Author: rxslugger

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

A’s lose to Astros 6-5 on a bizarre play

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Photo credit: chron.com

By Jerry Feitelberg

There is an adage in baseball that goes something like this, “You never know what you are going to see in the game tonight.”

Was that ever true Tuesday night as the A’s lost on a play that will be remembered for a long, long time? The A’s came from behind to tie the game in the ninth. They took the lead, 5-4, on Stephen Piscotty’s home run in the 11th, but were not able to hold on as the Astros scored twice to win the game, 6-5, at Minute Maid Park on Tuesday night.

The Astros scored twice in the bottom of the 11th. The A’s All-Star closer Blake Treinen walked Josh Reddick. That proved to be Treinen’s undoing. Kyle Tucker singled to send Reddick to third. With the infield drawn in, Tony Kemp hit a ground ball to Marcus Semien. Semien’s throw home appeared to be in time to nail Reddick, but Jonathan Lucroy was not able to come upwith the throw and Reddick scored the tying run. Tucker went to second and Kemp was safe at first on a fielder’s choice. Treinen retired George Springer for the first out.

The next hitter was Alex Bregman. Bregman had homered twice in the game and Treinen was not about to give him anything that he could hit. Bregman hit a tapper that bounced off the plate and into fair territory. Bregman thought it was a foul, but when Lucroy tried to tag him out, Bregman jumped back. The ball squirted out of Lucroy’s hand and bounced off the home plate umpire. Lucroy picked up the ball but his  throw to first glanced off Bregman’s batting helmet and went down the first base line. Tucker scored the winning run. Bench coach Ryan Christenson who took over as manager when Bob Melvin was thrown out earlier in the game. He had to convince the umps to review the play. They finally did but the call was upheld and the game was over.

The A’s were held scoreless by Justin Verlander and two Houston relievers until the ninth inning. In the meantime, the Astros built a 4-0 lead. The Astros took an early 1-0 lead in the first when Alex Bregman clobbered his 18th big fly. The ‘Stros tacked on one in the second, one in the fourth and one in the seventh when Bregman homered again.

The A’s, as they have done so many times this season, plated four runs in the top of the ninth as they rocked Houston’s closer Ken Giles. Mark Canha and Jed Lowrie singled to start the rally. Khris Davis followed with a single to drive in Canha with Oakland’s first run. Matt Olson singled to drive in Lowrie. Gile struck out Piscotty and Matt Chapman, but he could not get by Marcus Semien, Semien, who had tripled and doubled earlier, doubled again to drive in Davis and Olson. The Astros failed to score in the bottom of the ninth and the game went into extra innings.

The A’s took the lead in the top of the eleventh when Stephen Piscotty did it again. He homered off Collin McHugh to put the A’s ahead 5-4. It was Piscotty’s 11th homer of the year and his fourth home in his last four game. The Astros rallied to score twice and they beat the A’s 6-5.

Game Notes: With the win, Houston improved to 612-32. The A’s fell to 51-41.

Blake Treinen blew the save and took the loss. His is record in now 5-2. McHugh was the winning pitcher for Houston.

Sean Manaea was not at his best Tuesday night. He went four-plus innings and allowed seven hits and three runs. He was not charged with the loss as the A’s got him off the hook with the four-run rally in the ninth.

Houston’s Justin Verlander pitched well as he went six innings and allowed no runs and just three hits. Verlander didn’t walk anyone and had six strikeouts. He threw 108 pitches and Houston manager A.J.Hinch removed him from the game.

The A’s announced that second baseman Jed Lowrie was selected to the AL All-Star team. Lowrie will be playing in the Midsummer classic for the first time and will be joining Blake Treinen representing the Green and Gold.

The A’s also made a roster move. They recalled Ryan Dull from Nashville and sent Frankie Montas down. The move initially appeared to be surprising as Montas pitched very well Monday night and was the winning pitcher. However, with the All-Star break starting next Monday and no action for four days, the A’s felt that it would be better for Montas to go to Nashville as he would not miss any playing time and he would be recalled when his turn would come up in the rotation.

Up Next: The A’s will send Chris Bassitt to the hill Wednesday night and the Astros will counter with Lance McCullers. Trevor Cahill pitches Thursday and Charlie Morton will work for the Astros. Game time is set for 5:10 pm PDT.

