Oakland A’s JD Davis (5) rounds third base and is congratulated by third base coach Eric Martins (left) after hitting a solo home run in the fourth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at the Oakland Coliseum on Fri Mar 29, 2023 (AP News photo)

Cleveland (2-0). 300 002 100. 6. 9 0

Athletics (0 -2). 000 111 010. 4. 8 2

Time: 2:39

Attendance: 3,837

Friday, March 29, 2023

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND–It was a cold, damp, and depressing 54 degrees at 6:39 this evening at Rickey Henderson Field at the Oakland Coliseum when the 34 year old ex-Dodger, ex-Blue Jay, and ex- Giant Ross Stripling threw his first pitch as an Athletic. It was a strike to Steven Kwan,who went down swinging.

Six batters later, Stripling retired the side, and the A’s were trailing the visitors, 3-0 on a single by Andrés Giménez, a 353 foot homer to right by José Ramírez, a double by Josh Naylor, an error by JD Davis at third, and a balk.

By the end of his tenure, the 6’1″, 215 lb right hander (no mere stripling, but a mighty oak) had thrown 92 pitches, 58 for strikes, over fiver innings in which he surrendered five runs, four of them earned, and given up seven hits, issued a couple of free pases, committed a balk,and unleashed a wild pitch.

He was charged with the loss and ended up sporting an ERA of 7.20. Mitch Spence, making his big league debut, replaced him to open the visitors’ sixth. At game’s end, the visiting Cleveland Guardians had defeated the nominally hometown A’s, 6-4.

Starting for Cleveland was southpaw sophomore Logan Allen, who had gone 7-8, 3.81 in his freshman year for the crew from the shores of Lake Erie. This was his maiden voyage on the shores of Lake Nimitz. Tonight, he left after hurling 5+ mediocre innings and yielding three talleys, all earned, on six hits, a pair of which left the park. He threw 82 pitches, 54 for balls, and was the winning pitcher, going back to the hotel with a record of 1-0, 5.40. Eli Morgan replaced him on the mound in the sixth.

Davis atoned for his first inning error by leading off the “home’. have of the fourth with a four bagger to straightaway center field that travelled 410 feet for the first Athletics run of the game and the season.

Cleveland got that run back in their next turn at bat. Kwan led off with a single to right, stole second and advanced to third on Langliers’ errant throw before scoring on Giménez’s double to right. (The run was earned). They added to their lead when Jack Brennan singled him home from third, where he had gone on a ground out to short out by Josh Naylor. The green and gold got one of those two runs back on Esteury Ruíz’s sacrifice fly that drove in Nick Allen.

In the sixth, Davis gave an encore of his leadoff blast of the fourth in the bottom of the sixth, the only difference being that his second dinger, which reduced Cleveland’s lead to 5-3, travelled an additional four feet. That was what caused manager Stephen Vogt to yank Allen and replace him with Morgan.

Stripling’s replacement, Spence, retired Cleveland in order in the sixth but yielded back to back doubles to Kwan and Giménez, the first to batters in the top of the seventh to up the Guardian’s lead to 6-3.

Hunter Gaddis put the A’s down. 1-2-3 in the seventh. Scott Barlow took over for him to open the eighth; He promptly walked pinch hitter Seth Brown and Gelof to bring the. potential tying run to the plate with nobody down and Davis at bat. But he couldn’t turn the hat trick and went down swinging. Langliers hit a broken bat fly to left that plated Brown, but Abraham Toro popped out to short to abort the threat.

The newly acquired Austin Adams was called upon to hold the A’s deficit to two in the top of the ninth. He issued a passport to Kwan, who was eliminated when Langeliers threw him out trying to pilfer second. Giménez fouled out to first, breaking his bat in the process. Ramírez lined out to third to end the inning.

The A’s had one last chance in the bottom of the ninth. Emmanuel Chance, closing for Cleveland, got Bleday out on a fly to center. Ryan Noda, who had pinch hit. for Darrell Hernaiz in the seventh, singled on a grounder up the middle, and Allen moved him to second with a single to right center. But Butter bounced into a game ending 6-4-3 double play, and that was that.

The series will be resumed tomorrow, Saturday, afternoon at 1:07, weather permitting. JP Sears is slated to start for the Athletics and Tanner Bibee, for the Guardians.