Athletics ride momentum to Petco as Padres slip

Athletics vs – First-place Sacramento brings a three-game win streak and a 1½-game lead in the AL West to Petco on Friday, while San Diego, now 1½ games behind in the NL West after dropping two of three to the Dodgers, tries to arrest its slide. The series runs Friday at 6:4

At Petco Park, the standings don’t just sit there. They press—on pitching choices, on bullpen trust, on how fast a team has to find answers.

The Sacramento Athletics arrive for a three-game set against the San Diego Padres with a three-game winning streak and a 1½-game lead in the AL West. Their next game is Friday at 6:40 p.m., followed by Saturday at 6:40 p.m. and Sunday at 1:10 p.m., with all games on Padres.TV.

San Diego comes in two days of urgency later than it wanted. The Padres dropped two of three to the rival Dodgers to start the week, and they are now 1½ games out of first place in the NL West.

Sacramento is 26-24 and ranked 14th in run differential at minus-4. Offensively, it’s tied for seventh in OPS at .726. In pitching, the Athletics sit 18th in rotation ERA at 4.24 and 21st in bullpen ERA at 4.44. The picture is complicated by streak and division math. though: Sacramento has still managed to win three straight. and it has a cushion—1½ games—over the Texas Rangers.

San Diego is 29-20 and second in the NL West. Its run differential is plus-3, ranking 11th. But its OPS is 29th at .658. The Padres have a rotation ERA of 4.45 (21st) and a bullpen ERA of 3.32 (seventh). Last season, the Padres won two of three in Sacramento, a reminder that this matchup has moved both ways before.

The series pitching begins Friday with a contrast in styles and stakes. Sacramento will send LHP Jeffrey Springs (3-4, 3.93 ERA). His 91.4 mph average fastball velocity is in the bottom 10% among qualifying pitchers. Four of his 10 starts have been quality starts, and he’s struck out 47 against 16 walks through 55 innings. Springs has an 8.31 ERA in 8⅔ career innings against the Padres. including beating them in a quality start last year in Sacramento (6 IP. 4 R. 3 ER).

San Diego counters with RHP Walker Buehler (3-2, 5.01 ERA). Buehler has allowed two or fewer earned runs in five of his last seven starts. posting a 4.15 ERA in that stretch. At Petco Park, he has a 3.16 ERA in five starts and is holding right-handers to a .600 OPS. His only start against the A’s came in 2020 (4 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 Ks).

Saturday adds another chess move. Sacramento will start RHP J.T. Ginn (2-2, 2.98 ERA). The third-year starter went eight innings in his last start. but lost both the no-hitter and the game via a walkoff homer. He has a 44-to-17 strikeout-to-walk ratio through 51 ⅓ innings, and a 2.64 ERA in eight starts. It is Ginn’s first appearance against the Padres.

For San Diego, the starter is RHP Lucas Giolito (1-0, 5.40 ERA). He sat 90.4 mph while allowing three runs in five innings on Sunday in his Padres debut in Seattle. Giolito struck out three and walked three. In his career starts against the Athletics. he has a 5.01 ERA. and he has a 7.71 ERA in one career start at Petco Park (2025).

Sunday’s matchup leans into a different kind of pressure: if you can’t get through innings, the bullpen has to carry too much.

Sacramento will use LHP Jacob Lopez (3-2, 6.14 ERA). Lopez has allowed 11 homers in 44 innings and has nearly as many walks (30) as strikeouts (32). He has yet to complete six innings in a start this year, and Sunday will be his first career appearance against the Padres.

San Diego’s starter is RHP Michael King (4-2, 2.31 ERA). He’s coming off his best start of the season: nine strikeouts over seven shutout innings to beat the Dodgers. King has allowed two or fewer runs in eight of his 10 starts. Against the Dodgers, he has a 3.75 ERA in 12 career innings. Last year in Sacramento, King beat them with three runs in 5 ⅔ innings.

The series also brings a spotlight on form—who is producing right now, and how much the teams can lean on their late innings.

For Sacramento. 3B Zack Gelof and DH Brent Rooker both have five homers this month. and C Shea Langeliers has four. 1B Nick Kurtz has 21 RBIs in 19 games this month, along with a team-best 1.017 OPS. OF Tyler Soderstrom has a .561 OPS this month. In the bullpen. LHP Hogan Harris (3.00 ERA) leads the team with 26 appearances this season. followed by 24 from RHP Justin Sterner (3.80) and 23 each from RHPs Scott Barlow (3.09) and Mark Leiter (6.23).

For San Diego. 1B Gavin Sheets has five homers and a 1.058 OPS so far in May. while DH Miguel Andujar has four homers and an .813 OPS to start the month. Because neither has enough at-bats to qualify among leaders, no regulars have an OPS over .585 this month. 3B Manny Machado has been the worst of that group, posting a .439 OPS despite hitting three home runs. Four relievers have not allowed an earned run this month: RHP Jason Adam (7⅔ IP). Mason Miller (7⅓ IP) and LHP Wandy Peralta (9⅔ IP) and Yuki Matsui (10 IP).

Those bullpen numbers matter because the rest of the calendar is already squeezing these clubs. Sacramento has been strong enough to keep winning while ranking low on run differential and mid-to-lower on both rotation and bullpen ERA. San Diego. meanwhile. is trying to correct an offense that ranks 29th in OPS at .658. even as its bullpen ERA sits at 3.32 (seventh).

What makes this stretch feel sharp is how close the standings are. Sacramento is first in the AL West at 26-24 with a 1½-game lead on the Texas Rangers. while San Diego is 1½ games out of first in the NL West after falling to the Dodgers. One series swing could change the pressure each club feels walking into the next week.

In the background of all that, injuries are shaping who can be counted on. Sacramento’s SS Jacob Wilson won’t return from his left shoulder subluxation until at least late June. 3B Max Muncy (hand) does not yet have a timeline. OF Denzel Clarke (foot) could return later this month. RHP Brooks Kriske (shoulder) is out until June, and RHP Gunnar Hoglund (hip) is done for the year following surgery.

San Diego has its own question marks. OF Jackson Merrill exited Wednesday’s game with back discomfort after he crashed into the outfield wall trying to rob a home run. C Luis Campusano (toe) donned catching gear in early work on Wednesday as he begins to increase baseball activity. while 2B Jake Cronenworth (concussion) has not made much progress. RHP Germán Márquez (forearm nerve) has begun to throw bullpens. and RHP Jhony Brito (UCL) is rehabbing at Double-A San Antonio. RHPs Matt Waldron (brachialis), Nick Pivetta (flexor) and Joe Musgrove (Tommy John) remain in rest modes.

The series begins Friday under a simple, stubborn truth: Sacramento is riding momentum toward first place, while San Diego needs something more than good headlines. It needs outcomes—three times in three days—before the gap in the standings becomes harder to close.

Athletics Padres Petco Park AL West NL West Jeffrey Springs Walker Buehler J.T. Ginn Lucas Giolito Jacob Lopez Michael King Zack Gelof Brent Rooker Shea Langeliers Nick Kurtz Gavin Sheets Miguel Andujar Manny Machado bullpen