MLB
Today, the A’s got a devastating blow to their roster. Sean Manaea, their ace pitcher, has been reported injured for the rest of 2018 season with shoulder surgery. Manaea threw a no-hitter against the best MLB team at the moment, the Boston Red Sox. To have a guy that can shut down any lineup, anytime, just go down, that’s devastating, especially going into the playoffs. The A’s are 7.5 games ahead of the Mariners for the second wild card spot. If they were going into the Wild Card Game vs the Yankees, they would have had Manaea pitch, but now that is not an option.
The A’s will now need to rely on the lineup to support with the runs. Which they have done, and very well. Guys like Kris Davis, Matt Chapman, and Jed Lowrie have really stepped up. However, if they were to go into a game against guys like Judge, Stanton, and Gregorious, could those guys hold up against that lineup without their star pitcher? I’m going to say no. Severino would most likely pitch for New York, and he is way better than guys like Edwin Jackson, Brett Anderson, and Mike Fiers, all of whom are guys who would be replacing Sean Manaea in that game. So this is devastating for the A’s.
Will They Even Make The Playoffs?
So without their star ace, the question remains, will the A’s even make it to October baseball? They have a comfortable 7.5 game lead over Seattle, so they should be fine. However, don’t doubt the Mariners. They can go on a run at any point, I just think it might be a little too late at this point. So I think that the A’s will end up making it to the Wild Card Game, but without Sean Manaea, I don’t see them leaving the Bronx with a W.
To wrap this up, October is only 20 days away. And with October comes playoff baseball, only the best time of year. All of us at the TSJ MLB department are going to be working hard to make articles on every playoff game, story, and preview there is, so you will want to stay tuned. You can do so by following us on Twitter, Facebook, or on our new YouTube channel.
Photo credit to Scott U via Flickr
