A’s, White Sox enter series coming off key wins

The Athletics enter their three-game weekend series with the Chicago White Sox on Friday night coming off a milestone win.

Jacob Wilson’s two-out single in the bottom of the ninth drove in Luis Urias from second base with the winning run as the Athletics rallied for a 4-3 victory over the Texas Rangers on Thursday night.

It gave the A’s their first series victory in four tries in their temporary home in West Sacramento, Calif.

“It’s just a cool moment being able to walk off a game and obviously help your team win,” Wilson said after lining a 3-1 slider into center field off Rangers reliever Luke Jackson. “It’s a great feeling. … A great series win, and take this momentum going into tomorrow.”

“Tonight was a great night for our ballclub,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay added. “It just felt great, from a team standpoint, to get a win and a series win against a team that’s leading our division.”

It was just the fourth win in 12 home games for the Athletics, who are in last place but only two games out of first in the tight American League West.

Veteran Luis Severino (1-3, 3.31 ERA) is scheduled to start the series opener for the A’s and will be opposed by fellow right-hander Sean Burke (1-3, 6.23).

Severino is 2-3 with a 4.43 ERA in eight career appearances (seven starts) against the White Sox. Burke is 1-1 with a 7.56 ERA in two career starts against the A’s.

Severino, who signed a three-year, $67 million free-agent contract with the Athletics in December, picked up his first win with his new club in his most recent start last Saturday at Milwaukee, allowing one run on three hits over eight innings in a 3-1 victory.

Severino didn’t walk a batter and struck out just one. He threw 92 pitches, 63 for strikes, and recorded 13 outs on fly balls and 10 ground outs.

“Only one strikeout in eight innings, that’s old-school baseball,” Kotsay said. “He didn’t have a walk. He was pounding the zone, and they were putting the ball in play. … I thought he used his fastball really good. His sweeper was really good, too.”

Severino said he was relieved to finally pick up a win in his fifth start with his new team.

“It feels great,” he said. “I know (the Brewers) are a good team. They battled until the end. They put together great at-bats. So getting the win for the guys, for the team, I feel unbelievable tonight.”

Chicago comes in off a 3-0 rain-shortened, seven-inning win over the Minnesota Twins on Thursday afternoon in soggy Minneapolis. The White Sox snapped a 14-game losing streak at Target Field, the longest road losing streak against one opponent in team history.

It also was just the second win in 13 road games this season for the White Sox. Lenyn Sosa and Miguel Vargas each homered, and Rule 5 pickup Shane Smith picked up his first major league victory, allowing one walk and four hits while striking out seven over five innings.

“Really cool to get the first win,” Smith said after the rain-delayed win. “Not the way you picture it, but I think it was a good enough day that it could happen. … Not the way you write it up, but nothing is.”

The A’s swept the White Sox in a three-game series on April 15-17 in Chicago, outscoring the White Sox 23-4.

–Field Level Media