A’s, off to historically awful start, hope to bounce back against M’s

All José Caballero wanted was an opportunity.

Now, he’s pretty much taken over the starting second base job for the seattle marinersreplacing $10 million man Kolten Wong

gentleman and the sailors will continue its four-game series against the visitor oakland athletics Wednesday night

“In the offseason, I prepared myself. I wanted the opportunity,” said Caballero, a 26-year-old rookie. “And I’m very grateful that I had the opportunity to show myself in spring training… Now, I’m just trying to be there trying to play every day to try to help the team win.”

Caballero, called up from Triple-A Tacoma in mid-April, is hitting .276 with two home runs and 10 RBIs in 24 games for the offensively challenged. sailors. He is also 6-for-6 in stolen base attempts. By contrast, Wong is hitting .172 with no home runs, eight RBIs and no steals.

Caballero hit his first major league home run and stole three bases in Seattle’s 3-2 loss at Atlanta on Sunday, then hit a three-run home run as the sailors opened its series against the Athletics with an 11-2 victory on Monday

“Since the day he appeared here, he was not in awe of anything.” sailors said manager Scott Servais. “He even made the comment, ‘All the little things I bring up here at the big league level: stealing bases, turning a double play, just getting on base and doing the little things.’

Caballero had a night off on Tuesday as sailors rebounded for a 3-2 victory, improving to 5-0 against the A’s this season. JP Crawford hit a two-run homer and Ty France did it twice in the fifth inning, accounting for all of Seattle’s runs.

Lefty Marco Gonzales put together a quality start after giving up two Oakland runs in the first inning. It lasted six innings.

“I think Marco settled in. His cutter is effective, his changeup down keeps you off balance. He went the four-seam route,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay said. “He made an adjustment after that first inning, and we couldn’t make the adjustment again. He’s a veteran pitcher and he’s there for a reason.”

Oakland suffered its sixth straight loss and fell to a 10-40 record, the worst 50-game record in the majors since the Boston Red Sox started 10-40 in 1932.

The A’s are scheduled to send lefty Ken Waldichuk (1-3, 6.85 ERA) to the mound Wednesday to oppose sailors right-hander Bryce Miller (2-1, 1.42)

Waldichuk has made one previous start against Seattle, allowing one run in five innings during a no-decision game on September 30, 2022.

Waldichuk is coming off a 5-1 loss at Houston on Friday, when he allowed four runs (three earned) and five hits in five innings. He has struggled with control of himself, walking at least five batters in each of his last three starts and 28 in 46 innings this season, against 39 strikeouts. That has contributed to a WHIP of 1,848.

Miller made his major league debut in Oakland on May 2, starting with five perfect innings. He ended up allowing one run and two hits in six innings and became the third pitcher in modern baseball history to not walk and record 10 strikeouts in his opening start.

He sailors he could be without France on Wednesday, as he was hit on the outside of his left wrist by a pitch from reliever Trevor May in the eighth inning on Tuesday. Servais said France suffered a concussion and he is likely to sit for a day or two.

–Field level media