Brandon Crawford: Giants shortstop moved into platoon roll.

As a kid growing up in Pleasanton, Brandon Crawford liked both the Giants and A’s.

“I thought you were allowed to do that,” he said.

The Giants’ shortstop has a different perspective as a bigleaguer. It’s not about liking the A’s. It’s about trying to beat them: “It’s a fun rivalry as players because you see these guys all the time, whether it’s in spring training or playing them (in the regular season) every year.”

Bay Area bragging rights are on the line this weekend, starting with Friday night’s GiantsA’s opener at Oracle Park, and Crawford always enjoys participating in the crossbay rivalry. This year, however, his role is different.

The A’s started a lefthanded pitcher Friday, Jesus Luzardo, and Crawford was out of the lineup. That has been the general pattern this season, starting against righties and sitting out against lefties.

“No, it’s not something I’m used to. Not something I’m necessarily thrilled about,” Crawford said Friday. “But I’m working as hard as I can to try to get in there every day.”

It’s a new challenge for the threetime Gold Glover and twotime World Series champion, who has had just 10 atbats against lefties so far — no hits, one walk — and was omitted from the lineup six times in 21 games (29%) because the other’s team starter threw from the left side.

“Maybe I’m pressing a little bit too much to show something to get in there against the next lefty we face,” Crawford said, “maybe putting in a little too much pressure on (myself ). I continue to put atbats together and hit the ball hard and hope to get in there every day.”

The previous two years, Crawford had higher batting averages against lefties than righties, and that was the case in 2015, when he won a Silver Slugger as the National League’s besthitting shortstop.

In fact, in 2018, his onbase percentage and slugging percentage were superior against lefties, too.

Furthermore, the Giants’ defense always is more orderly when he’s on the field.

Giants manager Gabe Kapler said he wants to get his righthanded hitters playing time and started Mauricio Dubon five times at short, Donovan Solano once — the initial plan for Solano was to start him against lefties, but he hit himself into the everyday lineup.

Crawford, hitting .204 with four hits in his past 13 atbats, has seen positive signs recently. He crushed the ball in the first training camp while working with the new hitting coaches and tweaking his approach for better balance and to get balls in the air more.

But they didn’t drop at the same pace once the season started, though he has been credited via advanced metrics with many hardhit balls.

“We had completely revamped my swing,” Crawford said. “Maybe it was too much all at once. In spring training, it was working out fine. The threemonth break and not much training before the start of the season, it was hard to get that rhythm back.”

As a result, Crawford is trying some of his old methods while still incorporating new ideas. For example, he had added an open stance and now it’s not quite as open. His hands are farther back.

“I feel a lot more balanced and a little better about my swing in general for the last four or five days,” he said.