Author: rxslugger

Retired pharmacist who now has a career as a sports writer and broadcaster

Oakland A’s Preview: A’s open 10 game homestand at Coliseum Friday

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Oakland A’s pitcher Sean Newcomb will get the start on Fri Sep 15, 2023 at the Oakland Coliseum against the visiting San Diego Padres (photo by clutchpoints.com)

By Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND–The Oakland A’s (46-100) come to the Oakland Coliseum Friday night to host the San Diego Padres (69-78) for three games. The A’s finished the six-game road trip against the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros with a record of 3-3. The A’s are 12-10 in their last 22 games. The team has done better in all three phases of baseball lately. The pitching has been good, the offense has come to life, and the A’s defense has been solid.

The A’s will welcome their former skipper, Padres manager Bob Melvin, back to the Coliseum for the first time since leaving Oakland after the 2021 season. Melvin managed the A’s starting midway through the 2011 season and was with the club for ten and 1/2 years.

Melvin took the A’s to the playoffs six times in his tenure at the helm. Melvin was named manager of the year in 2012 when the A’s won the AL West division title on the last day of the season, and in 2018 when the team won 97 games.

Unfortunately for Melvin, his 2023 Padres team has been a disappointment. The Padres finished second in the NL West in 2022 with a record of 89-73. The Padres superstar Fernando Tatis, Jr. was suspended for 80 games for using an illegal substance.

The Padres signed free agent Xander Bogaerts to an eleven-year contract in the off-season to bolster the Padres infield. The Padres, in the 27th largest market, have a payroll of $251.1 million, the third highest in baseball. The Mets are number one with $336 Million, and the Yankees are second with a payroll of $268.

All three teams are underachieving this year. The Padres are 69-78 in fourth place in the NL West. Bob Melvin is in the second year of a three-year contract. There have been rumors that Melvin is on the hot seat, and his days as the Padres manager might end at the end of the season.

The Padres, like many other teams in baseball, have had injuries to key players. Two starting pitchers, Joe Musgrove and Yu Darvish, are out for the season. Catcher Gary Sanchez will not play again this year due to a wrist injury. First baseman Jake Cronenworth is also out for the year. However, the Padres have several key players that can be productive.

Their key players are third baseman Manny Machado, Shortstop Xander Bogaerts, and outfielders Juan Soto and Fernando Tatis. Soto leads the club with 30 homers and 90 RBIs. Machado is right behind with 28 dingers and 84 runs batted in.

Tatis, who missed the early part of the season due to his suspension, has belted 24 homers and knocked in 74. Bogaerts helped the offense with 18 big flies and 50 ribbies. Other players that can do damage include second baseman Ha-seong Kim, outfielder Trent Grisham, and first baseman Garrett Cooper.

As mentioned above, the injury jinx has hit the Padres pitching staff hard. However, starters Blake Snell and Michael Wacha have performed well for San Diego. Neither pitcher will face the A’s this weekend. The probable pitchers for the series will be Seth Lugo(6-7, 3.80 ERA) will go for the Padres and will be opposed by the A’s lefty, Sean Newcomb (0-1, 0.75 ERA).

On Saturday, The A’s Mason Miller, who pitched two scoreless innings against the Astros last Monday, will be opposed by Matt Waldron. Sunday’s game will feature Lefty Ken Waldichuk against the PAdres’ Pedro Avila. Waldichuk no-hit the Houston Astros for six innings last Monday, and it was Waldichuk’s best outing of the season.

The A’s, as mentioned above, have been playing better lately. Second baseman Zack Gelof has helped the A’s gain respectability with his outstanding play. Other players contributing to the A’s recent success include first baseman Ryan Noda, catcher Shea Langeliers, and outfielders Brent Rooker and Seth Brown.

Neither team has much to play for except bragging rights. Nevertheless, it will be interesting to see how the teams perform. A’s manager, Mark Kotsay, has his team playing hard until the final out. They may be down, but there is no quit on this young team. The Padres are a mystery. With all their talent, the question is, why are they floundering? On paper, they should easily handle the A’s. Will it happen? That’s why they play the games.

Astros almost no-hit A’s beat the Green and Gold 6-2 at Minute Maid

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Houston Astros pitcher Ryan Pressly thanks the almighty after striking out the Oakland A’s Brent Rooker to end the ball game in the top of the ninth at Minute Maid Field in Houston on Wed Sep 13, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s were set to sweep the Houston Astros Wednesday night at Minute Maid Park . The A’s won the first two games by shutting down the Astros’ potent lineup. The A’s had Paul Blackburn on the hill. His task was to give the A’s a quality start and hope the A’s offense could come through for the third straight game.

