A’s finally get a playoff series

Marcus Semien and the Athletics are finally getting a full playoff series.

After consecutive losses in the wild-card game, the AL West champions hope a longer series boosts their chances for a deep postseason run.

“It’s a little different than last year for us and also in ‘18 where it’s just one game and you want to be so perfect and win that game,” Semien said. “It’s a three-game series, we’re at home and play good baseball.”

The A’s gets their shot against the White Sox in the best-of-three wildcard round having advanced just once during 11 previous playoff trips since 2000, when they reached the 2006 AL Championship Series before being swept by the Tigers.

Both clubs navigated a challenging 60-game regular season, bolstered often by their top sluggers. The A’s finished 36-24, the White Sox at 35-25.

The A’s will send 22-year-old lefty Jesus Luzardo out to start Game 1 on Tuesday.

“To be able to do it at a young age is a blessing,” Luzardo said. “I hope this is just the first of many.”

Right-hander Lucas Gioloto (4-3), who pitched a no-hitter Aug. 25, takes the mound for the White Sox.

Yanks switch up the lineup: Slumping slugger Gary Sanchez will be benched in favor of Kyle Higashioka in the Yankees lineup for their wild-card opener Tuesday night. Yankees manager Aaron Boone confirmed Monday that Higashioka would catch ace Gerrit Cole to start the best-of-three series against the Indians.

“It’s kind of beyond what I would have imagined at the beginning of the season,” Higashioka said.

With Giancarlo Stanton set to start at designated hitter, Sanchez — a two-time All-Star — won’t crack the starting lineup and will instead be available to pinch-hit when the Yankees face Indians ace Shane Bieber.

“He was fine,” Boone said about Sanchez’s reaction. “He knows to be ready at any point, early in the game.”

Sanchez batted .147 this season, which would have been lowest in the majors by far if he had enough at-bats to qualify. The 27-year-old hit 10 home runs, third among catchers, but looked lost at the plate.

Marlins see a future: The Marlins’ first playoff appearance since 2003 is not supposed to last long.

They’re regarded as young, inexperienced overachievers who benefited from the short season and expanded playoff format. They were outscored by 41 runs this year, and no team has longer odds of winning the World Series at 33-1.

But even if their postseason ends this week in the wild-card round at Wrigley Field, the Marlins believe it’s just the beginning of a new era for the long-suffering franchise.

“For us, this is a stepping stone,” CEO Derek Jeter said Monday. “We didn’t come here to chase ‘a’ championship or ‘a’ playoff appearance. We want to be sustainable.”

Three years into Jeter’s organizational overhaul, the Marlins appear to be built to last as they’re just starting to win.

They have an abundance of young pitching, a strong farm system and a modest, manageable payroll.

One year removed from a 105-loss season, the NL East runner-up Marlins will face the NL Central champion Cubs in the best-of-three wildcard round beginning Wednesday.