Photo credit: @Athletics

By Morris Phillips

OAKLAND — It’s worth noting–now 21 Stephen Piscotty home runs into his Athletics career–that the talented outfielder on the verge of a career-best season fell into the A’s lap in the off-season.

The 25-year old Piscotty established himself as a big league standout in 2016 by smashing 60 extra-base hits for the Cardinals. But he slumped horribly in 2017, as the St. Louis brass noticed that Gretchen Piscotty’s rapidly failing health was affecting her son, Stephen, on and off the field.

In the off-season, as a favor to Piscotty, the Cardinals agreed to trade the outfielder to Oakland, as a way for the son to care for his mom, based in Pleasanton. And for the first month plus of the season, Piscotty drove his mom home after games and took on the arduous task of putting her to bed on a nightly basis.

That routine so poignantly captured by ESPN’s E:60 ended when Gretchen lost her battle with ALS in May.

Soon thereafter, Piscotty–with the weight of having to see his mother suffer on daily basis lifted–took off. And so did the A’s.

Fast forward to Sunday, and the A’s leaned heavily on Piscotty on the occasion of the final home game of 2018 against the rival Mariners. Needing a split to maintain a five-game lead over wild card hopeful Seattle, Piscotty came up with two home runs to power the A’s to a 8-2 win.

Edwin Jackson more than did his part–pitching six innings–allowing three hits and a run to Seattle, playing arguably their most important regular season game in more than a decade in attempting to end their postseason drought that dates to 2001.

We’ve been taxing that bullpen a lot,” Piscotty said of Jackson. “To have him go out and have a strong outing, and let our offense kind of wake up and take the pressure of him, that’s a great game, exactly what we needed.”

A close game hinged on Felix Hernandez, the unquestioned A’s killer, getting through the sixth inning, and preserving a 1-1 tie, after allowing a leadoff single to Chad Pinder.

But the King doesn’t go unchallenged these days, having lost 12 games, and was briefly demoted from the starting rotation. But if anyone has earned the right to pitch in a big spot for the Mariners, it’s Felix, and manager Scott Servais elected to stick with his starter.

That strategy backfired immediately as Hernandez uncorked a wild pitch, then walked pinch hitter Matt Joyce, threw a second wild pitch, and allowed the go-ahead base hit to Marcus Semien.

That sequence opened the flood gates as the A’s would score three more times in the inning, then get a three-run shot from Piscotty in the eighth.

Piscotty’s homer was his 21st–he also homered in the fifth–just one off his career high established in 2016. Afterwards, Melvin referenced the slugger’s ascendance, which of course, dates back to May.

“I’ve said many times that he has an angel on his shoulders,” Melvin said.

GAME NOTES: The A’s have three games (days) remaining in their grueling stretch of 20 games without a day off. Melvin said he’s well aware of how the schedule eases after Wednesday saying that the time off his far more critical for his everyday starters as opposed to his underrated rotation guys or stacked bullpen.

Blake Treinen earned his 35th save, getting the last four outs of the ballgame, including ending the eighth on one pitch. Treinen dropped his ERA ever so slightly to 0.92, the continuation of his season rivaled only by Dennis Eckersley’s 1990 campaign in which he earned the American League MVP.

Hernandez failed to win in a seventh, consecutive appearance, a career-worst drought that dates back to June 30.

UP NEXT: The A’s host the Yankees for a three-game series starting Monday afternoon at 1:05 pm PDT on ESPN, NSCA and YES.