Category: MLB

Hit high the Houston Astros Yordan Alvarez says “good bye baseball” with a three run fourth inning home run against the Oakland A’s at the Oakland Coliseum on Sat Apr 3, 2021 (AP News photo)

Houston. 9. 13. 1

Oakland. 1. 3. 0

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND–The A’s came into this afternoon’s game still looking for their first win of the season. Slow starts are nothing new for this team; in eight of the last ten seasons, they have been 1-2 after three games. They tried today to join that not particularly prestigious club. (Spoiler alert: they didn’t) in a 9-1 shellacking to the Houston Astros on Saturday.

Last night’s contest threatened to become a prelude to disaster when Ramón Laureano had to leave the game after injuring his hand. It turned out to be merely a contusion, and the A’s centerfielder is listed as day to day.

Cole Irvin, Oakland’s starting pitcher, is a 27 year old lefty with a lifetime won-loss record of 2-2 and an equally unimpressive ERA of 6.75 for the Philadelphia Phillies, but his numbers for the A’s this spring were impressive: 1-1, ERA 1.00 over five games, three of which he started. He gave up ten hits in eighteen innings, surrendered only one home run, and struck out 18 opponents against three walks.

Irvin’s counterpart on the mound was the veteran right hander Lance McCullers, Jr. He brought with him a career record of 32-25, 3.70 against all comers and 5-2, 4.04 against the A’s. For 2020, those figures were 3-3, 3.93 and 5-2, 4.04, respectively.

It didn’t take long for Houston to get to Irvin. A hit batter, Michael Brantley, with one out, followed by Aledmys Díaz’s double off the left center field wall, and an RBI base knock by Kyle Tucker, and Oakland was trailing by a tally with runners at the corners. But Carlos Correa hit into an around the horn double play, and, just like that, Irvin had limited the damage.

McCullers got himsef in trouble in the bottom of the first and then, with a little help frome home plate umpire Dan Bellino, also escaped with minimal damage. Lead off walks to Mark Canha and Matt Olson, followed by a Matt Chapman strike out on a pair of wicked cutters after the count had reached 1-1, and Mitch Moreland´s RBI single to center evened the score with two on and none out. But Chad Pinder went down swinging, and Stephen Piscotty was called out on a 3-2 knuckle curve that seemed too many, including. me, to have missed the plate.

The Astros took the lead back in the second when Jose Altluve’s bases loaded two out single to left brought home Yordán Alvarez, who had opened the frame with a single to center. But, in spite of a walk to Yuri Gurriel and singles by Myles Straw and Altuve, Irvin wriggled out of the jam, striking out Martín Maldonado and Chas McCormiock, pinch hitting for Brantley, who left the game due to right wrist discomfort.

Irvin held the Astros in check until the fifth. He hit McCormick with a pitch and surrendered a single when Díaz´s line drive just barely eluded Chapman’s glove and landed in left for a single. Irvin got the left handed Tucker to pop out to short. This brought Correa to the plate, the righty-lefty match up, calling for a right handed hurler to face Houston’s shortstop.

Bob Melvin brouht in Lou Trevino to relieve his young starter. The tactic worked; Correa struck out. But last year’s rule change meant that Trevino had to pitch to the left handed hitting Alvarez, who blasted the second pitch he saw over the center field fence, just to the right of the 388 foot sign.

This gave Houston a 5-1 lead and Irvin a line of 4-1/3 innings pitched, 7 hits, one walk and 4 runs , all earned allowed, two strike outs. His pitch count was 82, with 55 strikes. Trevino retired all seven of the other batters he faced before being lifted for Burch Smith who took over mound duties to start the eighth.

Ryne Stanek replaced Lance McCullers to open the Oakland sixth. He left with a line of five innings pitched, one run, earned, two hits, and three walks charged to him. He struck out seven. 54 of his 95 pitches counted as strikes

Enoli Paredes, in turn, relieved McCullers at the start of the home eighth. getting Aramis García out on a grounder back to the mound. Then, hope rose eternal, and Oakland loaded the bases on a single Olson, sandwiched between walks to Canha and Chapman. But Brooks Raley came to Houston´s rescue and struck out Jed Lowrie, pinch hitting for Moreland, swinging. Hope rose again when Chad Pinder clouted one out to deep right center, only to die on the warning track in the glove of Myles Straw.

Reymin Guduan couldn´t hold the Astros within what they had, just a few minutes earlier, seemed like striking distance. Maldonado opened the visitors´ninth with a single to right. Altuve walked. McCormick doubled, sending Maldonado home and Altuve to third. He scored and McCormick replaced him on third when Díaz singled to left. McCormick then scored on a wild pitch to Tucker, while Díaz moved up to second. Another wild pitch sent Díaz to third. Correa broke the monotony with a single to center. He went to second on yet another wild pitch. Finally, Guduan got out of the inning by retiring Alvarez and Gurriel.

The As went down 1,2,3 in their half of the ninth.

McCullers got the win; Raley, the save. The loss went to Irvin.

Oh, well, tomorrow is another day, and Sean Manaea will try to save one game of the series before the Dodgers come to town on Monday. José Urquidy will try to extend Houston’s winning streak to four. Game time is 1:07 at the Oakland Coliseum.