Unfortunately for Oakland, the Astros’ pitchers turned the tables on the A’s. The A’s recorded their first hit of the game with one out in the ninth. Had the Astros no-hit the A’s, the A’s would have been the second team in Major League history to have been the victims of a perfect game and a no-hitter in the same season. The only team to have that happen was the 2010 Tampa Bay Rays. As it was, the Astros beat the A’s 6-2.

With one out in the bottom of the third, Blackburn walked Jose Altuve and Jeremy Pena. The next hitter, Yordan Alvarez, who had hit 21 home runs against the A’s since 2019, stepped to the plate. Alvarez launched a missile that left the park traveling 117.7 miles per hour. It was Alvarez’s 27th big fly of the season. Astros third baseman Alex Bregman followed with his 23rd home run of the year to give the Astros a 4-0 lead. Blackburn labored through the inning. He threw 34 pitches and was done for the night. 

The Astros added a run in the fifth to make it 5-0. Lefty Kyle Muller was pitching for Oakland. With two out, Michael Brantley singled.. Astros’ catcher Yainer Diaz doubled to drive in Brantley. The Astros made it 6-0 in the seventh.

Lefty Easton Lucas, acquired from Baltimore in the trade for Shintaro Fujinami, retired the first two Houston hitters. Lucas had to face Kyle Tucker now. Tucker was hitless in ten trips to the plate in the series. However, Tucker had owned A’s pitching before this series.

Tucker found one of Lucas’ pitches to his liking and sent it out of the park to make it a 6-0 game. For Tucker, it was his 105th run batted in. Tucker leads the AL in that department. It was his 27th home run of the year and his 100th career homer.

The A’s put two runs on the board in the ninth. Astros’ closer Ryan Pressly was on the mound to finish off the A’s. Four Houston pitchers had held the A’s hitless for eight innings. Pressly retired Tony Kemp for the first out. Zack Gelof walked. He was the fourth base runner of the game for the A’s. All Pressly had to do was get the next two outs without a hit.

Ryan Noda, who hits from the left side, broke up the no-hitter with a single up the middle, sending Gelof to third. Seth Brown singled to drive in Gelof with Oakland’s first run. Noda went to third on the play and scored on Shea Langelier’s sacrifice fly. Pressly struck out Brent Rooker to end the game. The Astros won 6-2.

Game Notes: With the loss, the A’s are now 46-100 for the year. This is the second consecutive year that the A’s will have lost 100 or more games in a season. The Astros improved to 83-64. The Astros needed the win as the Texas Rangers beat the Toronto Blue Jays, and the Seattle Mariners beat the LA Angels. The Astros have a one-game advantage over the Rangers and a game and 1/2 lead over Seattle. With 15 games left in the season, the race will go down to the wire.

The Line for Oakland was two runs, two hits, and no errors. Blackburn was the losing pitcher. He pitched three innings, allowing four runs, four hits, and two home runs. 

The line for Houston was six runs, nine hits, and no errors. The Astros hit three home runs. The winning pitcher was Hunter Brown. Brown went five innings, allowing no hits and no runs. He struck out seven and walked two. 

The A’s are off on Thursday. The A’s will host the San Diego Padres for three games starting Friday night. Former A’s manager Bob Melvin will return to the Coliseum for the first time after leaving in 2021. Melvin took the A’s to the playoffs six times in the ten years he managed the club. Lefty Sean Newcomb (0-1 ERA 0.75) will go for Oakland. Seth Lugo (6-7 ERA 3.80) will go for San Diego. The game will start at 6:40 p.m.

A’s do it again beat Astros 6-2; Oakland shocks Houston at Minute Maid

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Oakland Athletics’ Tony Kemp celebrates after hitting a home run against the Houston Astros during the fifth inning at Minute Maid Field in Houston on Tue Sep 12, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

My, oh my. Wow!!! The Oakland A’s beat the Houston Astros for the second straight night. The score this time was 6-2. The A’s starter, JP Sears, pitched well for the third straight game. Sears gave the A’s a quality start as he went six innings, allowing two runs and five hits.

The A’s bullpen held the Astros scoreless in the game’s last three innings. The A’s offense hit two home runs, one by Langeliers and one by Tony Kemp. Zack Gelof and Seth Brown had two doubles in the game. The A’s are now 12-9 in their last 21 games. Oakland is now playing a different brand of baseball these days. The A’s will be going for the sweep on Wednesday.

Here’s how the A’s beat future Hall of Fame pitcher Justin Verlander. Verlander entered the game with a lifetime record of 22 wins and seven losses against the A’s. His career ERA against Oakland is 2.27. In 2012 and 2013, Verlander beat the A’s in the playoffs to end Oakland’s season. 

The A’s had Verlander’s number Tuesday night. The A’s put three runs on the board in the top of the first. With one out, Zack Gelof doubled. Ryan Noda singled to drive in Gelof with the game’s first run. Verlander struck out Seth Brown for the second out.

