Athletics at Boston Red Sox

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ATH	0	0	0	1	2	2	1	0	1	7	8	1
BOS	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	3	10	0

Jake Bennett (7-4, 2.90 ERA) takes the ball for Boston on Saturday, August 8, against Athletics lefty Gage Jump (4-7, 4.59), and it's not much of a contrast — Bennett's coming off a win over the Dodgers while Jump got shelled by the Tigers, lasting just 3.2 innings and walking 6 in his last outing.

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FINAL

Spread

ML

Total

Athletics(45-70)

LLLLL

7

+1.5+133+251o9.5+130

Red Sox(63-51)

WWWWW

3

-1.5-133-257u9.5-130

Best BetRed Sox -277

Pregame

Boston's the easy call here — a team playing its best baseball of the year at home against a club that's lost 5 in a row and can't keep a healthy lineup on the field. The price isn't going to be exciting, but this is about as lopsided a form gap as you'll find on a slate. Jump's stuff gives Oakland a puncher's chance, but chalk is chalk for a reason tonight.

Bennett was a Nationals second-rounder out of Oklahoma who Boston picked up in a trade last December, and he's turned into one of the better rookie stories in the league since rejoining the rotation midseason. Jump, meanwhile, is Oakland's top pitching prospect — a hard-throwing lefty with a fastball that touches 97 — but the Athletics have had almost nothing go right lately, and his last start was part of that. Whichever version of him shows up matters a lot for how competitive this one actually is.

Gage Jump

(5-8)·4.83 ERA

Aug 2 vs Tigers

L

3.2IP

6ER

5K

6BB

88P

08/08 Lineup

Jake Bennett

(7-6)·3.46 ERA

Aug 2 @ Dodgers

W

5.2IP

3ER

4K

2BB

88P

08/08 Lineup

The gap between these two rosters right now isn't subtle. Boston just flipped for catcher Adley Rutschman, adding an established everyday piece behind the plate even while dealing with injuries of its own. Oakland has lost key bats and arms all over the diagram — Kurtz, Gelof, Langeliers, Rooker, Severino — and it shows up in the standings, not just the injury report.

Athletics

(45-70)

Aug 6L@ Reds5-6

Aug 5L@ Reds2-3

Aug 4L@ Reds4-5

Aug 2Lvs Tigers0-11

Aug 2Lvs Tigers6-8

Boston Red Sox

(63-51)

Aug 6Wvs White Sox12-11

Aug 5Wvs White Sox4-0

Aug 4Wvs White Sox14-2

Aug 2W@ Dodgers8-4

Aug 2W@ Dodgers3-2

None of that means Oakland shows up dead. Teams playing out a lost season sometimes play the loosest baseball, and a live young arm like Jump has the raw stuff to give Boston fits for a few innings even in a rough season. But the roster damage is real — this isn't a club quietly hiding depth, it's one that's been forced to plug holes at catcher, third base, first base and multiple rotation spots at once.

Athletics

(12)

• 10-Day-ILZack Gelof (3B) — Gelof (knee) started at second base and went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run with Triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday.08/05
• 10-Day-ILNick Kurtz (1B) — The Athletics placed Kurtz on the 10-day injured list Tuesday, retroactive to Aug. 1, due to a strained right thumb.08/04
• 10-Day-ILShea Langeliers (C) — The Athletics announced that Langeliers underwent a successful medial meniscectomy Tuesday in Los Angeles and also received a platelet-rich plasma injection for his right knee, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.07/28
• 10-Day-ILJoshua Kuroda-Grauer (3B) — Kuroda-Grauer was diagnosed with a testicular contusion after exiting Monday's 5-2 win over the Diamondbacks, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.07/21
• 15-Day-ILJeffrey Springs (SP) — Springs (hip) was able to restart a throwing program Wednesday after landing on the 15-day injured list Tuesday, MLB.com reports.08/06
• 15-Day-ILJustin Sterner (RP) — Sterner earned his first save of the season in Wednesday's extra-inning win over the Cubs. He tossed a perfect inning while striking out one.07/18
• 60-Day-ILMark Leiter Jr. (RP) — Leiter will undergo surgery Tuesday to address a right hip impingement and is expected to miss the remainder of the season, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.07/30
• 60-Day-ILLuis Severino (SP) — Severino (shoulder) began a throwing progression Saturday, per MLB.com.07/28
• 60-Day-ILDenzel Clarke (CF) — Manager Mark Kotsay said Saturday that Clarke (hamstring) is nearing a rehab assignment, Jason Burke of Roundtable.io reports.07/19
• 60-Day-ILBrent Rooker (DH) — Rooker will undergo season-ending surgery to repair a cartilage tear in his left knee, Jason Burke of Roundtable.io reports.07/17
• 60-Day-ILBrooks Kriske (RP) — Kriske (shoulder) began a throwing progression Thursday, MLB.com reports.06/16
• 60-Day-ILGunnar Hoglund (SP) — Hoglund (knee/back) will be sidelined for the rest of the 2026 season after undergoing surgery on his left hip Monday.05/20

Boston Red Sox

(12)

• Day-To-DayWillson Contreras (1B) — Contreras (illness) is absent from the lineup for Thursday's game against the White Sox.08/06
• 10-Day-ILAdley Rutschman (C) — The Red Sox acquired Rutschman (wrist), Jake Rogers and cash from the Orioles on Monday in exchange for catcher Carlos Narvaez, right-handers Anthony Eyanson and Kyson Witherspoon, outfielder Enddy Azocar and a player to be named later, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.08/03
• 10-Day-ILCurtis Mead (3B) — Mead has a nondisplaced left wrist fracture and will be reimaged in four weeks, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.07/31
• 10-Day-ILIsiah Kiner-Falefa (2B) — Kiner-Falefa (forearm) has been cleared to start his hitting progression with dry swings, Tim Healey of The Boston Globe reports.07/20
• 60-Day-ILTriston Casas (1B) — Casas (abdomen/knee) underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left wrist Thursday.08/06
• 60-Day-ILTrevor Story (SS) — Story (sports hernia) will be re-evaluated at the end of the team's current homestand to determine when he can begin a rehab assignment, MLB.com reports.08/06
• 60-Day-ILRoman Anthony (LF) — Anthony (wrist) took overhand pitching in the batting cage Tuesday, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.08/05
• 60-Day-ILGarrett Crochet (SP) — Interim Red Sox manager Chad Tracy said Tuesday that Crochet (lat/shoulder) has resumed throwing from 50-to-60 feet on flat ground, Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald reports.08/04
• 60-Day-ILZack Kelly (RP) — The Red Sox recalled Kelly (elbow) from Triple-A Worcester and placed him on the 60-day injured list Tuesday, Tim Healey of The Boston Globe reports.07/21
• 60-Day-ILTanner Houck (SP) — Houck (elbow) has started throwing two bullpen sessions per week, MLB.com reports.07/17
• 60-Day-ILJohan Oviedo (SP) — Oviedo (elbow) will throw a bullpen session next week, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.07/17
• 60-Day-ILKutter Crawford (SP) — The Red Sox announced June 29 that Crawford (forearm) has been throwing plyometric balls during workouts at the team's spring training facility in Florida, MLB.com reports.07/06

Boston's not fully healthy either — Willson Contreras is day-to-day, Triston Casas is done for the year after wrist surgery, and the middle infield is banged up — but the difference is Boston keeps winning through it. Five wins in a row, capped by a wild 13-inning slugfest over the White Sox, is the kind of stretch that papers over injury reports. Fenway on a Saturday afternoon should be a good showcase for just how far apart these two clubs are right now.