Category: MLB

Oakland A’s reliever Liam Hendriks slams the door on the Houston Astros for the game 3 victory of the American League Division Series at Dodgers Stadium in Los Angeles

Oakland A’s podcast with Jerry F:

#1 It was do or die for the Oakland A’s win big or go home. The A’s chose the latter and a three run home run by Chad Pinder got the A’s right back in the all game after being three runs down.

#2 It was a home run derby for A’s hitters five to survive in game 3 if not for that there would be no game 4.

#3 Jerry talk about Astro pitching is this an indication of where their bullpen is at or just a hic up in the series?

#4 After watching Chris Bassitt and Sean Manaea go down in their starts for the A’s and the Astros had that five run fifth the A’s were still producing home runs and didn’t buckle and persevered scoring three in the seventh and two in the eighth to come back.

#5 The A’s will start Frankie Montas for game 4 and the Astros will start Zack Greinke. Will this be another one for the ages or will the Astros get back on track and end it today?

Join Jerry for the Oakland A’s post season podcasts each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

The Oakland A’s Chad Pinder (right) gets congratulations after the conclusion of game 3 of the ALDS against the Houston Astros at Dodgers Stadium in Los Angeles on Wed Oct 7, 2020. (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

It was do or die for the Oakland A’s on Wednesday when they faced off against the Houston Astros. The Astros, with a win, would have ended the A’s 2020 season. The A’s found a way to stay alive as they beat the Astros 9-7 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

The A’s offense came to life against five Houston pitchers. The A’s tied a franchise record by sending five balls out of the park. Four of the blast were solo jobs. The big hit was Chad Pinder’s three-run shot in the top of the seventh. The late Baltimore Oriole manager, Earl Weaver, always said that a three run home run was his favorite play in baseball.

Oakland needed to get off to a fast start on Wednesday. The Astros started Jose Urquiddy in place of Zack Greinke. Greinke was not feeling 100% and was scratched. With one out in the first inning, A’s second baseman, Tommy La Stella, homered to give the A’s an early 1-0 lead. Houston, in their half of the first, put two on the board. Former MVP, Jose Altuve tied the score with a solo home run. Michael Brantley, playing in left, followed with a single.

He went to third thanks to Alex Bregman’s single. Shortstop Carlos Correa drove in Brantley with the Astros’ second when he hit into a fielder’s choice. The Astros lead 2-1 after one inning of play.

The A’s tied the game in the top of the second. Mark Canha led off the second with a home run to center-field. In the fourth, A’s first baseman, Matt Olson, homered to right to put the A’s up 3-2. The A’s homer parade continued when Marcus Semien hit one in the fifth to give Oakland a two-run cushion 4-2 midway through the fifth.

The Astros have a very potent offense. They know that they can put runs on the board. They showed their prowess in the bottom of the fifth when they sent ten men to the plate. They scored five runs on five hits, one hit batter, and two walks.

First baseman Yuli Guriel walked. DH Aledmys Diaz tied the game with a home run to left. Luzardo retired Martin Maldonado for the first out. A’s manager, Bob Melvin, brought in Yusmeiro Petit to pitch. Petit, who had an outstanding season, did not fare well on Wednesday. He hit George Springer with a pitch.

Singles by Altuve and Brantley put Houston in the lead 5-4. Alex Bregman doubled to drive in Brantley with Houston’s sixth run of the game. Altuve was thrown out at third on the playThe A’s gave Carlos Correa an intentional walk to put men on at first and second with two out. Lefty Jake Diekman was brought in to pitch to the left-handed hitter, Kyle Tucker. Tucker beat the strategy as he singled to right to drive in Bregman. Houston now leads 7-4 after five.

The A’s had to do two things to win. They needed the offense to wake up and score. They required the vaunted bullpen to shut down the Astros’ offense. They found their mojo and came through on both counts.

The A’s put three on the board in the seventh. Marcus Semien started the rally with a single. Tommy La Stella also singled. Semien went to third. A’s third baseman, Chad Pinder, tied the game with an opposite-field blast.

Oakland was back in the game. They plated two more runs in the eighth. Robbie Grosman walked to get things going. Ramon Laureano doubled, sending Grossman to third. Catcher Sean Murphy drove in Grossman with the tie-breaking run with a sacrifice fly to right.

The A’s loaded the bases when Semien was walked, and a pitch hit La Stella. La Stella was hit his right elbow and had to leave the game. Pinder drove in his fourth run of the game with a sacrifice fly to right to put the A’s in the driver’s seat 9-7.

The A’s brought in their closer, Liam Hendriks, to pitch three innings. Hendriks allowed just one hit and no runs in his three innings of work. He got out of a jam in the eighth when Houston put men on at first and second with no outs. He retired the next three batters to quell the uprising. The A’s win 9-7 and live to see another day.