All Verlander had to do to get out of the jam was to find a way to retire Shea Langeliers. Langeliers, who homered Monday night, sent his 19th dinger of the year into the stratosphere. There was no doubt about it when the ball left Shea’s bat. The ball hit the back row of the seats in the stadium. The A’s led 3-0.

Houston put a run on the board in their half of the first. Houston’s all-world second baseman, Jose Altuve, reached on an infield single. Sears retired Jeremy Pena for the first out. DH Yordan Alvarez laid down a bunt that stayed fair and sent to Altuve to second.

Sears walked Alex Bregman to load the bases. Sears now had to pitch the Kyle Tucker. Tucker loves to hit against the A’s pitching. Tucker had a three-homer game against the A’s earlier this year. Sears got Tucker to ground out. Altuve scored on the play. Sears struck out Jose Abreu to end the inning. The A’s lead 3-1 after one inning.

In the top of the third, Zack Gelof led off with his second double of the game. Seth Brown doubled to drive in Gelof with the A’s fourth run.

Tony Kemp led off the fifth with a solo home run to make it a 5-1 game midway through the inning. The Astros plated a run in their half of the inning. Mauricio Dubon and Martin Maldonado singled to put men on first and third with no out.

Sears made the fielding play of the night when he caught Jose Altuve’s popup and then threw to first to nail Maldonado to complete the double play. Jeremy Pena singled to drive in Dubon to make it a 5-2 game. The Astros didn’t know it then, but Houston would not score again.

The A’s added an insurance run in the eighth. Lefty Parker Mushinski was now pitching for the Astros. Mushinski hit the leadoff hitter, Ryan Noda, with a pitch. Seth Brown doubled for the second time to drive in Noda with Oakland’s sixth run. There was no more scoring as the A’s won.

Game Notes: With the win, the A’s are now 46-99 for the year. Houston falls to 82-64. Houston’s home record for the year is now 37-37, hardly a home-field advantage. It’s reminiscent of Houston’s failure to win at home in the 2019 World Series. The Washington Nationals won all four games at Minute Maid Park to become World Series Champs. 

The Line score for Oakland was six runs, ten hits, and no errors. JP Sears was the winning pitcher, improving his record to 5-11.

Houston’s line was two runs, six hits, and no errors. Justin Verlander was the losing pitcher, and he is 5-3 with Houston since coming to the team from the New York Mets. The Texas Rangers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 6-3 Tuesday and now trail the Astros by one game in the race for the AL West crown.

The final game of the three-game series will start at 4:10 p.m. on Wednesday. Paul Blackburn (4-4, 3.88 ERA) will go for Oakland. Hunter Brown (10-11, 4.47 ERA) will be on the hill for Houston.

Three A’s pitchers hold Astros to three hits as Oakland wins opener of three-game series 4-0

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Oakland Athletics pitcher Ken Waldichuk throws against the Houston Astros during the third inning at Minute Field in Houston on Mon Sep 11, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s, behind great pitching by Mason Miller, Ken Waldichuk, and Trevor May, stopped the hard-hitting Houston Astros 4-0 to win the first game of the three-game series at Minute Maid Park in Houston.

A’s manager, Mark Kotsay, elected to use righty Mason Miller as the opener. Miller gave the A’s two innings, allowing only a single in the first inner. Miller kept the Astros scoreless in his two innings of work. Lefty Ken Waldichuk came into the game, and he was fantastic.

Without question, he had his finest performance of the season. Waldichuk pitched six innings and did not allow a hit. His only mistake was hitting Kyle Tucker with a pitch in the fourth inning. Waldichuk’s throw to first caught Tucker trying to steal.

The play went 1-3-6. Waldichuk was the winning pitcher. He is 3-7 for the season. Trevor May earned his 20th save. It took work as the Astros, limited to just one hit over the first eight innings, got singles by Jose Altuve and Jeremy Pena to start the ninth. May got the dangerous Yordan Alvarez on a sharp line drive to deep right field. Alex Bregman and Kyle Tucker were retired on fly balls to Esteury Ruiz.

The A’s offense hit three solo home runs. Brent Rooker blasted his 24th of the year in the top of the second to give the A’s all the runs they would need. Oakland scored their second run of the night in the fifth. With one out, third baseman Kevin Smith doubled.

Nick Allen singled to drive in Smith with the A’s second run. With two out in the seventh, Shea Langeliers continued his homer binge with an opposite-field homer to make it 3-0. For Shea, it was his 18th of the year. Ryan Noda led off the ninth with his 15th big fly to give the A’s a 4-0 cushion heading into the bottom of the ninth. May did the job and the A’s won 4-0.

