Previewing the Final Battle of the Bay Series

Dylan Grausz | Aug 17, 2024

Aug 5, 2024; Oakland, California, USA; Oakland Athletics starting pitcher JP Sears (38) delivers a pitch against the Chicago White Sox during the first inning at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Neville E. Guard-USA TODAY Sports / Neville E. Guard-USA TODAY Sports

The time has come. After years of having both the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics face off for years in the Battle of the Bay, the final ever series between the two teams with the A’s in Oakland kicks off this weekend, with the Giants heading across the Bay to play a short Saturday and Sunday two-game series. Here is everything you need to know and a little preview of the final Battle of the Bay series.

Probable pitching matchups

Saturday: (SF) Hayden Birdsong, 3-2, 5.40 ERA vs. (OAK) Osvaldo Bido, 3-3, 3.92 ERA

Sunday: (SF) Blake Snell, 2-3, 3.91 ERA vs. (OAK) JP Sears, 10-8, 4.32 ERA

Saturday’s matchup will feature the rookie Birdsong, who after getting called back up at the end of July, has been adjusting to being back in the Giants rotation, making a start on August 6 where he gave up seven runs in two innings and a start on August 11th where he gave up five runs in 4 1/3 innings. This comes after a month of July saw him post a 2.45 ERA. Bido, who ended July by giving up seven runs in 3 2/3 innings to the Angels, has regained his rhythm for Oakland, pitching six innings of shutout ball in his most recent start against Toronto while before that, he pitched six innings against the Dodgers, only giving up two earned runs. 

Sunday’s matchup brings Blake Snell, who since the all-star break has arguably been one of baseball’s best pitchers, even throwing a no-hitter on August 2 against the Reds, to the mound where the 31-year-old lefty will look to continue his dominance as of late, having posted an impressive 0.99 ERA over his last seven starts. As for Sears, his last seven games have also been impressive, with the left-hander posting a 2.91 ERA and a 6-1 record, including pitching seven shutout innings against the Giants in San Francisco on July 30.

Players to watch - Athletics

C Shea Langeliers

Seeing some struggles early in the season, August has been the month of a lifetime for Langeliers, who has upped his season batting average to .230 after currently having a run where he has hit .371, going 12-for-24 over his last seven games with two games in the team’s most recent series against the Mets where he had a multi-hit day. Langeliers, who made his MLB debut in 2022, has solidified himself as the team’s consistent everyday catcher but has really established himself in 2024, adding in some immense power to his swing with his 22 home runs and 61 RBI. Extremely hot as of late, another good weekend for Langeliers could help bring more consistency for the future.

OF Brent Rooker

All season long, and even the last two years, Rooker has been the A’s most reliable hitter as he currently has a .293 average with 29 home runs and 83 RBI, evolving into one of the league’s best power hitters. And while he has been extremely dominant and consistent all year, Rooker missed the series against the Mets due to being placed on the paternity list with his wife giving birth to their baby girl, but is expected to return on Saturday, coming back with “dad-strength.". Getting a star back is always helpful for any team, but for the A’s to get a guy like Rooker back just adds another big bat into the middle of a pretty potent offense.

OF JJ Bleday

A strong month of August was highlighted by Bleday’s first career grand-slam, which he hit in the A’s final game of the series against the Mets in the A's come-from-behind win. This was just another moment of an August that has seen the third year pro hit .341 with multiple multi-hit games. Hitting .249 with 15 home runs and 45 RBI, Bleday has become a very reliable and consistent presence in the batting order while also playing a tremendous center field. Traded to the A’s in February of 2023 for A.J. Puk, the former first round pick has developed nicely during his time with the A’s.

Players to watch - Giants

LHP Blake Snell

At the beginning of the season, the argument could be made that the Giants were in the rut that they were in because of Snell’s struggles, starting only six games between April 8 and June 2nd before going on the injured list, having an ERA of 9.51 at the end of that month. However things have quickly changed for Snell lately, who has done nothing but impress for San Francisco over the last month. Slated to pitch game two of the series, Snellzilla will certainly be a big factor this weekend.

SS Tyler Fitzgerald

Is it possible that the Giants have found the heir to Barry Bonds? It may be a bit of a stretch to say that of Fitzgerald, after all, he is still a rookie. But what he has done this season since becoming more of an everyday contributor for San Francisco has been undeniably incredible, especially his month of July where he hit eight home runs including a span from July 9-27 where homered in six of the Giants’ eight games in that span. Proving himself to be a staple in the lineup, expect Fitzgerald to be all over the place in Oakland.

3B Matt Chapman

This one is interesting. Chapman, who played for the A’s from 2017-2021 where he won three gold glove awards and was elected as an All-Star in 2019, returns to Oakland for the first time as a member of the Giants after getting his first taste of being on the other side of the Battle of the Bay in July when the A’s came to San Francisco. In that series, Chapman went 1-for-6 but has since looked like a completely different player since the calendar has flipped to August, not only continuing his strong play at third base but he has also dominated with the bat, hitting .291 over his last 15 games. A much anticipated homecoming should be fun for the former A’s star.

Fun facts about the series

166 - total number of times the A’s and Giants have faced each other with the A’s leading the all-time series 88-78

Four - amount of times that both teams have faced each other in the World Series, with the most recent being in 1989 where the A’s famously swept after a 10-day delay due to the Loma Prieta earthquake. Overall, the A’s are 3-1 against the Giants in the World Series, also winning in 1911 and 1913

Seven - longest win streak that the A’s have had in the series all-time, winning every meeting between June 8, 2007- June 27, 2008