Game Notes- The A’s are not out of the woods. They must win Thursday to stay alive. They announced Frankie Montas as their starter for Thursday’s game. The Astros have not determined their starter yet.

The line score for Oakland was nine runs, eleven hits, and one error. The A’s tied a franchise record with five home runs. The last time they had five homers in a postseason game came against the San Francisco Giants in the 1989 World Series.
Houston’s line was seven runs, ten hits, and no errors. They hit two home runs.

Game four will be played Thursday afternoon at Dodger Stadium. The game will start at 12:35 pm.

The Houston Astros Carlos Correa (left) and George Springer (right) jump for joy after the Astros took game 1 of the ALDS in Dodgers Stadium in Los Angeles for the first neutral site playoff game on Mon Oct 5, 2020 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Houston Astros, playing with a chip on their collective shoulders, pounded out sixteen hits to defeat the A’s 10-5 to win Game One of the five-game AL Division Series.

The teams were playing in Los Angeles at Dodger Stadium. The A’s are the home team, but it didn’t feel as if they had a home-field advantage. Instead of playing in Oakland’s cooler temperatures, the temperature at game time was 91 degrees.

Also missing for Oakland was the vast, foul territory that exists at the Coliseum. The teams knew that baseballs carry better in warm air, and Monday’s game featured six long balls, three by each team.

The A’s sent righty Chris Bassitt to the hill. Bassitt was the AL pitcher of the month in September. However, he had to face a Houston Astros lineup loaded with players that know how to it. It was not going to be an easy task to keep the Astros down.

The Astros were 29-31 during the season. They had a lot of injuries to key players. They were in the World Series last year. They know how to win. Most importantly, their players are now healthy.

The A’s entered the game having defeated an excellent Chicago White Sox team. The Sox, like the Astros, had a potent lineup. A’s manager wanted the team to win the first game. Astros’ manager, Dusty Baker, had similar thoughts for his team.

The A’s drew first blood in the bottom of the second inning. With one out, A’s first baseman, Matt Olson, walked. Designated hitter, Khris Davis, hit Lance McCullers first pitch into the right-center-field seats to put the A’s ahead 2-0.

The A’s made it 3-0 in the bottom of the third. Catcher Sean Murphy led off the frame with a blast to center-field.

The Astros tied the game in the fourth. Alex Bregman led off with a solo homer to put the Astros on the board. Kyle Tucker singled. Carlos Correa homered to tie the game. The A’s regained the lead when Matt Olson hit a solo home run to make it 4-3. The A’s added another run in the fifth to take a 5-3 lead. They didn’t know it the time that Oakland would not score again.

Houston’s fortune changed in the sixth. With two out, former A’s player, Josh Reddick, reached on Marcus Semien’s fielding error. The Astros took advantage and scored four unearned runs. Maldonado singled, Springer doubled, Altuve singled, and Brantley singled to produce the runs. The Astros now lead 7-5.

Carlos Correa homered for the second time in the eighth to make it 8-5. They added two more in the ninth to put the game away 10-5.

Game Notes- The line score for Houston was ten runs, sixteen hits, and one error. For Oakland, it was five runs, eight hits, and one error.

How important was winning game one? Houston is in the driver’s seat. They can split the two of the four remaining games to advance. The A’ must now win three out four. It can be done, but it will not be easy.

Marcus Semien and Khris Davis led the A’s offense with two hits each. Davis had a two-run homer in the second inning. Matt Olson and Sean Murphy also connected for Oakland.

George Springer had four hits in the game. He had three singles and a double. Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, and Kyle Tucker each had three hits. One of Bregman’s hit was a home run. Carlos Correa had three hits, two of which were big flys. Correa was the first shortstop to have two multi-home run games in the post-season.

Houston’s bullpen shut down the A’s offense without a hit after the fifth inning. The A’s bullpen, the best in baseball, had a meltdown as they were burnt for seven runs. A’s manager Bob Melvin will have his work cut out for him as he has to figure out ways to shutdown Houston’s offense.

Houston’s manager, Dusty Baker, became the first manager to lead five teams into the post-season. The teams were the Giants, Cubs, Reds, Nationals, and now, the Astros. Way to go, Dusty.

Game two of the five-game series will be played Tuesday afternoon at Dodger stadium. The game will start at 1:37 pm.
Lefty Sean Manaea will go for Oakland. Manaea faced the Astros just once this season. On September 10th, he went seven innings and allowed only one hit. The Astros will counter with lefty Framber Valdez. Valdez faced the A’s on August 8th. He went seven innings and allowed two runs (one earned) and struck out nine.