Game Notes: With the win, the A’s are now 45-99 for the year. Oakland is 11-9 in their last 20 games. The Astros are now 82-63. The Texas Rangers won Monday night and are two games behind the Astros in the race for first place in the AL West.

The Astros came into the game with a home record of 37-35. With the loss, they are 37-36 at home. The A’s can continue to add to the Astros’ home woes Tuesday night. It will be challenging as the A’s will be facing the ace of the Houston staff, Justin Verlander.

The line score for Oakland was four runs, seven hits, and no errors. The line score for Houston was no runs, three hits, and no errors. The winning pitcher was Ken Waldichuk. Framber Valdez was the losing pitcher.

Tuesday’s game will start at 5:10 p.m.

Oakland A’s Preview: A’s open three-game series with Texas Rangers in Arlington Friday

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Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Santiago Espinal, left, tags out Oakland Athletics’ Brent Rooker (25) during the fourth inning at the Oakland Coliseum on Thu Sep 6, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s are in Arlington, Texas, to start a six-game road trip Friday night against the Texas Rangers and the Houston Astros. The Rangers have been playing poorly lately. The Astros just swept a three-game series from the Rangers, and their record in the last 19 games is four wins and 15 losses.

The Rangers played well in the first half of the season with a mark of 52-39. In the second half, the Rangers are 24-24. The Rangers, Astros, and Mariners are in a three-way race for the AL West division title. The Astros lead the Mariners by a games and have a three-game advantage over the Rangers.

The Tampa Bay Rays and Seattle Mariners own the first and second playoff spots in the Wild Card race. The Toronto Blue Jays and the Rangers will fight for the third slot. The Blue Jays have a 1/2 game lead over Texas as of Sept. 7. The Rangers play the Blue Jays in Toronto next week.

The A’s would love to spoil the Rangers’ efforts to make the playoffs. The A’s are playing well. They finished the last homestand with a record of 4-2. They are 9-7 in their last 16 games. The A’s young players have helped the team improve.

Zack Gelof, Esteury Ruiz, Lawrence Butler, Ryan Noda, Brent Rooker, Shea Langeliers, and Nick Allen appear to be the team’s nucleus shortly. Former A’s pitcher Chris Bassitt, now with Toronto, remarked that most of his former A’s teammates are no longer with the club. The only players from his time with the A’s were Tony Kemp and Seth Brown.

The Rangers traded for Max Scherzer and Jordan Montgomery to bolster the starting rotation. The Astros sent Scherzer to an early shower yesterday. Nathan Eovaldi was shelled in his last start. He lasted just one and 1.3 of an inning. The bullpen needs to be up to the task. The Rangers traded for Aroldis Chapman to be their closer. The lefty from Cuba still has a fastball that travels over 100 MPH. Yet, he has not been successful lately.

The Rangers still have players that can cause damage to opposing pitchers. The A’s pitchers will have their hands full, containing the bats of players like catcher Jonah Heim, first baseman Nate Lowe, second baseman Marcus Semien, and shortstop Corey Seager.

Third baseman Josh Jung is out with an injury until Sept. 22. Jung was a contender for AL Rookie of the Year until the injury sidelined him. Outfielders Robbie Grossman and Leody Taveras are capable players and can be productive.

Adolis Garcia has caused the A’s problems in the past, but he is scuffling now. García notched his second All-Star appearance this year after a strong first half but has struggled with a .197/.293/. He has a 462 slash line since Aug. 1.

The Texas offense has coincidentally paralleled his struggles. Though García leads the AL in RBIs, he has struggled to come up with the big hit down the stretch. If the Rangers want to remain in the postseason picture, they will likely need García to be productive.

Friday night’s game will see the A’s Paul Balckburn (4-4 ERA 3.81) pitch for Oakland. The Rangers will send lefty Jordan Montgomery (8-10 ERA 3.46) to the hill to handle their pitching chores. The game will start at 6:05 pm

The A’s bullpen sparkles as the A’s beat the Mariners 3-1

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Oakland Athletics’ Brent Rooker hits a single against the Seattle Mariners during the eighth inning at T Mobile Field in Seattle on Tue Aug 29, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s upset the Seattle Mariners apple cart Tuesday night in Seattle. The lowly A’s pitching staff held the hard-hitting Mariners’ lineup to just four hits, two of which came in the ninth inning with two out. A’s starter, Ken Waldichuk, pitched well for three innings.

Waldichuk held the M’s hitless in those innings. In the meantime, the A’s put three runs on the board after two innings of play. Seth Brown hit a solo homer in the first, and Shea Langeliers blasted a two-run job in the second. That was all the offense the A’s would need. 

Two things happened to help the A’s get the win. George Kirby was supposed to start for Seattle. Kirby was scratched due to not feeling well. M’s skipper, Scott Servais, inserted Luke Weaver into the starting role. Weaver made two mistakes.

