Oakland A’s Brent Rooker (25) heads back to the dugout after striking out against the Detroit Tigers in the bottom of the fifth inning at the Oakland Coliseum on Sun Sep 8, 2024 (AP News photo)

Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024

Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum

Oakland, California

Detroit Tigers 9 (73-71)

Oakland Athletics 1 (62-82)

Win: Ty Madden (1-0)

Loss: J.T. Ginn (0-1)

Time: 3:01

Attendance: 11,250

By Stephen Ruderman

OAKLAND–The game was close for the most part, but the Tigers smoked the A’s 9-1 thanks to a six-run top of the eighth inning in what was most likely Detroit’s final game at the Oakland Coliseum to take this three-game series 9-1 on Sunday.

These two storied franchises have a fair amount of history against each other at the Coliseum. The A’s and Tigers squared off in the 1972 American League Championship Series, and one of the more unusual brawls in Baseball History occurred in Game 2.

Tigers’ reliever Larren LaGrow hit Burt Campeneris on the left ankle, and in response Campeneris threw his bat at LaGrow, and the inevitable brawl ensued. Tigers Manager Billy Martin—a true scrappy fighter capable of real physical harm, and who would manage the A’s a decade later—had to be restrained from going after Campeneris. The A’s won the series three games to two.

The Tigers swept the A’s in the 2006 ALCS, and then the two teams would have more postseason memorable moments in 2012 and 2013.

The A’s fell behind two games to none to the Tigers in the 2012 American League Division Series. The A’s then won Game 3 at the Coliseum, but they trailed 3-1 heading to the bottom of the ninth in Game 4.

Tigers Hall-of-Fame Manager Jim Leyland brought in his dominant closer, Jose Valverde for the bottom of the ninth, but the A’s rallied to tie the game on a double by Seth Smith. With two outs, Coco Crisp hit a walk-off single to right field to win the game and send the series to a decisive Game 5.

However, the A’s ran into Justin Verlander in Game 5, and Verlander pitched a four-hit, 11-strikeout complete-game shutout to lead the Tigers to the ALCS.

A year later in 2013, the A’s led the ALDS two games to one. However, an incident between A’s fiery closer Grant Balfour and Tigers’ slugger Victor Martinez in the bottom of the ninth inning of Game 3 at Comerica Park in Detroit helped motivate the Tigers to come back and win the series.

Justin Verlander again shut out the A’s in Game 5, though this time, he pitched eight innings and struck out 10. Joaquin Benoit got the save.

Fast forward to 2024, as these two young and upcoming teams most likely match up for the final time at the Coliseum. After Seth Brown capped off a thrilling 13-inning with a walk-off base-hit on Friday, the Tigers evened the series with a 2-1 win yesterday.

Game recap: Sunday, the A’s had a chance to take the series on another beautiful day for Baseball at the Coliseum.

First, the A’s honored some more of their former players, including Eric Byrnes and Adam Rosales. J.T. Ginn then made his third big league start, as he took the ball for Oakland and threw a scoreless top of the first inning to get things started. Beau Brieske took the ball for Detroit as their opener, and although he walked a pair of guys, he pitched a scoreless inning as well.

Ginn threw a one, two, three inning in the top of the second, but he ran into trouble an inning later in the top of the third. Trey Sweeney led off the inning with a home run to right field. Ginn retired the next two he faced, but Jace Jung hit a ground-rule double to right, and Riley Greene was hit by a pitch. Kerry Carpenter then shot a base-hit out into right-center field, and Jung scored to make it 2-0.

The Tigers scored again in the top of the fourth when Sweeney knocked in Spencer Torkelson with a base-hit to left field with nobody out. Ginn ended up going five innings.

Tigers Manager A.J. Hinch had brought in Ty Madden in the bottom of the second. Madden pitched four-straight scoreless innings, but the A’s broke through against him in the bottom of the sixth. Shea Langeliers singled, and Brown doubled to put runners at second and third with one out.

Zack Gelof then lined an opposite-field base-hit to right, and Langeliers scored to put Oakland on the board. Runners were at the corners with one out, as the A’s had a chance to tie it, but Madden struck Tritian Gray and Max Schuemann both out swinging.

Still, Madden gave Hinch and the Tigers exactly what they needed. Over five innings, Madden gave up just a run on five hits, while walking just one and striking out seven.

Hogan Harris pitched through a pair of walks to pitch a scoreless top of the seventh for Oakland. Left-hander Scott Alexander then threw a one, two, three inning in the top of the eighth.

However, after Tyler Holton pitched a one, two, three bottom of the seventh for Detroit, the Tigers exploded for six runs against Ross Stripling in the top of the eighth to open up a 9-1 lead. All six runs scored on five-straight two-out hits.

Grant Holman finished the top of the eighth for Oakland, and Brandon Bielak, who was called up from Triple-A Las Vegas prior to the game, escaped a jam for a scoreless top of the ninth. The veteran right-hander, Kenda Maeda, pitched the final two innings for Detroit while giving up three hits but no runs, and the Tigers won it 9-1.

Ty Madden got his first major league win, and J.T. Ginn got his first major league loss. There’s something you don’t see everyday.

The A’s fall to 62-82, and they will now head on the road for a two-city, three-team nine-game road trip. First, they will play three against the Astros at Minute Maid Park in Houston Tuesday through Thursday. Then, they will spend six days in Chicago, as they’ll first go to the South Side to play the White Sox for three next weekend before going north to Wrigley Field to take on the Cubs for three next Monday through Wednesday.

The A’s will have a day off in Houston Monday, and then they will begin their three-game series in which they’ll have a chance to be spoilers against the Astros on Tuesday. Osvaldo Bido (5-3, 3.41 ERA) will make the start for Oakland, and he will be opposed by right-hander Spencer Arrighetti (7-12, 4.82 ERA) of the Astros.

First pitch will be at 7:10 p.m. in Houston, 5:10 p.m. back home in Oakland.

A’s News and Notes:

To make room for Bielak, who was called up prior to the game, left-handed pitcher Brady Basso was sent back to Las Vegas after making a strong start in his major league debut Saturday.