Athletics Report: Joey Estes Has Effective Outing against Dodgers
GLENDALE, Ariz. (Mar. 9) — Athletics right-hander Joey Estes, in his third Cactus League start of 2025, had an effective outing against the Los Angeles Dodgers in front of 12,298 fans at Camelback Ranch. Estes, facing their major-league A squad, allowed two runs (both bequeathed to the next pitcher) on three hits across 3 2/3 innings. He struck out two and walked one, throwing 39 of his 58 pitches for strikes in the split-squad Athletics’ 7–5 win.
“Felt great to be out there and compete against a good team,” Estes said afterwards. “All these teams are good, but it really felt good to test myself. It was great.”
Tried to Keep Getting Ahead of Guys
Estes allowed two singles in the first inning, the second with two outs. He got out of it unscathed by inducing a Michael Conforto fly ball to the left fielder. “Guys are gonna get on,” he explained, stating that he got out of it by doing what he always does. “Try to get strike one, try to (avoid) thinking of how they got on, or anything. Tried to get myself out of the situation and keep getting ahead of guys.”
Estes used a mix of mostly fastballs and sliders (45% fastballs, 33% sliders) to attack the Dodgers lineup, one that included Mookie Betts, Tommy Edman, Freddie Freeman, Teoscar Hernandez, and Conforto. “I was trying to pound the strike zone and get ahead of hitters. It’s a good lineup that they have, so the more that I’m ahead of these hitters, the better position that I get in. Kind of got behind in that one count in the fourth inning and got myself in a jam. It’s just one of those things. If I get behind hitters, it’s not a great thing, so I try to get ahead of them as much as I can.”
Game Summary
He was referring to Enrique Hernandez, whom he faced in the bottom of the fourth with two outs and the bases empty. Hernandez crushed a 2–0 fastball over the heart of the plate to left-center for a double. Estes’ next pitch hit Austin Barnes, putting two on for James Outman. New pitcher David Leal promptly gave up a three-run homer, cutting the Athletics’ lead to 4–3. The Athletics extended their lead to 6–3 in the fifth on a two-run Luis Urias homer off Giovanny Gallegos. It became a 7–3 game on a seventh-inning RBI single by Tyler Soderstrom. The Dodgers narrowed the gap to 7–5 in the bottom of the seventh on a two-run single by Hyeseong Kim but could get no closer.
Looking Ahead
The Athletics will return to full-squad play Monday when they host the Chicago White Sox at Hohokam Stadium in Mesa. White Sox left-hander Martin Perez will face Athletics right-hander Luis Severino. First pitch will be at 1:05 pm Arizona time.
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Main Photo:
GLENDALE, Ariz. (Mar. 9) — Athletics pitcher Joey Estes warms up prior to the bottom of the fourth inning of his team’s Cactus League contest against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Camelback Ranch. The Athletics defeated the Dodgers, 7–5. (Evan Thompson/Sport Relay)
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