Houston Astros runner Jose Altuve (27) slides in safely at home behind Oakland A’s catcher Sean Murphy (12) at the Oakland Coliseum Thu Apr 1, 2021 (AP News photo)

Houston. 8. 9. 2

Oakland. 1. 6. o

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND–Tonight’s opening game of the 2021 season offered several subtle contrasts.. The A’s started Chris Bassitt, 32 years old and at the peak of his career. Last year’s severely shortened season was the first he had spent from start to finish on a major league roster.

In his first four big league seasons, he went 4-14, 3.86. In 2019-20, however, he went a combined 15-7, 3.35, Last year those figures were 5-2, 2.29 , and he was, arguably, Oakland’s most reliable pitcher. He features, in declining order, a sinker, cutter, four seam fastball, change-up, curve, and slider. He looked sharp during this year’s spring training.

His thirty-seven year old opponent, Zack Greinke last faced the A’s in the Coliseum on September 8, 2020 , in the first of two seven inning games of a double header. The 18 year veteran pitched respectably but not particularly well. He gave up seven hits and four earned runs in six innings and was saddled with the 4-2 loss.

His 3-3, 4.03 record that year may have been a fluke, or it may be a sign that Houston’s formidable righty has started on the downward slide of his career. He throws fastballs, change-ups, sliders , change-up, and curves. He has been known to lob an occasional eephus pitch. Maybe he should have a chat with Jesús Luzardo. They could share a turkey sub.

This was the first game played in the Coliseum before a paying crowd since the A’s wild card play-in loss to Tampa Bay on October 2, 2019 before 54,005 fans. The limit for tonight’s attendance had been announced as 20% of capacity, but that was raised to 26% yesterday. The final gate tally for tonight was 10,436.

The face of the A’s had changed during the fans’ enforced absence from the Nimitz Palace. Gone, among others, are Khris Davis and Marcus Semien. The now-you-see-him, now-you-don’t Jed Lowie is back, and Elvis Andrus patrols the left side of the infield between him and Matt Chapman when they’re not in a shift.

Chapman and his fellow Gold Glover, Matt Olson, have played well this spring, and hopes are high that their 2020 fall-offs are a thing of the past. Another familiar face sporting the home whites was ex-Giant reliever Sergio Romo. The Athletics announced this morning that it had two promising pitchers, A.J. Puk and Daulton Jefferies, to the alternate site in Stockton and had placed to more pitchers, Mike Fiers and Trevor Rosenthal, who was expected to be the new closer, on the ten-day injured list, Fiers retroactively to March 29. Lefty hurler and one time Astro Reymin Guduan was promoted from Las Vegas to take up the slack. And, finally, the marvelously monikered Skye Bolt was DFA’d.

The closest thing to a threat that either team could muster in the first three innings came with two down in the home third when Andrus, batting ninth, lashed a rule book double over the low fence in left center field for Oakland’s first hit of the game and his first as an Athletic. He advanced to third on a wild pitch to Mark Canha and was standed when the A’s lead-off batter wiffed on a 73 mph curve ball.

The Astros immediately made Oakland regret its failure to seize the opporitunity. José Altuve opened the top of the fourth with a walk and advanced to third on Michael Brantley’s line drive double to right. Alex Bregman’s ground out to Chapman brought Altuve home with the game’s first tally.

A dramatic leaping catch of Kyle Tucker’s fly to right center by Chad Pinder saved a run and maybe more but didn’t prevent Altuve from moving over to third. The crowd cheered when Bassett plunked Carlos Correa with a 94 mph four seamer.

It cheered almost as much when Jordán Alvarez flew out to left to end the innning. One inning later, Pinder made another spectacular grab, robbing Altuve of an opposite field extra base hit with a horizontal flying catch of a a liner heading for the right field foul line.

With one out in the top of the sixth, Bregman hit a liner between Canha in left and Laureano in center, The speedy Laureano got to the ball, but it bounced off the heel of his glove for a double. After yielding a walk to Tucker, the A´s starter yielded the mound to Yusmeiro Petit, who got Correa out on a pop foul to catcher Sean Murphy but allowed both inherited runs to score on DH Jordán Alvarez´s two bagger to left.

Bassett left the game after throwing 68 pitches, 46 of them strikes, over 5-1/3 innings. He gave up four hits and was charged with all three Houston runs, and all of them were earned. He walked two, struck out three, and hit one batter. Petit threw 11 pitches, with five strikes. Lou Trevino replaced him after his two thirds of an inning stint.

Dusty Baker removed Greinke after six innings of work. His line was impressive, three hits, four strike outs, and a wild pitch. The rest, zeroes.

His replacement, Eoli Paredes, didn’t fare as well. Laureano led off the home seventh with a foul behind first base that Yuli Gourriel let drop for an at bat extending error. The A’s centerfielder took advantage of the miscue to blast a double to left, steal third, and score on Chapman’s sac fly to left. It took him 32 pitches to get out of the frame with only one, unearned, run charged to him.

Adam Kolarek was an off-season acquisition from the Dodgers. He took over for Trevino to start the eighth and promptly surrendered a home run to Brantley and then another to Bregman. A ground out, a walk, and a hit batter later, Kolarek was gone, giving way to J.B. Wendelkin, who stauched the flow.

The newly promoted Reymin Gudjuan suffered the indignity of pitching to Houston in its last half inning at the plate. Two of the three outs he achieved were sacrifice flies, which tells you something about his effectiveness. He gave up singles to Altuve and Correa, walks to Brantley and Bregman, and threw a wild pitch to Alvarez before he hit one of the sac flies. The win went to Greinke; the loss, to Bassett.