With the A.L West now on the line, the Athletics need to play an amazing game in order to stay on top. Entering the series, the Athletics were 2.5 games in front of the Mariners for the A.L West. Fast forward to today, and the A's are just 0.5 games in first place; a place where not many teams want to be. To prevent a loss, the A's need to accomplish the following: Middle of the Lineup Needs To Turn UpMay 25, 2026; West Sacramento, California, USA; Athletics catcher Shea Langeliers (23) jogs around the bases after hitting a solo home run during the eighth inning against the Seattle Mariners at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Scott Marshall-Imagn Images | Scott Marshall-Imagn ImagesCarlos Cortes and Nick Kurtz have been holding things down fine at the top of the lineup for the most part. But time and time again, the Athletics have simply been unable to cash in on this success. Shea Langeliers is going through a tough stretch, Brent Rooker has not been himself, and, well, Tyler Soderstrom has shown great promise. If Langeliers and Rooker are able to rack up a few hits combined, the A's should be able to cruise to a win, no problem. Mentioned earlier, Soderstrom has been playing great baseball lately, but it needs to turn into more runs. Something that Rooker and Langeliers could help out with, if they can get on base. Jeffrey Springs Needs To Keep A's in FrontMay 22, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; Athletics pitcher Jeffrey Springs (59) delivers during the second inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images | Denis Poroy-Imagn ImagesThe common denominator in the Athletics ' past few games has been the starting pitching giving up early runs. In a do-or-die game like this one, the A's will need Springs to pitch a very solid outing; that much is obvious. But if the A's fall behind early, the odds of them coming back drop significantly.If Springs can hold the Mariners scoreless in the first three to four innings, the A's have a real shot of taking a lead and not looking back. However, this is much easier said than done. In Springs last outing, he would give up a two-run shot in the bottom of the first vs. the Padres. This cannot happen again. Nick Kurtz Must TakeoverMay 20, 2026; Anaheim, California, USA; Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz (16) runs after hitting an RBI single against the Los Angeles Angels during the seventh inning at Angel Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn ImagesWelp. Kurtz's historic 48-game on-base streak is over. Which means now, the only way is up. And for a struggling A's offense, they would seriously enjoy a huge Kurtz performance in the final game of the series. If he can record multiple hits that could give way for the middle of the lineup to cash in, the A's will be in a great spot. If Cortes is able to find the base paths a couple of times, Kurtz won't miss that opportunity. This season with runners in scoring position, Kurtz is hitting a staggering .486, with a 1.469 OPS, two home runs, and four doubles. He now only needs more opportunities.Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow