By: Joe Lami

OAKLAND, Calif.–Thursday night’s series opener against AL West leading Houston Astros was a roller coaster of a game, as the A’s are taking a page out of the Giants’ torture type of baseball. Going into the eighth inning, they were leading 2-1, but by the end of it the Astros were able to take the 4-2 lead. However, a ninth inning rally and a blown save later Oakland found themselves in extra innings, but it was all for not as Houston earned their 61st victory of the season with 5-4 win.

It looked promising, as the A’s put Aaron Brooks on the mound in just his second career start.  Brooks pitched phenomenally with a final line of seven innings pitched.  He surrendered one run that came in the first inning on four hits, while he struck out seven. A’s manager, Bob Melvin, commented on Brooks’ outstanding performance “He pitched great, that’s all you can ask from him. It’s unfortunate we couldn’t get the win for him tonight”. Brooks added the key tonights performance was getting ahead with first pitch strikes.

The lone run Brooks gave up was scored by Carlos Gomez, who reached first on a gorgeous bunt down the third base line. Jed Lowrie eventually brought him in and earned the RBI on a sacrifice fly.

Stephen Vogt tied the game in the bottom of the 2nd inning, when he hit the first of two A’s home runs out to left center field, just to the right of the 388 marker.  The dinger marked his 15th blast of the year.

The A’s took the lead in the fifth inning, as they took Scott Feldman deep to left center again.  Brett Lawrie earned his tenth of the season on the blast that hit off of the glass of a luxury box in what had to have been one of the longest homers of the year. Melvin added “he crushed it, you know how athletic and strong he is when he’s in the cage, and tonight he showed it off”.

Brooks came out of the game at the beginning of the eighth, and things went downhill fast for the Athletics. Fernando Rodriguez, Fermando Abad, and Evan Scriber shared duties.  Rodriguez gave up a single to Jose Altuve to set up a Carlos Correa home run.  It marks Correa’s 14th shot of the season in just 51 games played, as he is a strong contender for the AL Rookie of the Year.  The two-run homer made it 3-2.  Houston was able to add another after Colby Rasmus singled to left, where a miscommunication between Billy Burns and Coco Crisp led to an error to make it 4-2.

The Athletics looked done, until they were able to string together a ninth inning rally, thanks to a Lowrie error that took away a double play putting runners on first and third with no outs.  Stephen Vogt, the man on third scored easily with an Ike Davis base hit.   

With the A’s down just one with one out and men on first and third, Billy Burns grounded into what looked like another double play to end the game, but was able to beat out the throw at first by a hair.  The play went to video review, where it was conclusive that Burns beat the throw at first, allowing Lawrie to score and tie things at four.

The roller coaster continued in the tenth as Altuve led the inning off with a base hit.  After a steal and a sacrifice, Altuve was on third with one out.  Former Athletic, Lowrie, earned his second RBI of the game in what ended up being the game-winning hit on a double to left. Oakland was unable to make the comeback in the bottom half of the tenth, handing them their 62nd loss of the season.