Gonzales to start series opener for Seattle at Oakland

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Seattle Mariners (29-43, fifth in the AL West) vs. Oakland Athletics (35-34, third in the AL West)

Oakland, California; Friday, 9 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Mariners: Marco Gonzales (6-6, 4.77 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 59 strikeouts) Athletics: Chris Bassitt (3-2, 3.57 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 53 strikeouts)

BOTTOM LINE: Oakland and Seattle match up to begin the three-game series.

The Athletics are 16-18 against AL West teams. Oakland has hit 106 home runs this season, sixth in the majors. Matt Chapman leads them with 16, averaging one every 16.2 at-bats.

The Mariners are 16-21 against division opponents. Seattle's team on-base percentage of .321 is fourteenth in the majors. Daniel Vogelbach leads the team with an OBP of .393. This is the first meeting of the season for these two teams.

TOP PERFORMERS: Chapman leads the Athletics with 31 extra base hits and is slugging .494. Matt Olson is 10-for-32 with three doubles, four home runs and nine RBIs over the last 10 games for Oakland.

Edwin Encarnacion leads the Mariners with 28 extra base hits and has 49 RBIs. Tom Murphy is 4-for-17 with four home runs and eight RBIs over the last 10 games for Seattle.

LAST 10 GAMES: Athletics: 6-4, .250 batting average, 4.99 ERA, outscored opponents by one run

Mariners: 4-6, .251 batting average, 6.00 ERA, outscored opponents by two runs

Athletics Injuries: Sean Manaea: 60-day IL (shoulder), Daniel Gossett: 60-day IL (elbow), Marco Estrada: 10-day IL (lumbar strain), Jharel Cotton: 60-day IL (elbow/hamstring), Nick Hundley: 10-day IL (back), Chris Herrmann: 60-day IL (knee).

Mariners Injuries: Arodys Vizcaino: 60-day IL (shoulder), Sam Tuivailala: 60-day IL (achilles/shoulder), Hunter Strickland: 60-day IL (lat), Connor Sadzeck: 10-day IL (elbow), Felix Hernandez: 10-day IL (shoulder), Chasen Bradford: 10-day IL (forearm), Mitch Haniger: 10-day IL (testicle), Braden Bishop: 10-day IL (neck), Ryon Healy: 10-day IL (back), J.P. Crawford: 10-day IL (ankle).