Casey Schmitt is carving out a role with the San Francisco Giants, and his big performance in the middle contest of a three-game series with the Athletics will only help.

Schmitt figures to be in the lineup somewhere for Sunday afternoon’s finale in West Sacramento, Calif., after he recorded his second career two-homer game and his fourth four-hit outing in Saturday’s 6-4 San Francisco victory.

The right-handed-hitting Schmitt hit a solo homer to left field in the first inning and a two-run shot off the right-field foul pole in the fifth.

“I wasn’t trying to hit home runs,” Schmitt told reporters. “I was just trying to hit line drives, and I got two in the air.”

Schmitt, 27, has eight homers in 140 at-bats over 38 appearances this season. His career-best output of 12 home runs came last season when he played 95 games under former manager Bob Melvin. This is Schmitt’s fourth big-league campaign.

Schmitt served as the designated hitter and batted third on Saturday, and his versatility has caught the attention of first-year manager Tony Vitello.

Schmitt can play all four infield positions and was in left field during Friday’s 5-2 loss to the A’s when Heliot Ramos exited after 5 1/2 innings with a quadriceps injury. Ramos was placed on the 10-day injured list on Saturday.

It was Schmitt’s first professional appearance in the outfield. He also never played in the outfield during his standout college career at San Diego State (2018-20).

Vitello informed Schmitt on Saturday that he will receive playing time in left while Ramos is sidelined.

“We’ll see how it goes,” Schmitt said. “I got in there (Friday) but didn’t get any balls. I feel like I can do a good job out there.”

Vitello said he has been highly impressed with Schmitt’s attitude.

“He’s been eager to learn,” Vitello said. “His attitude has just been awesome about it. Any set of adverse circumstances, you can see them as a detriment or you could say, ‘Why wouldn’t I have success? I’ve been active and moving around the field and it’s helping me learn the game.'”

San Francisco had 14 hits — eight for extra bases — on Saturday while sending the Athletics to their fourth setback in six games.

A’s slugger Nick Kurtz walked to stretch his streak of reaching base to 39 games, matching the longest by an A’s player during a single season since Jason Giambi reached in 39 straight in both the 1997 and 1998 seasons. Next up is Mark McGwire (48 in 1996).

Also Saturday, Brent Rooker smashed a three-run homer in the eighth to bring the Athletics within two.

“It was a good swing by ‘Rook,’ getting us back into the game and giving us a chance to hopefully get the tying run up to the plate,” Athletics manager Mark Kotsay said. “That’s what this offense can do — we can get back into the game with a home run like that.”

Left-hander Jeffrey Springs (3-3, 4.22 ERA) will start for the Athletics in the series finale. Springs is 0-3 with a 7.03 ERA over his last five starts. He lost to the St. Louis Cardinals 6-4 on Tuesday when he gave up four runs and seven hits over five innings.

Springs is 0-0 with a 1.04 ERA in two career appearances (one start) against the Giants. Harrison Bader (1-for-6) has homered against Springs while Matt Chapman (2-for-17) and Willy Adames (0-for-7) have struggled.

Right-hander Adrian Houser (1-4, 5.79 ERA) will pitch for the Giants on Sunday.

He failed to win in his first seven outings before beating the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2 on Tuesday. He allowed two runs and three hits over 5 2/3 innings.

Houser, 33, is 0-1 with a 6.00 ERA in two career starts against the A’s. Jeff McNeil is 2-for-9 with two doubles against him.

–Field Level Media

Grayson Rodriguez is scheduled to make his first start for the Los Angeles Angels as they hope to avoid a three-game sweep at the hands of the Dodgers on Sunday in Anaheim, Calif.

The 26-year-old right-hander was considered the club’s top offseason acquisition, imported from the Baltimore Orioles at a heavy price — outfielder Taylor Ward — despite having missed the entire 2025 campaign because of an elbow injury that eventually required surgery.

Rodriguez has not pitched in a major league game since July 31, 2024.

He was deemed healthy enough to pitch for the Angels in spring training and threw 12 2/3 innings in four starts, but suffered from shoulder inflammation and was shelved indefinitely.

After two minor league rehab outings, including last Sunday for Single-A Rancho Cucamonga, Rodriguez once again has been given the green light. He is slated to be reinstated from the injured list to face the Dodgers in the Freeway Series.

“I just thank God that I’m here,” Rodriguez told reporters on Saturday before the Dodgers’ 15-2 win. “It was a tough road for sure. My wife, my family, they helped me through it.

“Rehab, there’s a lot of dark days with that. And for a little bit just kind of wondering why certain things kept happening. Finally, obviously, getting to this organization and working with this medical staff, we got our thumb on it and got after what needed to be better, and here we are.”

Rodriguez made 43 starts for the Orioles in 2023 and 2024, going 20-8 with a 4.11 ERA. He has seen the Dodgers just once, pitching the first five innings of a 6-4 home loss for the Orioles on July 17, 2023. He did not get a decision after allowing four runs.

His Angels debut will come against a team that’s won four in a row, outscoring its opponents 30-4. The Dodgers opened this series with a 6-0 win before recording a season-high 15 runs in the rematch.

Hoping for that same offensive output will be right-hander Roki Sasaki (1-3, 5.88), who has gotten a total of six runs of support this season in his three losses.

The 24-year-old has never faced the Angels in his two-year career.

Once seen as a candidate for a role in the bullpen, where he pitched effectively last postseason, Sasaki is now being counted upon to help anchor the starting rotation with Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow having gone on the injured list.

“It seems like every year we go through it,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts lamented to reporters before the game Saturday about the health of his pitching staff. “What I have learned is we get through it. It doesn’t feel great when you’re in it, (but) in baseball, it happens all the time with pitching.”

The Dodgers have benefited this week from the return of shortstop Mookie Betts, who missed 33 games with a strained right oblique.

The eight-time All-Star and 2018 American League MVP has just four hits in five games since his return, but they’ve been impactful. He has homered in two of his past three starts.

– Field Level Media

Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been voted the NBA Most Valuable Player for the second consecutive season, ESPN reported Sunday morning.

The official announcement of the winner is set to come at Sunday at 7:30 p.m.

Gilgeous-Alexander will become the 14th player in league history to win back-to-back MVPs. He will be the first player to win consecutive MVP awards since Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic in 2020-21 and 2021-22 and the first guard to win consecutive MVPs since Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry in 2014-15 and 2015-16.

Signed to a four-year, $273.3 million super maximum contract extension in the offseason, Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 31.1 points, 6.6 assists and 4.3 rebounds in 68 games (all starts) this season.

Gilgeous-Alexander, 27, is averaging 25.3 points, 5.3 assists and 4.7 boards in 530 career games (521 starts) with the Los Angeles Clippers (2018-19) and Thunder.

The guard led the Thunder to their first NBA championship last year. Aiming for back-to-back titles, Oklahoma City will open play in the Western Conference final on Monday against the San Antonio Spurs.

–Field Level Media