Seattle is going with a tag-team approach for Tuesday’s matchup against the White Sox. Right-hander Luis Castillo is expected to piggyback fellow righty Bryce Miller. The club initially went with a six-man rotation when Miller returned, but will move Castillo to a bulk relief role, at least for now.
1. Ginn loses no-no, then the game
Athletics right-hander J.T. Ginn took a brutal loss on Monday night. He tossed eight no-hit innings with 10 strikeouts. After getting shut out for eight frames, the A’s opened the scoring with a tally in the top of the ninth inning. Ginn gave up a leadoff single to Adam Frazier in the bottom of the inning to break up the no-hitter. Zach Neto then ended the game with a walk-off home run. “You just keep your head up and keep moving forward,” Ginn told reporters (h/t Martin Gallegos of MLB.com). “It’s just the nature of the game that we play.” The 26-year-old righty has emerged as a reliable member of the A’s rotation. He’s delivered three straight quality starts to lower his ERA below 3.00. Ginn has gone 8+ innings in two of his last three appearances.
2. Emerson on the board
Mariners infielder Colt Emerson was called up on Sunday and immediately inserted into the starting lineup. The promotion happened so suddenly that his family wasn’t in attendance for his debut. Emerson went 0-for-3 in his first game. With more time to make the trip, Emerson’s parents and more than a dozen friends and relatives were in the stands on Monday against the White Sox. The 20-year-old snuck a line drive over the right field wall in the eighth inning for his first big-league hit. Emerson became the 11th player in Seattle history to homer for their first career knock (h/t Daniel Kramer of MLB.com). The last player to do it was Jarred Kelenic in 2021. Kelenic was in right field for Chicago, watching Emerson’s three-run blast soar over his head.
3. Crews headed back to the big leagues
Nationals outfielder Dylan Crews is expected to be recalled on Tuesday. The former No. 2 overall pick was somewhat surprisingly sent to Triple-A to open the season. Crews has rebounded from a slow start at Rochester with a strong May. The 24-year-old has hit .291 with nine extra-base hits in 14 games this month. Crews will get another shot to stick in the big leagues after a disappointing beginning to his career. The top prospect has a 78 wRC+ across parts of two seasons. He’s slashed .211/.282/.352 across 454 plate appearances. Crews has racked up 29 steals in 116 games, so the speed element has been there. He’ll just need to find a way to get on base more consistently.
Photo courtesy of Gary A. Vasquez, Imagn Images