Stripling took the loss against the Giants on Wednesday, allowing one run on four hits and one walk over 5.2 innings. He did not record a strikeout. Stripling pitched well throughout the contest, allowing the leadoff man to reach just one time over his 5.2 innings of work while surrendering only two-extra base hits. The only run he allowed on the night came on a sacrifice fly in the fifth. However, the veteran right-hander would still go on to take his fifth loss in his last six starts (dating back to May 7) due to Oakland's offense being shut out by Logan Webb. Stripling also failed to record a strikeout for the first time this season and finished the month of July with a 4.76 ERA and a 3:3 K:BB over two starts.
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Stripling took the loss against the Giants on Wednesday, allowing one run on four hits and one walk over 5.2 innings. He did not record a strikeout. Stripling pitched well throughout the contest, allowing the leadoff man to reach just one time over his 5.2 innings of work while surrendering only two-extra base hits. The only run he allowed on the night came on a sacrifice fly in the fifth. However, the veteran right-hander would still go on to take his fifth loss in his last six starts (dating back to May 7) due to Oakland's offense being shut out by Logan Webb. Stripling also failed to record a strikeout for the first time this season and finished the month of July with a 4.76 ERA and a 3:3 K:BB over two starts.
Estes is scheduled to start Friday's game against the Dodgers in Oakland. Estes had started in each of his first 13 appearances with the Athletics this season before he was deployed for 2.2 innings of relief this past Friday against the Angels behind starter Paul Blackburn, who was lifted after five innings in his first outing back from the 60-day injured list. The Athletics traded Blackburn to the Mets on Tuesday, so Estes' brief run in the bullpen will come to an end as he reclaims the vacated rotation spot.
Hernaiz (ankle) played a full game at shortstop in Triple-A Las Vegas' loss to Albuquerque on Tuesday, going 2-for-4 with a walk and three runs. Hernaiz was charged with an error as well, but otherwise, his night was yet another step in the right direction. The 22-year-old appears ready for activation at any point moving forward, as he's now forged a .345 average and .873 OPS across 33 plate appearances over eight rehab games. Hernaiz has experience playing every infield position besides first base.
Gelof went 2-for-3 with a walk in a win over the Giants on Tuesday. He was also caught stealing twice. Gelof's small-ball production stood in stark contrast to that of his teammates, as the Athletics scored all five runs off home runs. The multi-hit effort was an especially welcome sight for Gelof, who entered the night mired in a 1-for-25 slump that had encompassed his previous seven games. Gelof had last tallied multiple hits in a game July 9, and despite Tuesday's success, his average remains just below the Mendoza Line at .196 due to his recent skid. The pair of failed steal attempts were an outlier as well, considering Gelof had gone an impressive 12-for-13 in that category this season coming into Tuesday.
Sears (8-8) secured the win over the Giants on Tuesday, allowing three hits and a walk while striking out nine over seven scoreless innings. Sears racked up a career-high nine strikeouts and went seven innings for just the second time this season. He's been much better over the last month after struggling over his first 16 starts of the year, during which he had a 5.04 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and only 56 strikeouts in 84 innings. The 28-year-old lefty also already has three more wins than he did all of last season despite having a nearly identical ERA (4.53). He'll look to continue his success in a great matchup against the White Sox to begin next week.
Bleday went 1-for-2 with a solo home run in Tuesday's win over the Giants. Bleday entered the game as a pinch hitter in the fifth and came through with a solo blast to right in the eighth to extend the Oakland lead. It was just his second home run in July and his first RBI in just over a week, as he's struggled to get going at the dish for most of the month. The 2019 first-round pick is slashing .236/.316/.437 with 13 homers, 37 RBI, 48 runs, zero stolen bases and a 44:80 BB:K in 428 plate appearances. He's also tied for second in the American League with 30 doubles for the year.
Rooker went 1-for-3 with a two-run homer in Tuesday's 5-2 win over the Giants. Rooker hit the third home run of the night against Robbie Ray with a two-run blast in the fifth to push the A's out to a 4-0 lead. His home run put an exclamation point on what's been an incredible month for the 29-year-old slugger. Rooker leads all of the majors with 11 homers, 30 RBI and 24 runs scored in July and is second in average (.410) and OPS (1.347). He's now slashing .297/.372/.593 with 26 homers, 77 RBI, 53 runs, seven steals and a 40:118 BB:K in 390 plate appearances this season. He currently sits seventh in all of baseball with a .965 OPS for the year.
Butler went 2-for-5 with a solo homer and two runs scored in Tuesday's win over the Giants. Butler's big hit of the night came in the third inning with a 402-foot blast to center off Robbie Ray. He's now hit 10 home runs in July and has upped his OPS to .817 after entering the month with just two homers in 150 plate appearances while batting .179 with a .529 OPS. Over his last 24 games, Butler is slashing .382/.427/.831 with 27 RBI, 23 runs, five steals and a 7:19 BB:K.