Las Vegas A's

Rooker’s 3-run homer too late as A’s fall 6-4 to Giants

A’s fall 6-4 on Saturday as a late rally came up short at Sutter Health Park. Brent Rooker’s three-run homer in the eighth cut the deficit to two, but the Giants’ early damage, led by Casey Schmitt’s two homers, held up.

by
Mark Hebert
May 17, 2026

Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz tosses his bat after drawing a walk during the eighth inning against the Giants at Sutter Health Park on May 16, 2026.

May 16, 2026; West Sacramento, California, USA; Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz (16) tosses his bat after drawing a walk against the San Francisco Giants during the eighth inning at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Brent Rooker gave the Athletics a late jolt, but the hole was too deep.

Rooker hit a three-run homer in the eighth inning, but the A’s fell 6-4 to the Giants on Saturday at Sutter Health Park. The loss dropped the Athletics to 23-22 and evened the three-game series.

Giants grab control

San Francisco struck first when Casey Schmitt hit a solo homer off Luis Severino in the first inning. Then Willy Adames pushed the lead to 3-0 with a two-run single in the third.

The Giants kept adding on. Schmitt homered again in the fifth, this time a two-run shot, to make it 5-0. Matt Chapman added an RBI double in the seventh.

Severino took the loss and fell to 2-5. He allowed five runs on 10 hits over six innings, with two walks and seven strikeouts.

A late push

The A’s got on the board in the fifth after Lawrence Butler walked and Darell Hernaiz singled. Jeff McNeil then drove in Butler on a forceout.

Still, the biggest swing came in the eighth. Nick Kurtz walked, Shea Langeliers walked, and Rooker launched a three-run homer to left.

As a result, the A’s cut the deficit to 6-4. However, Carlos Cortes and Zack Gelof struck out to end the inning.

Numbers that mattered

Rooker went 2-for-4 with his sixth homer and three RBIs. Hernaiz also had two hits, including his first double of the season.

Brent came knockin’ 😤 pic.twitter.com/j1jEzkyidl

— Athletics (@Athletics) May 17, 2026

Tyler Soderstrom doubled for the 14th time, while Langeliers reached twice. However, the A’s finished with six hits and went 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position.

The Giants had 14 hits. Schmitt went 4-for-5 with two homers and three RBIs.

Up next

The series wraps Sunday at Sutter Health Park.

Jeffrey Springs is scheduled to start for the A’s. He enters 3-3 with a 4.22 ERA and 44 strikeouts. San Francisco is set to counter with Adrian Houser, who is 1-4 with a 5.79 ERA and 23 strikeouts.

Dice City Sports editor Mark Hebert covers the Vegas Golden Knights, Las Vegas Raiders, Athletics, and UNLV baseball and softball. He has 24 years of journalism experience, is also a senior reporter at Exhibit City News, and previously covered the Dallas Stars and Texas Rangers. Follow him on X or connect on LinkedIn.