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4/27 Gamethread: Giants vs. A’s

Sam Long vs. Paul Blackburn

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A photo of the stands along the first base line at Oracle Park during a daytime game. Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/MLB Photos via Getty Images

The San Francisco Giants and Oakland Athletics wrap up part one of the Bay Bridge Series today at Oracle Park.

It will be another bullpen day for the Giants, with Sam Long once again getting the start. It’s worked so far. In 5.2 innings of work this season, Long has allowed only three hits, one walk, and zero runs, striking out five. Long is, obviously, not a starter, and he just opened Monday’s game, so I would imagine he will be unlikely to go past the first inning. This could potentially be another opportunity for Jakob Junis to have another turn in both long relief, and Long relief.

I’ll see myself out.

Anyway, the bullpen will be facing off against right-hander Paul Blackburn, another Northern California local. This is Blackburn’s sixth season with the A’s, and it is looking nothing like the previous five. Obviously it’s quite early in the season, but his numbers in past seasons vs. 2022 are night and day. He’d had a career 5.74 ERA before this season, and now he’s posting a 1.80 ERA, 1.41 FIP with 14 strikeouts to one walk in 15 innings pitched over three starts, in which he’s averaging five innings.

The Brandons (Belt and Crawford) are the only two Giants to have faced Blackburn, and they each have a .333 average in three at-bats.


Lineups

Giants

  1. Joc Pederson, RF
  2. Brandon Belt, 1B
  3. Darin Ruf, LF
  4. Brandon Crawford, SS
  5. Wilmer Flores, DH
  6. Luis González, CF
  7. Thairo Estrada, 2B
  8. Jason Vosler, 3B
  9. Curt Casali, C

P: Sam Long, LHP

A’s

  1. Chad Pinder, LF
  2. Sheldon Neuse, 3B
  3. Sean Murphy, C
  4. Stephen Piscotty, RF
  5. Christian Bethancourt, DH
  6. Seth Brown, 1B
  7. Elvis Andrus, SS
  8. Cristian Pache, CF
  9. Tony Kemp, 2B

P: Paul Blackburn, RHP


Game #19

Who: San Francisco Giants (13-5) vs. Oakland A’s (9-9)

Where: Oracle Park, San Francisco, CA

When: 6:45 pm PT

Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area Plus for the Giants and NBC Sports California for the A’s (available on fuboTV)

National broadcast: n/a

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, 1510 AM KSFN