Bryan Armetta offers up a preview, prediction and pick for Tuesday’s MLB game between the Athletics and San Francisco Giants.
An old-school interleague matchup continues today at Oracle Park. The Athletics (38-42) are on the rise, sitting just 2.5 games out of first place in the AL West. It’s a different story for the Giants (33-46), who have struggled in the top-heavy NL West. Regardless, Thursday’s game presents an opportunity for San Francisco to earn a series sweep. Which side has the edge this afternoon?
The Giants are favorites (-131) over the Athletics, with the over/under set at eight runs. Below, I’ve laid out my preview, prediction, and best bet for Thursday’s showdown between the A’s and San Francisco on DraftKings Sportsbook.
An intriguing pitching matchup is on tap this afternoon. For the visiting A’s, it’ll be Jeffrey Springs toeing the slab. Despite a decent start to his 2026 campaign, the veteran has been in a tailspin as of late. Over 16 starts this season (82.2 IP), the southpaw has recorded a 5.55 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and 72 strikeouts (7.8 K/9). Most troubling, Springs has coughed up an MLB-worst 21 home runs to opponents. Granted, part of his struggles are due to playing home games at hitter-friendly Sutter Health Park. Still, he only has a middling 4.28 ERA and 1.19 WHIP on the road.
The Giants, to the shock of absolutely no one, remain one of baseball’s worst hitting lineups. They’re 23rd in runs per game (4.08), 27th in on-base percentage (.309) and 20th in home runs (84). In many ways, they are the exact opposite of the Athletics. Oracle Park’s dimensions make power difficult to come by. When these teams met on May 17th, Springs held the Giants to one run and five hits over six innings. Still, he’s looked much worse on the mound since that outing.
Springs relies heavily on a mediocre fastball, which he’s thrown on 44% of his pitches. His velocity tops out at just over 91 MPH. Against four-seamers at that speed or slower, Giants batters have put up an impressive .292/.350/.540 slash line.
On the other side, it’ll be Landen Roupp making his 16th start of the season. All things considered, the right-hander has emerged as a solid member of this pitching staff. Through 80.1 innings, he’s accounted for a 4.15 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 89 strikeouts (10.0 K/9). Per Savant, a 3.29 xERA and .229 xBA suggest he’s gotten unlucky so far. In fact, the 27-year-old sits within the 87th percentile in barrel rate (3.8%), hard-hit rate (29.9%) and ground ball rate (51.4%). That tendency to limit hard contact should serve him well, especially against today’s opponents.
It’s no secret that the Athletics are an offensively-minded ball club. They’re 12th in runs per game (4.58) and sixth in home runs (106). The duo of Nick Kurtz (164 wRC+) and Shea Langeliers (128 wRC+) have crushed American League pitching all season. However, this is a below-average lineup when hitting outside of Sacramento. As previously mentioned, Roupp excels at preventing the ball from elevating. In comparison, the A’s own baseball’s ninth-highest ground ball rate (44.1%). Even if the visitors do manage to make solid contact, San Francisco’s spacious ball park makes homers extremely difficult.
The A’s have been the better team all season, but you’re only as good as the next day’s starting pitcher. In that regard, Roupp holds a significant advantage over the struggling Springs. Not to mention, the Athletics have only managed to score two runs combined over their last two contests. An offensive bounce back isn’t impossible today, but it feels unlikely.
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