One was the home to Brown, and the second was Langeliers’ big fly. The other thing was the absence of superstar centerfielder Julio Rodriguez. J-Rod, the hottest hitter in baseball, was sidelined with discomfort in his left foot. J-Rod had four hits in Monday’s win over the A’s.

As mentioned above, Waldichuk was good for three innings. Things did not go well for him in the fourth. Teoscar Hernandez singled, leading off the inning. It was the M’s first hit in the game. Waldichuk walked catcher Cal Raleigh to put two men on with no out.

Mike Ford, hitting for Ty France, flew out to right field. Waldichuk struck out Dominic Canzone for the second out. Dylan Moore walked to load the bases. Waldichuk’s wildness continued as he walked Cade Marlowe to force in a run. Jose Caballero pooped up to shortstop Nick Allen to end the inning. The A’s led 3-1 after four.

A’s manager, Mark Kotsay, sent Waldichuk to pitch the fifth. Kotsay had Waldichuk on a short leash. Waldichuk’s pitch count was high. Kotsay would remove him from the game if nothing was left in the tank. Waldichuk walked the leadoff hitter, J.P. Crawford.

Kotsay brought in Lucas Erceg to pitch. Erceg got the next three outs. The A’s Sean Newcomb, Dany Jimenez, and Kirby Snead kept the M’s off the board. The Mariners got their second hit of the night in the bottom of the eighth.

The stage was set for closer Trevor May. May had to face the bottom of the Mariners’ lineup to earn the save. May struck out the first two hitters. Pinch-hitting for Jose Caballero, Josh Rojas singled to keep the Mariners’ hopes alive. J.P. Crawford then doubled down the left-field line to send Rojas to third.

The two hits electrified the 44,280 fans in the park. All the Mariners needed was a single. The batter was the dangerous Eugenio Suarez. Suarez had doubled twice in Monday night’s game. The fans were on their feet. Could Trevor May rise to the occasion for Oakland? The Answer was yes. May struck out Suarez to end the game. The A’s win 3-1.

Game Notes: With the win, the A’s are now 39-94. The A’s need four more wins to avoid tying the 1962 New York Mets record of 120 losses. The Mariners record dropped to 75-57. The Mariners are in a dogfight with the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros for first place in the AL West Division. The Rangers and Astros won Tuesday night, and the three teams are in a virtual tie for the lead.

The line score for Oakland was three runs, nine hits, and one error. The winning pitcher was Lucas Erceg. The line for Seattle was one run, four hits, and no errors. The losing pitcher was Luke Weaver.

The A’s beat the Mariners for the first time this season. They are 1-8 and will finish the three-game series Wednesday afternoon at T-Mobile Field in Seattle.

Zach Neal (ERA 6.88) will pitch for Oakland, and Bryce Miller (8-4 ERA 3.90) will be Seattle’s starter choice. The game will start at 1:10 p.m.

It was bombs away as A’s homer five times to beat White Sox 8-5

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Chicago White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr. robs Oakland Athletics’ Brent Rooker of a home run during the fourth inning  at Guarantee Rate Field in Chicago on Thu Aug 24, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s won a slugfest Thursday night as they downed the Chicago White Sox 8-5 at Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago. The A’s won for the third time in their last four games. The A’s hope the turmoil in Chicago will help them get a couple of wins in the Windy City this weekend.

The White Sox, expected to win the AL Central crown, have been floundering this season. The Sox fired team president Ken Williams and General Manager Rick Hahn. Skipper Pedro Grifol may be the next to be fired. 

The A’s sent lefty Ken Waldichuk to the hill to face the Sox. Waldichuk did well for the first four innings. His only mistake in those innings was serving up a gopher ball to the second batter he faced, Andrew Benintendi. It was Benintendi’s fourth dinger of the year. The rest of the game summary follows below.

The A’s put three on the board in the top of the fourth to take a 3-1 lead. With one out, Seth Brown singled to get the rally started. Luis Robert snagged Brent Rooker’s drive to centerfield as the ball was headed over the wall.

Rooker had flown out to deep left field in his first at-bat. Left fielder Tony Kemp doubles to send Brown to third. A’s catcher Shea Langeliers continued his hot homer streak by blasting a line drive over the fence in left field. 

The White Sox scored four times in the bottom of the fifth. Former Oakland A’s shortstop Elvis Andrus led off the frame with his fifth bomb of the year. Waldichuk retired Trayce Thompson for the first out. On the next play, Waldichuk threw the ball past first base.

The batter, Sox catcher Korey Lee, motored to the second base. Waldichuk struck out Tim Anderson for the second out. Andrew Benintendi singled to drive in his second run of the game.

