Chicago Blasts the A's in First Sacramento Home Series

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA

March 31, 2025 - The A’s lost their first home game of 2025 by a score of 18-3 versus the Chicago Cubs. Major League Baseball was introduced to Sacramento in grandiose fashion, with the home team losing by a margin of 15 runs in front of a sellout crowd of 12,119. 

Jacob Wilson’s RBI groundout to second base narrowed Chicago’s lead to 5-3 going into the fifth inning. A’s starter Joey Estes would depart in the top of the fifth inning after the Cubs increased their lead to 10-3. Chicago’s Kyle Tucker would place the nail in the already-buried coffin with a 417 foot 9th inning homer. Tucker ended his day 4 for 7 with three RBIs.

Cubs catcher Carson Kelly batted ninth and was 4 for 4 with a walk. Kelly knocked in five runs and became the first Cubs catcher to hit for the cycle since Mark Grace in 1993. 

Rookie infielders Jacob Wilson and Max Muncy were the only players to tally RBIs for the Athletics in the 18-3 wallop. Wilson gave the Athletics faithful something to cheer about with his first MLB home run in the 3rd inning off Chicago starting pitcher Ben Brown

Opening day starter Luis Severino will take the hill for the next game of the series vs. Chicago. 

April 1, 2025 | Chicago: 7 Athletics: 4 The Athletics lost by a modest score of 7-4 on April fools day. Both designated hitters - Seiya Suzuki and Brent Rooker would trade homers in the first inning; setting the stage for a rough day ahead for both starting pitchers. 

Chicago’s Justin Steele prevailed and earned his second win of the year despite allowing four earned runs across 6.2 innings pitched. The Athletics’ Luis Severino entered the contest with an impressive 1.00 career ERA against the Chicago Cubs in 27 innings. The Cubs handed Severino his first loss of the season after he surrendered five earned runs. 

Brent Rooker and Shea Langeliers smashed home runs off Steele. Chicago’s Kyle Tucker increased his home run streak to four straight games with a blast off Severino. 

Athletics relievers surrendered 10 earned runs the previous night vs. Chicago. T. J. McFarland was the only A’s pitcher to allow a run out of the bullpen. Tyler Ferguson and Justin Sterner pitched the final 2 1/3 innings, and neither allowed a run. 

Offseason acquisition Jeffrey Springs will be the starting pitcher tomorrow as the Athletics look to avoid the sweep against the red hot Cubbies. 

April 2, 2025 | Chicago: 10 Athletics: 2 The A’s lose by a touchdown & 2-point conversion - the Cubs sweep the first series in Sacramento. 

Chicago held a 5-0 lead until a Brent Rooker blast cut the Cubs’ lead down to three. The A’s offense fell silent as the Cubs were victorious 10-2. A’s shortstop Jacob Wilson tallied three of the Athletics five hits in the contest - increasing his season batting average to .375. 

Jeffrey Springs struggled in his second outing for the A’s, allowing four earned runs and walking three batters in his three innings of work. Springs struck out nine batters in his season debut against Seattle - allowing only three hits and zero runs. 

Seiya Suzuki smashed two homers and rookie third baseman Matt Shaw tallied two RBIs to lead Chicago to a sweep of the Athletics. 

Weekend Outlook

The Cubs throttled the Athletics by a score of 35-9 across the three games of the inaugural series at Sutter Health Park.  The Athletics’ record dropped to 2-5 as they will embark to Denver for the Rockies first home series of the 2025 season. 

Jacob Wilson and Tyler Soderstrom will look to continue their hot starts to the ’25 season. Brent Rooker has hit homers in back-to-back games and appears to be settling in at the second spot in the lineup. I anticipate the recently extended Lawrence Butler will find his groove in the leadoff spot sooner rather than later. 

Luis Severino was signed to a three-year contract worth $67 million in the offseason. His signing reflected the first long-term financial commitment by the Athletics organization in my recent lifetime. On paper, it’s fair to expect Severino to be the ace of the rotation with the price tag attached. The only comparable A’s signing prior to Severino was infielder Eric Chavez in 2004. The (then Oakland) Athletics signed Chavez to a six-year $66 million contract extension. 

Chavez won six consecutive gold gloves with Oakland from 2001 to 2006. 

For the sake of comparison:

Juan Soto, the most coveted free agent of the offseason, was signed by the New York Mets for 15 years, $765 million. 

It’s unfair to expect the young core of A’s hitters to power them to victory every night. At their best, starting pitchers Luis Severino and Jeffrey Springs can be all-stars. Questions lie with JP Sears, Osvaldo Bido, and Joey Estes in the rotation. The Athletics bullpen (besides Mason Miller) is also unproven at this juncture. 

Thankfully, the young Athletics have another 155 games to get major league reps and make a run at the playoffs.