Jeffrey

Springs

Springs could not hold the early lead his offense granted him. Home runs by Seiya Suzuki and Pete Crow-Armstrong plus a run-scoring triple from Michael Busch and a heap of other hard-hit balls between them forced Springs to hit the showers early. Both his bullpen and lineup picked him up though, so he didn’t get saddled with the loss. Proceed with caution ahead of a two-start week for Springs against the Brewers and Rockies, with both starts coming at home.

The unearned runs came in the first after Jeff McNeil’s error with two outs extended the inning for Rob Refsnyder to hit a three-run homer. However, things never would have gotten started in the first place if Springs hadn’t been slow to cover first base on J.P. Crawford’s infield single to begin the inning. Springs struck out seven on the day. His ERA dropped ever so slightly to 4.07, but he’s now 3-6 this season. He’ll face the Cubs at Wrigley next week.

It sounds like a matchup-driven decision as the Athletics are handing the ball to a pair of left handers in top pitching prospect Gage Jump and veteran Jeffrey Springs for the final two games of their current series against the Mariners. Severino will take the ball on extra rest against his former organization later this week in West Sacramento.

Springs struck out three batters in the ballgame while issuing three free passes. Unfortunately for him, all three of the hits that he allowed left the yard — with Manny Machado belting a two-run shot in the opening inning while Nick Castellanos and Ramon Laureano added solo homers in the fifth and seventh respectively. Springs got 11 whiffs on 95 pitches on the night, registering a CSW of 26 percent. He’ll look to get back in the win column as he brings a 4.11 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and a 50/19 K/BB ratio (61 1/3 innings) into Wednesday’s matchup against the Mariners.

The one earned run was the result of a wind-aided Luis Arraez homer, so this was a particularly tough loss for Springs today. Since opening up 3-0 with a 1.46 ERA, he’s gone 0-4 with a 5.93 ERA in his last six starts. He’ll pitch in San Diego on Friday.

The Cardinals got to Springs right away, putting four runs on the board on a walk and four hits in the opening frame. He settled in to give the A’s four more scoreless innings, scattering three more hits and two walks while collecting five strikeouts. The 33-year-old left-hander will take a 4.22 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, and a 44/15 K/BB ratio across 49 innings into a start against the Giants in Sacramento on Friday.

Springs struck out four and walked none before leaving with a one-run lead, which was later blown. Springs left his last start with hip soreness, but he definitely seemed healthy tonight and was actually throwing a little harder than usual. He’ll bring a 3-2 record and a 3.89 ERA into his start against the Cardinals on Tuesday. He’s also due to face the Giants in a two-start week, making him an intriguing streaming option.

Springs was pulled from Thursday’s outing against the Royals due to soreness in his right hip, but it appears to have been only minor issue. It sounds like fantasy managers should expect to have him available at some point next week.

Prior to exiting, Springs had given up two runs on five hits and a walk while striking out four over his three innings of work. Unfortunately, he exited with a 5-2 lead and in line for a potential victory had he been able to work through another couple of frames. Expect the A’s to provide an update up his status and a potential timeline for his return as soon as more information is available.

Things could have gone better for Springs, who allowed just three hard-hit balls on the night. The big blow was Josh Jung’s two-run to right-center, and that would have left only 11 of the 30 ballparks. Besides that, Springs gave up four singles and two walks. He dropped to 3-2 with a 3.79 ERA ahead of a start against Cleveland next week.