Waldichuk now had to deal with the Sox’s best hitter, Luis Robert. Robert led the Sox with 33 homers. He now has 34. Robert’s home run gave the Sox a 5-3 lead after five innings.

The A’s homered twice in the sixth inning to send White Sox starter Jesse Scholtens to the showers. With one out, Brent Rooker, denied in his first two at-bats, homered for the 22nd time this year. Schotens retired Tony Kemp for the second out. The next hitter, Shea Langeliers, homered for the second time to tie the game 5-5. 

The A’s added two runs in the top of the seventh. With two out, Ryan Noda singled and then stole second. The A’s sensational rookie second baseman, Zack Gelof, homered for the tenth time this season. The A’s led 7-5

It was now up to the A’s bullpen to preserve the win. Before we get to what the bullpen did, the A’s added another run in the top of the eight. Tony Kemp hit a solo homer to give the A’s a three-run cushion midway through the eighth,

The A’s bullpen allowed the White Sox four hits and kept them scoreless in the last four innings of the game. Lucas Erceg, Danny Jimenez, Spencer Patton, Kirby Snead, and Trevor May came through for the A’s. Oakland won the first game of the four-game series 8-5.

Game Notes: With the win, the A’s are now 37-91. The White Sox dropped to 50-78. 

The line score for Oakland was eight runs, nine hits, and one error. Ken Waldichuk worked five innings and allowed eight hits and five runs. The White Sox hit three home runs off of Waldichuk’s offerings. Lucas Erceg was the winning pitcher.

The line score for Chicago was five runs, 12 hits, and one error. 

The A’s hit five home runs in the game. Tony Kemp had a double and a home run. Shea Langeliers had two dingers and four RBIs. Brent Rooker hit his 22nd of the year. He was robbed by Luis Robert earlier in the game. Two other drives were very long outs. He seems to be back in the groove. 

Game two of the series will be played Friday night. The A’s starter will be Zach Neal (0-0 ERA 8.25). Neal probably will be an opener. The White Sox will counter with Dylan Cease (5-6 ERA 4.50). The game will start at 5:10 p.m.

There was a sparse crowd 13,247 at the park on Chicago’s southside. Reports surfaced that the White Sox are not happy with their park. Reports say the team is looking at relocating to Nashville. The White Sox, for years, have been the second banana in the Windy City. The fans love the Cubs, who went 108 years before winning a World Series Championship. The Cubs can do no wrong. It would be sad for the White Sox fans to lose their team.

Royals beat A’s 4-0 for two hitter avoid getting swept at Coliseum; KC uses four pitchers for shutout

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Oakland Athletics’ Lawrence Butler breaks his bat while grounding into a force out during the eighth inning against the Kansas City Royals at the Oakland Coliseum on Wed Aug 23, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND–The Kansas City Royals shut down the A’s offense, as the guys from Kansas City shut out the A’s 4-0

The Royals starter Cole Ragans was the winning pitcher. Ragans allowed the A’s two singles in his six innings of work Wednesday afternoon. The A’s used an opener, Adrian Martinez, to start. Martinez went two and 1/3rd innings and allowed three hits and one run. It was not a bad performance, but the A’s offense went to sleep and could not put any runs on the board.

The Royals drew first blood in the top of the third. Royals’ Right-fielder hit his first Major League home run to give the Royals an early 1-0 advantage halfway through the inning. The A’s failed to score in their half of the inning.

The Royals put two more on the board in the fourth. A’s reliever Francisco Perez hit the Royals’ DH Matt Beaty. Perez struck out Royals’ catcher Freddy Fernin for the first out. Drew Waters tripled over Brent Rooker’s glove to drive in Beaty.

The Royals’ third baseman Maikel Garcia’s sacrifice fly plated Waters with the game’s third run for Kansas City. The A’s went down in order in their half of the fourth. Kansas City leads 3-0.

The Royals added a run in the fifth. The Royals’ best player, shortstop Bobby Witt, Jr., led off the inning with his 26th bomb of the year. Witt also had a single in the game. 

Kagans left the game after the sixth. Three Royals’ relievers did not allow a hit and kept the A’s scoreless. The A’s mounted a threat in the eighth when Royals’ reliever Jackson Kower walked three A’s hitters to lopas the bases.

The Royals brought in Carlos Hernandez to pitch. Hernandez retired pinch-hitter Seth Brown for the second out, and Zack Gelof grounded out to end the inning. The A’s failed to score in the ninth. The A’s lost 4-0.

Game Notes: With the loss, the A’s are now 36-91. The Royals are 41-88.

The A’s used four pitchers: Adrian Martinez, Francisco Perez, Kyle Muller, and Sean Newcomb. Muller went four innings and allowed one run, Bobby Witt’s homer.

