Two of the worst teams in baseball will do battle on Tuesday as the Oakland A's travel to D.C. to take on the Washington Nationals in three-game inter-league battle. The A's and Nats are two of the worst teams in baseball and both teams have unloaded a number of key assets this season as they prepare the long, arduous road towards a rebuild. On the mound in the series opener will be lefty Cole Irvin (6-11, 3.16) of Oakland taking on Erick Fedde (5-8, 4.88) of the Nationals. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05pm EST.
The Oakland A's hit the road after a 3-4 home stand highlighted by the A's earning a hard-fought split with the New York Yankees over the weekend. The home stand started slowly as the A's dropped three of the first four games and looked primed to be swept by the Yankees following losses of 13-4 and 3-2 to the Bombers. On Saturday, however, the A's pitching came to the forefront as they held the powerful Yankee lineup to just one hit in 11-innings in a 3-2 win. On Sunday, the A's continued their pitching mastery of the Yankees with a 4-1 win. The A's had a day-off on Monday as they traveled across the country to battle the Nationals.
goodgamegoodgamegoodgamegoodgamegoodgamegoodgamegoodgamegoodgamegoodgamegoodgamegoodgamegoodgamegoodgamegoodgamegoodgamegoodgame pic.twitter.com/wow8r7Pqu6
— Oakland A's (@Athletics) August 28, 20 22
It has been a welcome sight as of late for Oakland A's fans, yes I think there are still some out there, as the team's pitching has been quite sturdy. In the four game series with New York, the A's held the Yankees to just five runs in three games after a 13-run Yankee outburst in the opener. The pitching was nearly as sharp vs. the Marlins in the previous series, holding Miami to just 10 runs in three games. On the mound in Tuesday's opener will be lefty Cole Irvin. Irvin has been one of the A's most consistent pitchers on the season. In his last five starts, he is 0-4 but has a solid ERA of 3.44 while allowing 28 hits in 33 innings and striking out 6.55 per nine innings.