A’s, behind Montas and Piscotty, take down Astros 2-0 at Minute Maid Park

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sbnation file photo: Oakland A’s pitcher Frankie Montas delivered a 2-0 shutout against one of the toughest line ups in the American League the Houston Astros at Minute Field on Monday night

By Jerry Feitelberg

The name of the game in baseball is pitching and A’s starter Frankie Montas turned in a terrific performance as he was the winning pitcher as the A’s snapped the Astro’s eight-game winning streak over Oakland. The A’s won the game 2-0 as Lou Trivino pitched two scoreless innings and closer Blake Treinen earned his 20th consecutive save and 23rd of the year.

Astros’ starter, Gerrit Cole, was also on the top of his game. The Houston ace went six innings and allowed no runs, three hits, walked three, and struck out 11. Cole threw 108 pitches.

The game was scoreless until the top of the seventh. Houston Manager A.J.Hinch brought in former Athletic Brad Peacock to face his former mates. The face first hitter he faced was Stephen Piscotty. Piscotty sent Peacock’s hanging breaking ball into the left-field seats to give the A’s a 1-0 lead. For Piscotty, it was his 10th big fly of the season, and it was the third consecutive game in which he homered.

The A’s added an insurance run in the top of the eighth. With two out, Khris Davis singled. Will Harris walked Matt Olson to advance Davis into scoring position. Hinch brought in Joe Smith to face Piscotty. Piscotty did it again as he singled to drive in Davis.

The A’s led 2-0 heading into the bottom of the eighth. Trivino, as mentioned earlier, was brilliant as he retired the side in order in the eighth. Bob Melvin brought in Treinen to face the top of the Houston order in the ninth. Treinen gave up a leadoff single to George Springer.

Springer retired Alex Bregman for the first out and struck out reigning AL MVP Jose Altuve for the second. Josh Reddick continued to haunt his ex-teammates with a single to put the tying runs on base with two out. Treinen now had to face Evan Gattis. All Gattis has done this year is to salivate when facing A’s pitching. Gattis has pulverized the A’s, and it was nail-biting time. Had Gattis homered, it would have been a walk-off win for Houston. That did not happen as Treinen struck out Gattis to end the game.

Game Notes: The A’s are now 51-40 for the year and are 11 games over the .500 mark. Houston is now 61-32.

Frankie Montas’ line was six innings of work. He allowed no runs, three hits, walked two and struck out two and his record is now 5-2.

The A’s are now 35-0 when leading after seven and 42-0 when leading after 8. The Astros are 4-24 when trailing after 8.

The A’s have now hit 80 homers in 46 road games to lead the AL in that department.

Time of game was 2:51 and 28,301 fans were on hand to watch the A’s beat the Astros.

Up Next: The A’s play game two of the series Tuesday at 5:10 pm PDT in Minute Maid Park.  Sean Manaea will go for the A’s, and Houston’s Justin Verlander will handle the Astros’ pitching chores.

A’s take on the Indians for a 3-game series starting Friday

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Photo credit: @Athletics

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s are playing their best baseball so far this the season. They went 8-2 on their last 10-game road trip and finished their five-game homestand with a 4-1 record Two of the wins came at the expense of the Cleveland Indians last weekend in Oakland. Neither Carlos Carrasco or Corey Kluber pitched last weekend, but they are getting the call as the Indians will be trying to slow down the A’s express train.

Friday’s game will feature Carrasco going against the A’s Paul Blackburn. It will be Carrasco’s first start since going on the DL after a line drive hit his throwing elbow on June 16th. The A’s will counter with Paul Blackburn, who beat Cleveland last Friday night as he went 6 1/3 innings and did not allow a run. Blackburn is 2-2 and has a 6.46 ERA. Carrasco is 8-5, and has a 4.24 ERA. Carrasco was 18-6 in 2017.

On Saturday, A’s veteran right-hander Edwin Jackson will make his third start of the season. Jackson has allowed two runs or fewer in both his starts and he recorded a win over the Tribe last Saturday in 6 2/3 innings of work. He will have to be on the top of his game as his opponent will be two-time Cy Young award winner Corey Kluber, who is having another outstanding season as he owns a 12-4 record.

Sunday’s game will feature A’s Frankie Montas going against Indians’ Shane Bieber. Montas is 4-2, but he has given up eight hits or more in three of his last four starts and took the loss Sunday. The Indians blasted the A’s 15-3, and Montas was the losing pitcher. Bieber is 4-0 with a 2.97 ERA. This will be the first time the A’s will be facing Bieber.

The Indians have a good hitting team. They are in first place in the AL Central with a 48-37 record. The hitting and starting pitching has overcome the many injuries the team has suffered. Also, the bullpen is not at it’s best as Andrew Miller and Nick Goody are on the DL.

The A’s will see some familiar faces working in the Indians’ bullpen. Former A’s relievers Dan Otero and Marc Rzepczynski, as well as former SF Giant George Kontos, probably will see action against the A’s this weekend. Other relievers are Zach McAllister and veteran lefty hurler Oliver Perez. Righty Cody Allen is the closer.

The Indians have some outstanding players in their lineup. A’s pitchers will have to deal with shortstop Francisco Lindor, third baseman Jose Ramirez, second baseman Jason Kipnis, and first baseman Yonder Alonso. Kipnis is having a down year, but if he can regain his hitting stroke, he is capable of being able to cause a lot of damage. Lindor and Ramirez are probably heading to the All-Star game. Lindor is hitting .297 with 23 homers and 55 RBIs. He has a .948 OPS. Ramirez has 24 home runs, 55 RBIs, a .294 batting average and a .998 OPS.

Left fielder Michael Brantley is also playing well. Brantley’s average is .301, and he has 48 RBI’s. Lonnie Chisenhall and Rajai Davis will see action in right and center. Indians’ DH, Edwin Encarnacion is not hitting for average, but the 35-year-old has blasted 20 homers and has driven in 58.

There is no question that the Indians can rake. The big problem will be this: Will the A’s pitching be able to shut down the Cleveland offense? The Indians play better at home. They are 27-13 at Progressive Field. So A’s manager Bob Melvin will have to figure out a way to keep the Indians from putting runs on the board.

The A’s are also playing well. Melvin has done an amazing job as his starting rotation has been decimated by injuries. Trevor Cahill, Brett Anderson, Andrew Triggs, Daniel Mengden, Daniel Gossett all have started for the A’s, but are currently on the DL. Jharel Cotton and A.J. Puk were projected to be in this season’s starting rotation, but are gone for the year as they both underwent Tommy John surgery.

The Indian pitchers will also have to be able to handle the A’s hitters. Jed Lowrie leads the A’s in hitting and runs batted in. Lowrie is having a career year and hopefully will represent the A’s in the All-Star game. Matt Olson, Khris Davis, Matt Chapman, Chad Pinder, and Stephen Piscotty are all capable of sending baseballs out of the stadium. The A’s can hit. The A’s have a tough trip as they go to Houston for four and San Francisco for three. It will be a difficult trip. Let’s hope the A’s will do well.

A’s continue to roll as they down Padres 4-2 for 2-game sweep

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Photo credit: @Athletics

By Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND, Calif. — The A’s continue to play great baseball as they prevailed over the San Diego Padres 4-2 on the Fourth of July, Both teams played well, but in the end, the A’s were just a wee bit better.

A’s starter Sean Manaea did not figure in the decision, but had another strong pitching performance. Manaea went seven innings and allowed two runs and four hits. The Padres’ starter Luis Perdomo also pitched well. His line was 5 2/3 innings of work and he, too, allowed two runs and four hits.

The A’s won the game in the bottom of the eighth when they, as they have done so many times this season, were able to score late in the game. The A’s won for the eighth time in the last nine game and have won 14 of the last 17 as they move to a season-high nine games above the .500 mark with a record of 48-39.

The Padres scored two in the top of the second inning. Manaea issued a free pass to Hunter Renfroe. Padres’ rookie third baseman Christian Villaneuva homered to left field to give the Padres an early 2-0 lead. The A’s plated one in their half of the inning. With one out, Luis Perdomo walked Matt Olson. Right fielder Stephen Piscotty lined a ball into the gap in left-center-field to drive in Olson.

The A’s tied the game in the third. Josh Phegley walked to get things going. Dustin Fowler singled to put men on at first and second with no out. Perdomo struck out Matt Joyce for the first out. Jed Lowrie walked to load the bases. A’s DH Khris Davis followed with a solid single to left field to drive in Phegley. Matt Olson hit into a 4-6-3 double play to end the inning.

The A’s scored twice in the bottom of the eighth. Jed Lowrie received a walk that started the rally. Khris Davis doubled to left. Lowrie stopped at third. The Padres issued an intentional walk to Matt Olson to load the bases. Piscotty made the Padres pay as he hit his third double of the game to drive in Lowrie and Davis.

The Padres escaped further damage when they retired Olson at home on a force out, and Villaneuva turned a line shot off Marcus Semien’s bat into a 5-4 double play to end the inning. The A’s lead 4-2 heading into the top of the ninth. A’s closer Blake Treinen gave up a couple of hits but was able to escape without any damage and recorded his twenty-second save of the season.

Game Notes: Stephen Piscotty had three doubles in the game to tie and Oakland A’s single-game record. Treinen’s has converted each of his last 19 save opportunities dating back to May 4th. Lou Trivino was the winning pitcher, and his record is now 7-1. Jose Castillo absorbed the loss. The line score for the A’s was four runs, six hits, and no errors. The Padres’ line was two runs, seven hits, and no errors.

Khris Davis extended his hit streak to seven games, the second highest such streak of the season…is 10-for-27 (.370) during this span. • Matt Joyce snapped a five-game hitting streak. Mark Canha went hitless to end his career high 11 game hitting streak.

A’s third baseman Matt Chapman made the defensive play of the day in the sixth inning. He stabbed a Hunter Renfroe smash that looked like it was heading into the left-field corner. He dived for the ball and snared and in one motion righted himself to start a 5-4-3 double play.

Time of game was a crisp two hours and 33 minutes and 14,408 people watched as the A’s won again.

Up Next: The A’s are off on Thursday as they travel to Cleveland to face the Indians at Progressive Field starting Friday night. Paul Blackburn (2-2, ERA 6.46) will pitch for Oakland, and Cleveland will counter with righty Carlos Carrasco (8-5, ERA 4.24). The game will start at 4:10 pm PDT.

A’s erupt for five runs in the sixth to beat the Padres 6-2

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Photo credit: @Athletics

By Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND, Calif. — The Oakland A’s, perhaps energized by a large and boisterous home crowd, scored five runs in the fifth and one in the seventh to notch their 13th win in their last 16 games by a score of 6-2.

A’s starter Chris Bassitt was not as sharp as he was last week when he received credit for his first win of the year. The Padres had a great opportunity in the third inning as they had the bases loaded with no outs, but failed to score. The A’s made two terrific plays on defense to snuff out runs and keep the game scoreless. The Padres’ veteran starter, Clayton Richard, mesmerized the A’s for the first five innings before this team, so confident that they can overcome any deficit, erupted for five runs and pinned the loss on Richard.

In the third inning, Bassitt walked leadoff hitter Freddy Galvis. Austin Hedges and Travis Jankowski followed with singles to load the bases with no out. Manuel Margot hit a slow roller back to Bassitt. Bassitt made a terrific play as he fell to his knees and was able to throw home to nail Galvis for the first out, The throw from Jonathan Lucroy was not in time to nail Margot to complete the double play. The bases remained loaded. Eric Hosmer then hit a ground ball that was fielded by first baseman Matt Olson, who threw a strike to Lucroy at home for the second out. Bassitt struck out Wil Myers to end the inning.

The Padres, after threatening to score in the first and third innings, plated two runs in the top of the fifth. With one out, right fielder Travis Jankowski singled. Padres’ center fielder Manuel Margot followed with a single to send Jankowski to third. The next hitter, Eric Hosmer, hit a dribbler ball that A’s first baseman Matt Olson fielded. Olson’s throw to Bassitt was dropped, and Jankowski scored on the play.

A’s manager Bob Melvin challenged the call saying that Hosmer interfered with Bassitt’s ability to catch and hold onto the ball. The call was overturned, and Hosmer was called out. Margot went to second and scored on a double off the bat of Will Myers. Richard retired the A’s in order in the bottom of the fifth. The Padres led 2-0 after five innings.

The A’s offense–held in check for five innings by Richard–woke up and scored five runs on four hits. Chad Pinder walked to start the rally. Marcus Semien followed with a single. Richard walked Stephen Piscotty to load the bases with no out, and Richard now had to face the A’s best hitter Jed Lowrie. Lowrie sent the crowd into a frenzy when he doubled to left field to clear the bases. For Lowrie, it was his 25th double of the year and increased his RBI total to 59. Khris Davis singled to drive in Lowrie with the fourth run of the frame. Matt Olson hit into a double play, but the A’s were not finished scoring. Mark Canha extended his 10-game hitting streak to 11 when he blasted his 11th home run of the year into the bleacher seats in left field. Everyone in the park knew the ball was going out of the park as soon as it left the bat. The A’s led 5-0 after six innings.

The A’s tacked on a run in the bottom of the seventh. With one out, Chad Pinder blasted the first pitch he saw from reliever Adam Cimber into the seats about 15 rows back of the “Rooted in Oakland” sign in left field. The Padres trailed the A’s 6-2 at the end of seven.

The A’s bullpen did the job again as the Padres were held scoreless the rest of the way. A’s manager Bob Melvin used Emilio Pagan, Ryan Buchter, Lou Trivino, and Blake Treinen to finish the game. Bassitt did not receive credit for the win as he went just 4 2/3 innings. He allowed seven hits and two runs. Emilio Pagan was the winning pitcher.

Game Notes: Chris Bassitt tied a season-high with six strikeouts. Mark Canha hit safely in his career-high 11th straight game. Emilio Pagan has not allowed a run in 16 of his 17 appearances since being recalled from Triple-A on May 18th.

The A’s are 33-0 when leading after seven innings. They are the only team in the MLB to do so. The A’s grounded into five double plays Tuesday night. The last time they did that and won was on June 2, 1973, in Boston.

The A’s are now 47-39 and are eight games over the .500 mark. The Padres dropped to 37-50. Richard’s record is now 7-8 for the year, and Pagan is 2-0.

Sean Manaea (8-6) will hurl for the A’s on Wednesday. The Padres have not announced their starter.

Time of game was two hours and 39 minutes and 29,975 fans enjoyed the Green and Gold win.

Up Next: The A’s and Padres will conclude their series on a Fourth of July Wednesday at 1:05 pm PDT.

A quick look at the upcoming A’s vs. Padres 2-game set in Oakland

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Photo credit: @Athletics

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s will host the San Diego Padres for two games beginning Tuesday, July 3rd. The teams met in San Diego in mid-June, and the A’s won both games. They won the first game in dramatic fashion when with two out and two strikes, Stephen Piscotty homered to tie the game and then they won it on a Jed Lowrie blast.

The Padres are currently in last place in the NL West with a record of 37-49. The Padres are managed by Andy Green, and they have two former A’s stars on their coaching staff. The fans will welcome Mark McGwire and Matt Stairs back to the Coliseum. The Padres are in a rebuilding mode, and many of the players are not household names yet.

The Padres announced that lefty Clayton Richard will take the mound Tuesday night. Richard is 7-7 and has an ERA of 4.29. Richard has worked at least six innings in his last 10 outings. However, he lost his last start last week against the Texas Rangers. Chris Bassitt goes for Oakland. Bassitt is 1-3, and his ERA is 2.82. Bassitt beat the Detroit Tigers last Wednesday in Detroit. He went six innings and allowed no runs and just two hits. It was his best performance of the year. On Wednesday, Padres’ righty Eric Lauer will face off against the A’s ace Sean Manaea.

Padre players to keep an eye on will be first baseman Eric Hosmer, shortstop Freddy Galvis, infielders Cory Spangenberg and Christian Villaneuva. Villaneuva is hitting .294 and has 16 home runs and 39 RBIs to his credit. Outfielder Will Myers is off the DL, and the A’s pitchers will have to be careful not to make any mistakes while pitching to him. Other players to keep an eye on are Jose Pirela, Hunter Renfroe, Manuel Margot, and Travis Jankowski.

The A’s beat the Indians two out of three over the weekend and are 10-3 in the last 13 games. The A’s would like to sweep the Padres as they start a 10-game road trip in Cleveland on Friday. They play four in Houston and return to the Bay Area to finish the trip with three games with the San Francisco Giants.

The A’s are in third place in the AL West with a record of 46-39. The team has been playing well, and third baseman Matt Chapman is expected back Tuesday night from the 10-day DL. The A’s have shown that they can overcome deficits in the late innings of any game. They are playing with a lot of confidence. The A’s bullpen has been very good. They are the only team in baseball that has not lost after holding the lead after the seventh inning.

Tuesday’s game will start at 6 pm PDT. There will be a fireworks show after the game. There is nothing better than baseball, apple pie, fireworks, and the Fourth of July.

A’s beat the Tigers 4-2 to sweep the 4-game series

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Photo credit: mercurynews.com

By Jerry Feitelberg

The A’s, led by the hitting of Jed Lowrie and the pitching of lefty Sean Manaea, defeated the Detroit Tigers 4-2 at Comerica Park on Thursday afternoon. The A’s did not hit any home runs, but they scored three times in the third and once in the fourth to defeat the Tigers’ Michael Fulmer.

Manaea did not appear to be in sync in the first inning. He issued his only walk of the game to the Tigers’ leadoff hitter Jeimer Candelario. He settled down and retired Jose Iglesias for the first out. The Tigers’ leading hitter, right fielder Nick Castellanos, blasted his 11th dinger of the year over Stephen Piscotty’s outstretched glove to give the Tigers an early 2-0 advantage. Manaea regained his composure and held the Tigers scoreless in his next five innings of work. Manaea was hoping that the A’s offense would get going and get him a win.

The A’s offense did what Manaea wanted. In the top of the third, they put together five singles and plated three runs. Marcus Semien and Chad Pinder singled to start the rally. Mark Canha blooped a single to right to drive in Semien. Pinder went to third on the play. Lowrie continued his hot hitting and torment of the Tigers with a single to drive in Pinder with the second run of the inning. Canha advanced to third. A’s designated hitter Khris Davis singled to drive in Canha to make it a 3-2 game.

The A’s tacked on an insurance run in the fourth. Stephen Piscotty led off with a single. Jonathan Lucroy hit a slow roller to Tigers’ shortstop Jose Iglesias. Iglesias’ only play was at first. Piscotty made it safely to second. Pinder had his second hit of the game when he doubled to deep centerfield to drive in Piscotty. The A’s led 4-2.

There was no more scoring in the game. Manaea left after six innings of work. He allowed two runs and five hits. He walked one and struck out two. The A’s used Emilio Pagan in the seventh, Lou Trivino in the eighth, and Blake Treinen in the ninth. The relievers did not allow the Tigers a hit. Treinen earned his 20th save of the year. The A’s won 4-2.

Game Notes: The A’s have won their last nine games against Detroit, their longest streak against the Tigers since Lefty Grove and Jimmie Foxx led the Philadelphia Athletics to 10 straight wins over Detroit in 1931. The Tigers have also lost their last nine games played. The A’s improve to 44-38 and are six games over the .500 mark. Detroit falls to 36-46.

Sean Manaea received credit for the win, and his record is now 8-6. Fulmer took the loss, and he is 3-7 for the year.

Jed Lowrie had a single and double in the game including his 24th double. He has driven in 55 so far this year. Lowrie was 9-for-17 in the series. He hit two home runs and had three doubles and drove in at least one run in all four games. It is possible that Lowrie and Treinen will represent the A’s at this year’s All-Star game in Washington, DC on July 17th.

Up Next: The A’s finished the 10-game road trip with a record of 8-2 and will return home to face the Cleveland Indians for three games starting Friday night at 7:05 pm PDT.

Paul Blackburn (1-2, 8.83) will pitch for Oakland, and Trevor Bauer (7-5, 2.44) will go for the Indians.

On Saturday, it will be Edwin Jackson going against rookie Adam Plutko, and Sunday will feature Frankie Montas for Oakland and Mike Clevinger for Cleveland.

A’s continue to roll behind Chris Bassitt’s terrific start in a 3-0 shutout of Tigers

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Photo credit: @Athletics

By Jerry Feitelberg

The A’s beat the Tigers Wednesday evening in Detroit by a score of 3-0. The A’s recalled Chris Bassitt from Nashville to pitch due to the injury to Daniel Mengden. Bassitt was making his fourth start of the season for Oakland. He pitched well in his first start but had two bad games and was 0-3 for the season and had spent a lot of time shuttling between Oakland and Nashville. Bassitt his best game of the year as he went six innings and allowed no runs and just two hits. He struck out five and the only negative was the five walks he issued to the Tiger hitters. Bassitt had to be just as good as Tigers’ starter Mike Fiers also pitched very well.

The game was scoreless until the top of the fourth inning. The A’s put the first run of the game on the board when Matt Joyce led off with a single to get things going. Fiers had to pitch to the A’s hottest hitter Jed Lowrie. Lowrie, who has been on a tear, doubled to right field. A’s third base coach Matt Williams did not hesitate as he did not put the stop sign up for Matt Joyce. Joyce scored, and Lowrie recorded his 22nd double and 54th RBI of the season to give the A’s the lead 1-0.

A’s manager Bob Melvin brought in Yusmeiro Petit to pitch the seventh. Petit did his job and kept the Tigers scoreless in the seventh and eighth innings.

The A’s scored two insurance runs in the ninth. Alex Wilson was pitching for Detroit. With one out, Franklin Barreto reached on an infield single. Josh Phegley followed with a line shot down the left field line. The speedy Barreto scored all the way from first. The next hitter, Dustin Fowler, blasted a ball to that hit high off the right-field wall to drive in Phegley. The A’s led 3-0.

Bob Melvin was not able to use his closer, Blake Treinen, to finish the game. Treinen had worked the last two games. Melvin brought in rookie Lou Trivino to face the Tigers. Trivino set the Tigers down in order to earn his second save of the year.

Game Notes: The A’s are 7-2 on the road trip and go for the sweep Thursday afternoon in Detroit. The A’s improve to 43-38 and are five games over the .500 mark for the first time since the 2014 season. Chriss Bassitt is now 1-3, and he won his first game since the 2015 season. Bassitt missed the 2016 season due to Tommy John surgery, and his recovery was much longer than expected.

The A’s did not hit a home run, and their 27 consecutive game streak of hitting at least one home run in road games came to an end. The 27-game streak is a new Major League record.

“We put home run swings on them,” Melvin said. “We just didn’t get rewarded for them.”

Time of game was 3 hours and 11 minutes and 23,961 fans watched the game.

Up Next: The A’s Sean Manaea will go to the mound seeking his eighth win of the year on Thursday. Manaea’ record is 7-6. He will be opposed by Michael Fulmer. Fulmer is 3-6 and has a 4.17 ERA. The game will start at 10:10 am PDT on MLB Network.

A’s get another come from behind win with 9-7 victory over Tigers

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by Jerry Feitelberg

Who are these guys? They sure don’t hit like this when they are playing in Oakland, but when the A’s on the road, they become fearless as any lead their opponent may own is not safe. The A’s overcame a 5-run deficit in Chicago to win. On Monday, they rallied to beat the Tigers, and they waved their magic wands again Tuesday night as the A’s came back from a six-run deficit to beat the Tigers 9-7.

The A’s starter, Frankie Montas, gave up six runs in just three innings of work. The Tigers scored four in the first and two in the third, and things didn’t look good for the Green and Gold. The A’s offense woke up in the fourth inning as they were able to put three on the board. Jed Lowrie started the rally with a single. Tigers’ starter Blaine Hardy retired Khris Davis for the first out. Matt Olson reached on a fielder’s choice. Lowrie was out at second. Stephen Piscotty reached on first baseman John Hicks’ error to put men on at first and second. Mark Canha hit a ball that went for a ground rule double. Olson scored the A’s first run. Jonathan Lucroy followed with another double to drive in Piscotty and Canha. The A’s trail 6-3 halfway through the fourth inning. Detroit increased the lead to 7-3 when they plated one in their half of the fourth.

The A’s scored three more in the top of the fifth. Hardy walked Marcus Semien to start the frame. Chad Pinder homered to make it a 7-5 game. Jed Lowrie, who has regained his hitting stroke, hit a solo home run to close the deficit to one 7-6.

The A’s relievers did their job and kept the Tigers off the board the rest of the way. The A’s offense tied the game in the seventh. Louis Coleman was now pitching for Detroit. Semien led off with a single. Matt Joyce reached on a fielder’s choice. Semien was out at second. Lowrie and Khris Davis walked to load the bases. Matt Olson grounded out 6-3 to drive in Joyce with the A’s 7th run.

Oakland took the lead for good in the ninth. Matt Joyce led off with a double and scored on Lowrie’s single. With one out, Matt Olson singled to send Lowrie into scoring position. Detroit brought in Warwick Saupold to pitch to Dustin Fowler. Fowler singled to drive in Lowrie with an insurance run, and A’s close Blake Treinen worked his magic once again as he set the Tigers down in order to earn his 19th save of the year and the A’s win 9-7.

Game Notes- With the win, the A’s improve to a season-high 4 games over the .500 mark with a record of 42-38. They also moved into third place in the AL West a game ahead of the Los Angeles Angels. The Angels lost to Boston 9-1 on Tuesday night.

The Tigers lost their seventh game in a row and are now 36-44 for the year.

Chris Hatcher gave up a run in the fourth inning, but Emilio Pagan, Ryan Buchter, and Blake Treinen stopped the Tigers cold the rest of the way. The win went to Buchter(2-0), and the save went to Treinen. The Tigers’ Shane Greene took the loss for the second game in a row.

Jed Lowrie was the hitting start for the A’s with four hits, and he raised his batting average to .288. He now has 13 homers so far an 53 RBIs. The A’s hit two more home run in their 27th consecutive road game which is a Major League record.

The A’s are now 6-2 on the 10-game road trip. Sean Manaea (7-6) will pitch for Oakland Wednesday night, and Mike Fiers (5-4) will be on the hill for Detroit. The game will start at 4:05 pm on Wednesday at Comerica Park in Detroit.

A’s rally to nip the Tigers 5-4

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by Jerry Feitelberg

The A’s began a four-game series Monday in the Motor City against the Detroit Tigers. The A’s purchased the contract of the veteran hurler, Edwin Jackson, from Nashville earlier in the day. Jackson tied a major league record by playing for his 13th Major League team. The only other player was Octavio Dotel. Dotel also made a stop n Oakland in his Major League journey. Jackson was making his first start of the 2018 season and did very well for his new team. Jackson went 6 innings and, allowed six hits, one run, no walks, and seven strikeouts. “It’s always good to be wanted,” Jackson said. “When I can’t find a team that wants to bring me in, then I guess it’ll be time to sit down. But until then, I like to come out. I like to compete, to have fun. I feel like I still have something in me and that I can bring value to a team.”

The Tiger’s starter Jordan Zimmerman also pitched very well. Zimmerman and Jackson engaged in a pitchers’ duel. The only run that Jackson allowed came in the bottom of the fourth. The Tigers put the first run of the game on the board this way. Designated Hitter Victor Martinez led off the bottom of the fourth with a single. First baseman John Hicks reached on a fielder’s choice when Jackson was not able to cleanly field Hicks’ bunt. Jackson was charged with an error, and the Tigers had men on at first and second with no out. Jackson then had to face the Tigers’ most dangerous hitter, Nick Castellanos. Castellanos doubled to drive in Martinez with the Tigers’ first run. The A’s trail 1-0 after four complete.

Zimmerman did not let the A’s score in the fifth. Tigers’ manager Ron Gardenhire removed Zimmerman after the fifth and turned the game over to the bullpen.

Neither team scored in the sixth. The seventh inning was a different story. The A’s tied the game when right fielder Stephen Piscotty sent a Louis Coleman pitch over the fence for his 8th of the year. Nick Castellanos hit a three-run blast off A’s reliever Lou Trivino to send the Tigers ahead 4-1.

The A’s refused to fold. They plated three runs in the top of the eighth. Khris Davis started the rally by getting hit by a pitch. Piscotty doubled to send Davis to third. Marcus Semien hit a sacrifice fly to drive in Davis with the A’s second run. Jonathan Lucroy singled to drive in Piscotty and Lucroy scored when Franklin Barreto doubled to left center to tie the game.

The A’s took the lead for good when Jed Lowrie hit his 12th home run of the year off Shane Greene. Blake Treinen pitched the ninth and allowed just one hit to preserve the win for Oakland and earned his 18th save in the process. The A’s win 5-4.

Game Notes- Edwin Jackson was impressive in his first start as an Athletic, He gave A’s manager Bob Melvin six innings and allowed one run and six hits.”For most guys, it’s tough to go to a new team in the middle of a season. There can be some nerves and some uncomfortableness being with a new team,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said. “This is probably the last guy that you worry about that, being that it’s his 13th team. He seemed real comfortable when he came out of the bullpen, seemed really comfortable when he took the mound. That has a lot to do with experience.” Yusmeiro Petit, Ryan Buchter, Lou Trivino, and Blake Treinen finished the game for the A’s. Trivino gave up the home run to Castellanos but was the pitcher or record when the A’s took the lead for good. Trivino is now 6-1. Treinen, as mentioned earlier, earned his 18th save.

The A’s are now three games over the .500 mark with a record of 41-38. The Tigers drop to 36-43.

Stephen Piscotty and Jonathan Lucroy were the hitting stars with three hits apiece. The A’s homered in their 26th consecutive road game which is a Major League record.

The A’s announced that they activated lefty Ryan Buchter off the 60-day DL and added Edwin Jackson to the 40-man roster. Nick Martini was returned to Nashville, and reliever Liam Hendriks was designated for assignment.

Game two of the series will be played Tuesday night in Detroit at 4 pm. Righty Frankie Montas (4-1) will go for Oakland, and the Tigers will counter with lefty Blaine Hardy (3-1).