The A’s will be in Chicago on Thursday to start a four-game series against the White Sox. Lefty Ken Waldichul will go for Oakland. Chicago will counter with Jesse Scholtens. The game will start at 5:10 p.m.

Oakland A’s preview: A’s open three game series against mighty Orioles at Coliseum Friday

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Oakland Athletics’ Tyler Soderstrom (37) is congratulated by teammate Lawrence Butler (22) after hitting a solo home run during the ninth inning at Busch Stadium in St Louis on Wed Aug 16, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s had an off day on Thursday as they return to the Oakland Coliseum to start a six-game homestand. The A’s did not fare well as they were swept by the Washington Nationals and lost two out of three to the St. Louis Cardinals on the six-game road trip.

The A’s did salvage a win as they played one of their best games of the season. A’s starter Paul Blackburn gave the A’s seven innings of outstanding pitching. Reliever Austin Pruitt held the Cardinal scoreless in the last two innings of the game.

The A’s offense came through with 14 hits. Rookie second baseman Zack Gelof had four hits, two of them were doubles, and the A’s defense did not commit an error. A’s manager Mark Kotsay had to be pleased with his team’s performance on Wednesday.

The A’s will be hosting the Baltimore Orioles this weekend. The Orioles are in first place in the tough American League East Division. Their record is 74-47, and they have a two-game lead over the second-place Tampa Bay Rays.

The Orioles, managed by Brandon Hyde, were picked by only a few of the pundits to have the best record in the American League. Hyde, who became skipper in 2019, inherited a team managed by Buck Showalter in 2018.

The Orioles record in 2018 was 47-115. A’s manager Mark Kotsay can relate to Hyde’s position as manager in 2019. The A’s are on track to have a similar record in 2023. The Orioles continued their losing ways in 2019, 2020, and 2021.

The Orioles were 54-108 in 2019, 2020 was shortened due to Covid, but they still had a losing year; in 2021, Baltimore finished with a record of 52-110. They had over 100 losses in four years, from 2018 to 2021. What changed? In 2022, the Orioles brought up catcher Adley Rutschman from the minor leagues.

Rutschman was the first player picked in the 2019 Major League draft. Rutschman was a star at Oregon State University. He was the Pac-12’s player of the year. The Orioles added other players like Ryan Mountcastle, Cedric Mullins, Austin Hays, and Anthony Santander, and their fortunes began to change. In 2022, The Orioles finished fourth in the AL East with a record of 83-79.

Rutscman is the engine that drives the Orioles. Last season, Rutschman was named the Louis M. Hatter Most Valuable Player. This season, Rutschman made the AL All_Star team. He is hitting .267 with 16 homers and 58 RBIs. His OPS is .787.

The Orioles have a lot of other good players. Right fielder Anthony Santander leads the club with 21 homers and 65 RBIs. The Orioles use two players at first base that are also solid. Ryan O’Hearn is hitting. 300 with 10 Homers and 40 RBIs. Ryan Mountcastle is at .271, with 16 homers and 55 RBIs.

Rookie Gunnar Henderson, who s 22 years old, had added to the Orioles offense. Henderson plays shortstop and third base for the team. His numbers are .238, 19 home runs, and 56 runs batted in. Austin Hays and Cedric Mullins also contribute to the O’s offense.

Hays is hitting. 279 with 11 dingers and 46 knocked in. Mullins is at .254 with ten big flies and 50 RBIs. The Orioles will use Mountcastle or Santander as the DH. Just looking at the Oriole lineup shows how the players have contributed to the team’s overall success. There are no easy outs in this lineup.

The Orioles bolstered their starting rotation with the addition of Jack Flaherty. Flaherty came to the Orioles from the St. Louis Cardinals at the trade deadline. The other starters in the rotation include Kyle Bradish, Dean Kremer, Kyle Gibson, and Grayson Rodriguez. Gibson will start against the A’s Friday night. Bradish will pitch on Sunday.

Former A’s starter, lefty Cole Irvin, will face his old mates on Saturday. Irvin would love nothing better than sending the A’s down to defeat. The Orioles’ closer is Felix Bautista. Bautista is 7-2 with 32 saves. The setup man is Yennier Cano.

Cano is 1-2 with four saves. The only negative is Cano’s five-blown saves. Other pitchers in the bullpen include former A’s reliever Shintaro Fujinami, Michael Baumann, and Jacob Webb. The lefties in the ‘pen include Nick Vespi and Ciomel Perez.

The A’s are in the same situation as the Orioles were in 2019. 2023 will be the second season the A’s will lose over 100 games. A’s manager Mark Kotsay is trying to rebuild the team. There are bright spots on the A’s roster.

Rookie second baseman Zack Gelof looks like the real deal. Esteury Ruiz, acquired from Milwaukee in the deal that sent Sean Murphy to Atlanta, is leading the AL in steals and is second in all of baseball with 48. Ruiz is a clutch hitter, especially with men in scoring positions.

