The A’s begin a new series still in search of a win to break their eight-game losing streak. They’ll try to topple the Cleveland Guardians to do it tonight on enemy turf.
You’d normally expect to see Chad Pinder in the lineup against a left-handed starter, but Mark Kotsay said before the game that he’s dealing with a stiff neck. That said, he’s available off the bench. Corner infielder Matt Davidson gets his third straight start for Oakland since joining the team, his first at first base. And Sean Murphy, after getting demoted to the eighth slot before a good series in Atlanta, gets bumped all the way back up to the cleanup spot for the series opener.