hitters?
- Chase Headley, NYY: He’s risen his average and OBP more than 20 points in May. He’s hit safely in 16 of 22 games this month with 3 homers and 12 RBI.