How Athletics Can Snap Historic Series Drought vs. Red Sox

After getting swept by both the Tigers and Reds, the Athletics need to figure out how to right their wrongs against the Red Sox.

Jul 28, 2026; West Sacramento, California, USA; Athletics starting pitcher Gage Jump (61) throws a pitch against the Boston Red Sox during the first inning at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Lee-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The A's are not playing good baseball, and it does not look like things are improving either.

The Athletics have been on a nose-dive since the Las Vegas Series on June 14, the last time they won a series. With that said, something needs to give soon, and after wasting two solid outings from Jacob Lopez and J.T. Ginn in the Reds series, it is clear that this team is more than a starting pitcher away from turning things around.

Gage Jump Needs To Lock In

Aug 2, 2026; West Sacramento, California, USA; Athletics starting pitcher Gage Jump (61) throws a pitch against the Detroit Tigers during the first inning at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

There was a time when Gage Jump was, hands down, the best starter and pitcher for the Athletics, rivaling even JT Ginn for a while. However, since the All-Star break, Jump has easily been the worst starter in the Athletics rotation, sporting a 7.50 ERA in his last four starts.

With Jack Perkins starting in the series opener, this will put a lot more pressure on Jump to keep the Athletics' series win aspirations alive. If he can accomplish this, it will give way to a potential series decider with J.T. Ginn on the mound. And while we could ask Perkins to deliver in Game 1, it is clear that Jump needs a quality start that much more.

Individual Relievers Need To Stay Consistent

Jul 30, 2026; West Sacramento, California, USA; Athletics pitcher Luis Medina (46) throws a pitch against the Boston Red Sox during the eighth inning at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Lee-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Obviously, if a team wants to win a series, they need to have good outings from its bullpen. For the Athletics, this is much easier said than done. How many times have we seen a reliever start to get hot for a prolonged amount of time only to blow it up at the worst time? Too many.

If there is any hope of a series win, we need to see consistency from the pitchers who had a decent series vs. the Reds. Guys like Brady Basso, Scott Blewett, and Seth Johnson all need to stay on an upward trajectory. The only thing worse than no hope is false hope.

Stars Need To Step Up

Jul 21, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Athletics outfielder Tyler Soderstrom against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Without Shea Langeliers or Nick Kurtz, it is time for guys like Tyler Soderstrom and Lawrence Butler to step up. And while they have been decent recently, they need to give that much more if there is any hope of ending this series-winning drought. Even though this is a very tall task, they have shown they are more than capable of doing so.

Both players need to account for 50% of the Athletics' RBIs combined if the Athletics hope to walk out of Fenway without any hiccups. And with Perkins and Jump both making starts in this series, we can infer that they will probably need to provide more run support than usual.

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