Sacramento A’s Luis Urias (left) scored on a sacrifice fly by Max Schuemann as Los Angeles Angels catcher Travis d’Arnaud takes the throw late in the top of the fourth inning on Wed Jun 11, 2025 at Angels Stadium (AP News photo)

Rooker’s Firepower Not Enough as A’s Collapse in Wild Sixth Inning 6-5

By Mauricio Segura

The green and gold wasted no time getting on the board Wednesday afternoon, but in true 2025 Athletics fashion, their early surge was undone by a bullpen implosion and a momentum-crushing sixth inning meltdown. Despite Brent Rooker’s two-homer afternoon and a promising start from JP Sears, the A’s fell 6-5 to the Angels, extending their losing streak to three games and cementing a winless season series against Los Angeles.

Rooker drove in three runs and continued to punish opposing pitchers, going 3-for-5 with a double and two home runs, his 14th and 15th of the year. His solo shot in the third and a clutch two-run blast in the seventh pulled the A’s within one, but the damage had already been done.

A strong offensive start saw the A’s jump ahead in the first inning. Max Muncy’s RBI single plated Rooker, who had doubled earlier in the frame. Rooker struck again with a solo homer in the third, giving the Athletics a 2-0 cushion. A fourth-inning sacrifice fly from Max Schuemann pushed the lead to 3-0, and with Sears in control early, things looked promising.

Sears, however, faced trouble in the sixth. After cruising through five innings with a two-hit shutout, he was pulled in favor of Grant Holman after issuing a walk to Mike Trout. That’s when the unraveling began. Holman loaded the bases, then plunked Taylor Ward to force in a run.

The bullpen carousel spun quickly, Osvaldo Bido came in and surrendered a game-tying single to Jorge Soler, and then gave up a go-ahead sacrifice fly and a two-run homer to Jo Adell. By the time the dust settled, the Angels had exploded for six runs in the inning, erasing the Athletics’ lead.

The chaos also saw an ejection; starter JP Sears was tossed by home plate umpire Gabe Morales from the dugout, presumably for voicing displeasure at the zone or the unraveling performance that followed his exit.

A’s manager Mark Kotsay rolled the dice with a quick hook for Sears, who had a rocky history at Angel Stadium (0-2, 9.72 ERA entering the day) but was showing signs of control. In five day-game starts this season, Sears held a 2.17 ERA , a bright spot in an otherwise forgettable campaign. Still, his early removal added to the chorus of second-guessing that’s followed this bullpen all season.

The Athletics’ relievers entered the day with a major-league worst 5.96 ERA and had only two saves in their last 29 games. On cue, they coughed up another one.

Rooker’s heroics in the seventh made things interesting. After Schuemann drew a walk, Rooker crushed a 2-run homer to center, bringing the A’s within one. But with the tying run on base later in the inning, Max Muncy struck out to end the threat.

The A’s had another chance in the eighth when JJ Bleday doubled to lead off the inning, but three consecutive outs stranded him at second. Reid Detmers closed the door in the ninth, fanning Lawrence Butler and Tyler Soderstrom to seal it.

With the loss, the A’s fell to 26-44 and remain firmly in last place in the AL West. They’ve now dropped all six matchups to the Angels this season, and are 4-22 when out-homered by opponents.

The Athletics’ road losing streak sits at 13, the second longest for the franchise in nearly three decades. Their bullpen has now blown 11 saves in their last 34 games, and their 103 home runs allowed leads all of Major League Baseball.

Brent Rooker, meanwhile, continues to shine. He has reached base in 18 of his last 20 games and now sits tied for seventh in the majors in homers with runners on base. But even his bat can’t patch the holes left by a bullpen that can’t seem to hold a lead.

Next up: a much-needed off day Thursday before the A’s head to Kansas City, where they’ll hope that right-hander Luis Severino (1-6 ERA 4.77) can stop the bleeding Friday night. The Royals have not decided on a starting pitcher for Friday night yet.

Costa Rican-born Mauricio Segura has been covering sports in the Bay Area since 2001 for a variety of magazines and newspapers, as well as his own publication, Golden Bay Times.