Game Thread #53: Athletics vs Diamondbacks

In what was a somewhat surprising move, Frankie Montas was called up from Nashville in order to make the start for the A’s today. While Montas got off to a slow start in April at AAA, in May he has gone much deeper into ballgames and has shown signs of life that he could stick as a starting pitcher, after only pitching as a reliever in Oakland last season. Chris Bassitt was sent down in order to make room for Montas on the roster.

In order to win the swing game of the series, the A’s have a tall task ahead of them in facing Zack Greinke, who has been much better than his numbers would indicate on the season. With the bullpen well rested after yesterday’s gem from Daniel Mengden, look for Bob Melvin to be aggressive with his reliever usage if any pitcher gets in trouble, so the game doesn’t get out of hand.

First pitch is at 1:05. Lineups are below.