Spring Game #27: A’s vs. Mariners Game Thread

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MESA, AZ - FEBRUARY 18: Lawrence Butler #4 of the Athletics takes live batting practice during a spring training workout at the Lew Wolff Training Complex on February 18, 2026 in Mesa, Arizona. (Photo by Justine Willard/Athletics/Getty Images) | Getty Images

We got a night game folks! The Athletics are set to play host to their division rivals the Seattle Mariners tonight in one of the final games of spring, a sold-out crowd that is ready to see our A’s take the win. With about a week to go before Opening Day things are going to start getting really ramped up here over the next few games. A’s fans should be seeing plenty of the regulars getting their at-bats in, the pitchers getting their final tune-ups, and the bullpen arms making their final cases for a ticket to Toronto. Should be an intense week and one that’ll also feature the Athletics’ Breakout game on Sunday afternoon. Gear up and prepare for the last exhibition contests before games begin to count.

The A’s have veteran right-hander Aaron Civale taking the ball for the club in what’ll be just his third appearance this spring. The 30-year-old veteran of seven big league seasons likely didn’t need much time to ramp up and be ready for Opening Day though. His first outing saw him allow a pair of runs on 60 pitches. His most recent appearance didn’t yield great results (six runs on nine hits) but he did get all the way up to 75 pitches. That’s probably been his biggest goal since arriving to the A’s at the last possible moment but it seems he’s going to be stretched out enough to take his spot in the Opening Day rotation, which has all been assured to him by the team. We’ll be hoping to see him produce better results tonight but as long as he gets his pitches in everything should be smooth sailing for the righty until the regular season. From there however we’ll need to start seeing results.

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Here’s the Athletics’ lineup for tonight’s contest:

No surprise that manager Mark Kotsay is trotting out most of the regulars tonight. In fact, dare I say that this looks like the probably Opening Day lineup? I don’t want to start an argument about Nick Kurtz and Shea Langeliers’ spots in the lineup. No matter how you feel about it, the Athletics are going to prioritize getting them the most at bats possible this coming year. We’ll see if it lasts for six months but this is how the A’s will likely stack up next week in Toronto against their right-handed ace Dylan Cease.

We have Lawrence Butler back in the lineup but not manning right. While he’s been behind the rest of his teammates during camp as he completes his rehab for a torn patellar tendon, Butler’s been getting in his at-bats in controlled settings and finally made it into a game earlier this week. He’s yet to fully get right field under his belt much during camp, which is the final step in his rehab. He’s DH’ing tonight so that’s a positive, but the hope is that we see him out on the outfield grass a few more times before games start to really count.

The Mariners kept their cards close to the chest all afternoon, only announcing their starter a couple hours before first pitch. Seattle will counter Civale with right-hander Randy Dobnak. The 31-year-old is with the M’s on a minor league deal after spending the previous five years with the Minnesota Twins. He’s unlikely to make their Opening Day roster but could be an option for them later in the season if Seattle’s vaunted rotation suffers any injuries. Shouldn’t be too hard of an assignment for the A’s starting nine tonight but you never know!

And here’s how the M’s lineup breaks down for tonight’s game:

While the A’s are sending out their expected regular starting lineup the Mariners have more replacements than everyday guys in today’s starting nine. Civale needs to be careful with first baseman Josh Naylor but other than him he should try to be aggressive against Mariners batters this evening.

The A’s are 12-14 during camp and with five games left there’s still time to finish at or above .500. I know, meaningless, but still would be nice to break camp with a winning record. Let’s go A’s!

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