Pittsburgh Pirates at Athletics

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
PIT	3	2	0	2	0	0	5	0	0	12	16	1
ATH	0	0	0	0	0	2	1	0	1	4	6	0

Braxton Ashcraft (5-3, 3.30) heads back to the mound for the Pirates against Aaron Civale (5-2, 4.20), who is being reinstated from the 15-day IL specifically to make this start in Sacramento. First pitch is 6:40 PM PT and this is the rubber match of a 3-game set the teams have already split 11-2 and 6-5.

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FINAL

Spread

ML

Total

Pirates(37-37)

WLLWL

12

-1.5+113-127o10.5+104

Athletics(36-37)

LWLWW

4

+1.5-117+122u10.5-108

Best BetPirates -121

Pregame

Pittsburgh sitting at -115 as the road favorite tells you the market trusts Ashcraft's profile over a Civale who hasn't pitched in the majors in 3 weeks. Fair price has the Pirates north of 52% and you're getting it close to a coin flip. Take the arm with the better ERA and the longer track record this year.

The Civale activation is the headline. He has not started since May 25, when Seattle hung 7 earned on him over 4 innings, and his only tune-up was a 4.1-inning, 7-strikeout rehab line at Triple-A Las Vegas. Ashcraft, meanwhile, has been on a 5-inning leash — exactly 5.0 innings, 2 earned, 4 K's in his last outing against Miami, the second straight start he couldn't push into the 6th after going 6-plus in every May appearance.

Braxton Ashcraft

(8-3)·3.33 ERA

Jun 12 vs Marlins

ND

5.0IP

2ER

4K

2BB

90P

06/17 Lineup

Aaron Civale

(5-5)·5.05 ERA

May 25 vs Mariners

L

4.0IP

7ER

2K

1BB

73P

06/17 Lineup

Both clubs are walking the .500 line and it shows. Pittsburgh is 37-37 and just dropped a home series to the Marlins before flying west. The A's are 36-37 and coming off a stretch where they put up 23 runs in a game and then lost it — they got crushed 23-9 by Colorado on Saturday — which sums up the offense and the staff pretty well.

Pittsburgh Pirates

(37-37)

Jun 17W@ Athletics6-5

Jun 16L@ Athletics2-11

Jun 14Lvs Marlins2-4

Jun 13Wvs Marlins3-2

Jun 12Lvs Marlins3-8

Athletics

(36-37)

Jun 17Lvs Pirates5-6

Jun 16Wvs Pirates11-2

Jun 14Lvs Rockies9-23

Jun 14Wvs Rockies7-5

Jun 13Wvs Rockies6-4

Injury context matters more for this one than usual. The Pirates are still without Oneil Cruz (hand, 4-6 weeks) and Konnor Griffin, which guts the up-the-middle profile against a fastball-curveball arm like Civale. The A's are missing Brent Rooker, their biggest right-handed bat, plus Luis Severino in the rotation — which is the whole reason they're hurrying Civale back in the first place.

Pittsburgh Pirates

(10)

• Day-To-DayAnthony Solometo (SP) — Solometo underwent left shoulder labrum surgery and is expected to be sidelined until at least April 2027, Mark Chiarelli of Baseball America reports.06/09
• Day-To-DayMitch Jebb (LF)
• Day-To-DayOddanier Mosqueda (RP) — Mosqueda will not throw for a couple weeks due to left forearm inflammation, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.05/08
• Day-To-DayMike Clevinger (RP) — Clevinger is expected to be sidelined for around six weeks after being diagnosed with an MCL sprain in his right knee, Jason Mackey of MLB.com reports.05/08
• Day-To-DaySean Sullivan (SP) — Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Wednesday that Sullivan is battling right elbow soreness, Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.05/08
• 10-Day-ILOneil Cruz (CF) — Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said Sunday that Cruz (hand) is facing an estimated recovery timeline of 4-6 weeks, Danny Demilio of PittsburghBaseballNow.com reports.06/14
• 10-Day-ILKonnor Griffin (SS) — Griffin will report to the Pirates' facility in Bradenton, Fla. during the upcoming week to continue rehab for his right forearm strain, Aidan Stepansky of MLB.com reports.06/14
• 10-Day-ILJoey Bart (C) — Bart (foot) will begin a rehab assignment Wednesday at Single-A Bradenton, Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.06/10
• 15-Day-ILWilber Dotel (RP) — The Pirates recalled Dotel from Triple-A Indianapolis on Wednesday.06/13
• 60-Day-ILChris Devenski (RP) — Devenski (illness) was transferred from the 15-day IL to the 60-day IL on Sunday.06/07

Athletics

(6)

• 10-Day-ILBrent Rooker (DH) — The Athletics placed Rooker on the 10-day injured list Friday, retroactive to Tuesday, due to a bone bruise in his left knee.06/12
• 15-Day-ILAaron Civale (SP) — Civale (shoulder) is expected to be reinstated from the 15-day injured list to start Wednesday's game against the Pirates in Sacramento, Jason Burke of Roundtable.io reports.06/13
• 15-Day-ILLuis Severino (SP) — The Athletics announced Tuesday that Severino has been diagnosed with a strain of his right shoulder capsule and subscapularis muscle and will be re-evaluated in 4-to-6 weeks, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.06/03
• 60-Day-ILBrooks Kriske (RP) — Kriske (shoulder) began a throwing progression Thursday, MLB.com reports.06/16
• 60-Day-ILDenzel Clarke (CF) — Clarke (hamstring) will receive a platelet-rich plasma injection Tuesday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.05/27
• 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

Stylistically this is a pitcher's matchup that could go sideways early. If Civale's shoulder isn't truly right, a Pirates lineup that just dropped 6 on the A's bullpen Tuesday will pounce. If he locates and Ashcraft's pitch count climbs again by inning 4, two thin bullpens decide it. Either way, getting the Athletics rotation reinforcement back in a series-deciding spot is the kind of swing game these middle-of-the-pack rosters live and die on.