Athletics Take Two of Three From Yankees in Probable Playoff Preview

In what is an increasingly likely matchup of the American League Wild Card teams, the New York Yankees traveled to the West Coast for a three game set in Oakland against the Athletics September 3rd-5th. Oakland has been a surprise this year, but long ago dispelled the notion that they weren’t for real and would fade. This series was no exception, as the Athletics took two of the three games, winning 6-3 on September 3rd and 8-2 September 5th, while the Yankees took the middle game 5-1.

Oakland has had several players contribute this year, and the club has made some good moves to get the players they need to fill some holes. In search of an extra starting pitching, the Athletics made a trade with the Detroit Tigers for righthander Mike Fiers in early August. Fiers allowed two runs in six innings of the September 5th game and was the winning pitcher. He’s 4-0 with a 2.94 ERA since joining the club. They’ve also added veteran relievers Fernando Rodney and Jeurys Familia to go along with closer Blake Treinan, who has 36 saves.

Khris Davis is having a monster year, with 40 home runs and 106 RBIs, and is battling Boston’s J.D. Martinez for the league lead in those categories. The Athletics have seven other players with home runs in double figures so they have plenty of pop in the lineup.

After taking two of three from New York, Oakland closed to within 3 1/2 games of the Yankees for the top Wild Card. Back in May, the Yankees took two of three from the Athletics at Yankee Stadium, so in the one game Wild Card format, it’s good to play the game at home. Although Oakland is only 3 1/2 games behind division leading Houston, the Athletics and Astros have completed regular season play against each other, making it more difficult for Oakland to catch up, and the Astros are playing well again. But Oakland has a favorable schedule, with only six games against teams with winning records in their final 21 games, so a division championship or getting the top Wild Card is not out of the question.

Here’s some highlights from the September 5th game: