Game #34: Guardians at A’s Game Thread

Q: What is the significance of the Athletics' game against the Guardians?

The Athletics must win to avoid being swept by the Guardians, which would continue their troubling trend against this team.

Q: Who is starting for the Athletics in today's game?

Aaron Civale is starting for the Athletics, entering the game with a 2-1 record and a 3.23 ERA.

Q: How has Parker Messick performed this season for the Guardians?

Parker Messick has a 3-0 record with a 1.73 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP in his first six starts of the season.

Q: What recent roster changes did the Athletics make before the game?

The Athletics returned Luis Morales to Triple-A and recalled Tyler Ferguson to bolster their bullpen.

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 28: Aaron Civale #45 of the Athletics pitches in the top of the third inning against the Kansas City Royals at Sutter Health Park on April 28, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Justine Willard/Athletics/Getty Images) | Getty Images Over the past several seasons, the Athletics have had trouble defeating the Cleveland Guardians, a pattern that has continued this weekend. After losing the first two games of the series, the A’s must win today to prevent a Guardians’ sweep. The A’s fell apart last May, suffering a long losing streak that doomed any hopes they had of competing for the playoffs. Through the first couple days of May, 2026, the vibes are fairly similar as bad pitching, iffy defense and outfielder Lawrence Butler’s momentum-changing base running blunders have resulted in two-straight losses to begin the team’s second full month of the season. Nevertheless, the A’s remain in first-place in the American League West entering this afternoon’s series finale. Before we get to the game info, the A’s made a minor roster move this morning, returning right-handed pitcher Luis Morales to Triple-A following his struggles to throw strikes and limit baserunners over the final two innings of yesterday’s game. The team recalled fellow right-hander as the corresponding move. Last season, Ferguson went 4-2 with a 4.66 ERA in 56 relief appearances. He began this season with Triple-A Las Vegas, going 0-1 with a 6.17 ERA in 10 appearances. He is likely here to serve as a fresh arm for the team’s beleaguered bullpen, yet he will have a chance to take advantage of his opportunity like and Jack Perkins have done. Anyway, back to the contest at hand. Going for the A’s on the pitching side of things will be right-hander Aaron Civale, who has been one of the team’s most consistent starting pitchers so far this season. Civale enters his seventh start with a 2-1 record, 3.23 ERA and 24 strikeouts. In the wake of back-t0-back poor outings by starters and , the Athletics desperately need a quality start from Civale today if they want to salvage the final game of this home stand before traveling to the East Coast. Civale will have added motivation for this start, as it comes against the team that drafted him and where he spent the first five seasons of his career. The A’s starting lineup this afternoon looks like this: A’s manager Mark Kotsay is utilizing an interesting platoon-heavy lineup today. gets the start behind the plate because and his wife welcomed their first child this morning. Hopefully Wynns will get a couple hits and maybe an RBI this afternoon as the longer the backup catcher struggles at the plate, the more complaints the team will receive about not protecting young catching prospect from the Rule 5 Draft. Should Wynns get hurt, would replace him as he is the team’s emergency catcher for this game. Right-handed hitters and join Soderstrom in the outfield. Look for left-handed hitters and/or Lawrence Butler to pinch-hit if Cleveland brings in a right-hander. Lastly, is starting at third base once again instead of , who has sat on the bench every game since his promotion. Those hitters are set to go up against Cleveland left-hander , the latest talented young pitcher to emerge from the Guardians’ vaunted pitching development pipeline. The 25-year-old is off to a fabulous start through his first six starts of the season. He is 3-0 with a 1.73 ERA, a 0.88 WHIP and a 38-to-10 strikeout-to-walk ratio. A few outings ago, Messick lost his no-hitter attempt with three outs to go, illustrating how dominant he has been. A’s hitters must be patient, punish mistakes and hope that Messick is slightly off his game. If the left-hander is dealing, it could be a long day for the Athletics’ offense. Cleveland’s starting lineup this afternoon: Civale must be careful when pitching to the top four hitters in Cleveland’s lineup, especially rookie right fielder , who has tormented the A’s throughout the series. The A’s deserve to get swept if they let light-hitting catcher have another big offensive game. Need to win this one as it would not be good to start May by getting swept at home. Let’s go A’s!