by Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s snapped their three-game losing streak by defeating the visiting Colorado Rockies 7-1 before 12,125 fans, the smallest crowd of the season. The story of the game was the pitching of Kendall Graveman. Graveman did not start the season well and was sent down to Nashville to get back in the groove. He did just that. With the win his record improved to 5-4 and he has now gone seven innings in each of his last five starts. Josh Reddick, Ike Davis and Billy Butler homered for the A’s and it was the eighth time this season that the A’s have had three home runs in a game.

The A’s used the long ball to score four times in the bottom of the first. Stephen Vogt singled to left with one out. After Ben Zobrist struck out swinging, Josh Reddick put the first pitch from Rockies’s pitcher, David Hale, over the right field wall to put the A’s up 2-0. For Reddick, it was his thirteenth home run of the season. The A’s weren’t finished. Designated hitter Billy Butler followed with a solid single to center. Ike Davis hit a long, long drive to deep right field that went about ten or twelve rows into the stands. Oakland has a 4-0 lead after one inning of play.

The A’s added a run in the bottom of the fourth on the strength of Billy Butler’s seventh home run of the year. 5-0 after four.

The Rockies scored a run in the top of the eighth. Kendall Graveman was no longer in the game. He went seven innings allowing just five hits and no runs. A’s manager Bob Melvin brought in Evan Scribner to pitch. Scribner gave up a home run to Charlie Blackmon on a 2-1 pitch leading off the inning.  Scribner retired two but gave up a single to Troy Tulowitzki. Lefty Drew Pomeranz came in to face the left-handed hitter, Carlos Gonzalez. Pomeranz did his job and struck out Cargo for the third out of the inning.

The A’s added two more runs in the bottom of the eighth. With one out, Josh Reddick walked. Billy Butler doubled to left to drive in Reddick all the way from first. Tulowitzki’s throw home got by the catcher and Butler reached third on the play. Butler scored on a triple to right off the bat of Brett Lawrie.

Tyler Clippard pitched the ninth to close out the win for the A’s.

Game Notes- The A’s starting pitchers are 18-10 with a 2.46 ERA over the last 35 games. The A’s are now 35-44 and are 15-11 so far in the month of June.

Billy Burns had his sixteen game hitting streak snapped as he went 0-for-4. Billy Butler had three hits and was a triple shy of the cycle.  Ike Davis was 2-for-4 and hit his first home run since May 7th at Minnesota. Stephen Vogt went 2-for-4 and is 21-for-50 in his last thirteen games.

Ben Zobrist’s wife Julianna sang the National Anthem.

Game two of the three-game series will be played Tuesday night at 7:05pm in Oakland. A’s ace Sonny Gray will pitch for the A’s. Gray will be seeking his tenth win of the year and will be opposed by Jorge De La Rosa.