The A’s brought up Lawrence Butler to pay centerfield. Butler hit his first home run against the Cardinals Tuesday night. Let’s hope Butler can emulate Gelof’s performance. Jordan Diaz, 22 years old, found a home at third base. Diaz has played well and has some pop in his bat. Diaz and Gelof should help the A’s rebirth.

The A’s pitching staff, both starters and relievers, must improve. Paul Balckburn is a proven starter. Players like Luis Medina, Ken Waldichuk, J.P.Sears, and Freddy Tarnok are learning on the job. If these four guys can improve as pitchers, the A’s, like the Orioles, can go from the outhouse to the penthouse.

The weekend series features the best team in the AL going against the worst team. The A’s would love to upset the O’s apple cart this weekend. Is it possible? Perhaps. No one knows what will happen on any given day in baseball.

A’s beat Cardinals 8-0 to snap five game losing streak; Oakland avoids getting swept on road trip

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Oakland A’s pitcher Paul Blackburn pitching in the bottom of the seventh inning kept the St Louis Cardinals off balance at Busch Stadium in St Louis on Wed Aug 16, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

What a difference a day makes. The A’s beat the St. Louis Cardinals 8-0 Wednesday night at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. The A’s snapped a five-game losing streak and a nine-game road losing streak. The A’s offense came alive, and Oakland’s starter Paul Blackburn pitched extremely well.

Blackburn, one of the few A’s starters to go seven innings, allowed six hits in no runs, winning his third game of the year. Blackburn, an All-Star pitcher in 2022, showed the form that got him that honor.

A’s rookie shortstop, Zack Gelof, paced the offense with four hits, including two doubles. The young man from Delaware continues to impress. A’s fans can only imagine an infield consisting of Matt Chapman, Marcus Semien, Zack Gelof, and Matt Olson. The fans would be filling the Coliseum to see these guys play. 

The A’s pounced on the Cardinals’ starter Matthew Liberatore in the first inning. In Tuesday’s game, the Cardinals scored four runs in the first. The A’s turned the tables on St. Louis on Wednesday. With one out, Gelof doubled. Zack then stole third.

In his second game since coming off the IL, A’s DH Carlos Perez singled to give the A’s an earl 1-0 lead. Aledmys Diaz singled, sending Perez to third. Third baseman Jordan Diaz doubled to deep right-centerfield to drive in Perez and Aledmys Diaz. Jonah Bride walked, and Shea Langeliers followed with a single to drive in Jordan Diaz with the A’s fourth run.

The A’s added a run in the fourth, a run in the fifth, and a run in the sixth to go ahead 7-0. In the fourth, Nick Allen singled. Esteury Ruiz doubled, but Allen was thrown out at the plate trying to score. Not to worry, Zack Gelof singled to drive in Ruiz with the A’s fifth run.

Cardinal’s right fielder Jordan Walker misplayed Brent Rooker’s fly ball in the fifth. The ball bounced off Walker’s glove. Walker was charged with a three-base error. With one out, Seth Brown’s sacrifice fly brought in Rooker with Oakland’s sixth run of the night.

The A’s added another run in the sixth. Esteury Ruiz helped manufacture a run. Cardinals’ Casey Lawrence walked Ruiz. Ruiz, second in baseball in steals, did not wait long to steal the base. Gelof followed with his second double of the night to make it 7-0 A’s

Oakland added one more run in the ninth. Tyler Soderstrom entered the game as the DH, replacing Carlos Perez. Soderstrom thanked A’s manager Mark Ktsay for the honor. Soderstrom hit a monster shot that traveled 454 feet. For Soderstrom, it was his second big-league dinger. The A’s won the game 8-0.

 Game Notes: With the win, the A’s are now 34-87. The Cardinals are 54-67. 

The line score for Oakland was eight runs, 14 hits, and no errors. Paul Blackburn was the winning pitcher. Blackburn went seven innings allowing six hits and no runs. He struck out eight and walked one.

The line for St. Louis was no runs, nine hits, and one error. Matthew Liberatore was the losing pitcher. Liberatore’s line was four and 1/3rd innings, ten hits, and six runs, five of which were earned. 

The hitting star for Oakland was Zack Gelof. Gelof had two doubles, two singles, and two runs batted in. 

The A’s are off on Thursday. The A’s will play three games against the Baltimore Orioles starting Friday night. The O’s are first in the very powerful American League East Division. The A’s have yet to announce their starters for the Series. Kyle Gibson (11-7 ERA 4.89) will pitch on Friday for Baltimore, former A’s starter Cole Irvin will go on Saturday, and Kyle Bradish will pitch on Sunday.