Texas @ Oakland preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 15, 2019 ) Oakland 6, Texas 1

The Oakland Athletics begin the final home series of the regular season in the driver's seat for the American League wild card and hope to start it off right when they host the Texas Rangers on Friday for the first of three games. A walk-off 1-0 win over the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday gave the Athletics a two-game lead for the top wild-card spot with nine to play.

All nine games are against division opponents with sub-.500 records and Oakland shows no sign of letting up amid the favorable stretch. "The finish line's in site," manager Bob Melvin told reporters Wednesday. "You can talk about games leading up, you can talk about series earlier in the season, but teams play differently now and each game's more important and guys step up. It's a different animal right now." The A's have won five straight against the Rangers, including a three-game sweep in Texas last weekend. The Rangers extended that losing streak to five in a row overall with back-to-back losses in Houston this week as they inch toward their third straight losing season.

TV: 10:07 p.m. ET, FS Southwest (Texas), NBCS California (Oakland)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Rangers LH Mike Minor (13-9, 3.33 ERA) vs. Athletics RH Mike Fiers (14-4, 4.09)

Minor made his 30th start last time out to reach that mark for the first time since 2013, although it wasn't the prettiest of outings. He gave up seven runs in five innings opposite Fiers, serving up three home runs and a double among nine hits. The Vanderbilt product has surrendered 11 runs in 11 innings spread over two losses against Oakland this year.

Fiers won 12 straight decisions from early May through the end of August, but he's hit a wall in September with three straight rocky outings, including an abbreviated outing at Texas on Saturday in which he left with nerve irritation in his right arm. The 34-year-old is 0-1 with an 18.78 ERA during the rough patch and he has gone six straight outings without recording a quality start. Fiers has a 6.50 ERA in 12 career matchups (11 starts) with the Rangers -- 7.82 in three starts this year.

WALK-OFFS

1. Texas has been held to four runs over its last three games while striking out 33 times.

2. A's SS Marcus Semien has multiple hits in seven of his last 14 games.

3. Oakland RHP Yusmeiro Petit has allowed one run in 14 1/3 innings while recording 18 strikeouts over his last 11 appearances.

PREDICTION: Athletics 5, Rangers 4