Oakland Athletics Roster
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Oakland Athletics right-hander James Kaprielian looks to be the odd man out of the rotation after Chris Bassitt (head) returns from the injured list on Thursday, according to manager Bob Melvin. It's not set in stone yet, and it depends on how Bassitt looks once he's back on the mound. Kaprielian is having a solid first full season in the majors, posting an 8-5 record and 3.80 ERA over 21 starts and 111.1 innings. The peripherals don't look as nice, though, as he's struck out 24.2% of the batters he's faced along with an 8.6 BB% and 17 HRs allowed. Still, he's been a good starter in many leagues, and this isn't the news that fantasy managers wanted to hear.
Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Chris Bassitt (face) has been confirmed as the team's scheduled starting pitcher for Thursday's game against the Seattle Mariners. There had been speculation that he would make his return for the game, but it has now been officially confirmed by Athletics manager Bob Melvin. Bassitt was hit in the face by a comebacker on August 17. He underwent surgery for multiple fractures in his face, but was able to work his way back in about a month. The 32-year-old should be rostered in all fantasy leagues. He has a 3.22 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP over 25 starts on the year.
Oakland Athletics outfielder Chad Pinder went 1-for-3 with a run scored in a loss to Seattle on Monday night. Pinder has been rotating playing time between right field, left field, and second base and hasn't been getting enough at-bats to justify a roster spot in fantasy. When he does play, he's slashing just .233/.294/.372 with just three homers and one steal on the season. He's a nice utility player for Oakland, but fantasy managers can continue to ignore Pinder on waivers.
Oakland Athletics outfielder Starling Marte went 1-for-4 with an RBI single in a loss to the Mariners on Monday. Marte got off to a torrid start to his A's career after the trade deadline, but he's cooled off considerably since that hot start. Since the start of September, Marte has just a .758 OPS, more than 100 points lower than the sturdy .882 OPS he posted in August. He's also been held in check on the basepaths as Marte has just three steals in September and has been caught twice; in August he was 19-for-19 on stolen base attempts. Marte is still a must-start outfielder in fantasy with three more games versus Seattle on tap.
Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Sean Manaea allowed four runs on eight hits to suffer his 10th loss of the season Monday versus the Mariners. The left-hander walked one and picked up just three strikeouts in his latest disappointing start. Manaea has now allowed nine runs in his last 10 innings and has a 6.95 ERA going back to the start of August. He did have back-to-back seven inning starts with nine strikeouts back on September 3 and 9, but other than those starts, Manaea has not pitched past the fifth inning in any start since July and has allowed at least four runs in four starts in that span. Manaea is not a recommended starter in his next start versus a deadly Astros lineup.