The Oakland Athletics face off against the Seattle Mariners Friday night as they get their first look at Seattle Mariners rookie phenom Michael Pineda. In three starts this season, Pineda has gone 19 1/3 innings and given up five earned runs. It will be interesting to see the A’s struggling offense is able to jump on the youngster early, or this little Felix will follow in King Felix’s footsteps with a strong performance.
The A’s send out starter Tyson Ross, who will make his first start in place of injured starter Dallas Braden. Ross will likely make two or three starts in place of Braden, barring an extended stint for Braden on the DL. Ross competed for the fifth starter spot this spring and lost out to Brandon McCarthy who is off to a red-hot start. Ross has made three relief appearances since being recalled from AAA and will be making only the third start of his career. Ross struggled a bit in his two starts last season, lasting 7 2/3 total innings, giving up six earned runs.
Oakland Athletics
1. Coco Crisp, CF
2. Daric Barton, 1B
3. David DeJesus, RF
4. Josh Willingham, LF
5. Hideki Matsui, DH
6. Kurt Suzuki, C
7. Mark Ellis, 2B
8. Kevin Kouzmanoff, 3B
9. Cliff Pennington, SS
Seattle Mariners
1. Ichiro Suzuki, RF
2. Chone Figgins, 3B
3. Milton Bradley, LF
4. Jack Cust, DH
5. Adam Kennedy, 1B
6. Miguel Olivo, C
7. Ryan Langerhans, LF
8. Brendan Ryan, SS
9. Jack Wilson, 2B