Category: Oakland Athletics

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Red Sox, Hottest Team in Baseball, Head to Oakland to Take on the A’s

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Photo credit: @Athletics

By: Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

The Red Sox are the hottest team in baseball and they’re coming to Oakland this weekend to take on the Oakland A’s.

The Red Sox won last night at Anaheim, they have won six games in a row and have the best record in baseball of 15-2. That is the best start of a season for the Red Sox in their 118-year history.  They are first team in baseball to begin a season 15-3 since the 2003 San Francisco Giants. Red Sox rookie manager is 42-year-old Alex Cora, who was born in Caguas, Puerto Rico. The Red Sox will play one more game against the Angels at Anaheim tonight before coming to Oakland for a big weekend series and only visit of the Red Sox to Oakland.

The A’s just ended a sweep of the woeful Chicago White Sox. They scored a total of 30 runs on those three games. Yesterday a 14 inning 12-11 slugfest victory took 5 hours and 48 minutes.  Today, on a day off, they have an 9-10 record and are in fourth place 4.5 games behind the leading LA Angels.

The American League West is a tough division, with Astros, the 2017 World Champions, much improved LA Angels, the Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers. The A’s are trying to finish at least .500 this month.

Last year on the 1st of June, the A’s were already 14.5 games out of the first place Astros, who went on to beat everybody the rest of the way to capture their first ever title.

The Boston Red Sox, just like the New York Yankees, traditionally bring lots of fans to the Coliseum every time they visit.  It should be a fun place to be with perfect weather this weekend at the O.co. Coliseum.

Play Ball!

Oakland Athletics
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Saturday April 21
Red Sox vs Athletics will be televised nationwide on MLB Network.

Preview of the weekend series between the A’s and Red Sox

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Photo credit: @Athletics

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s, winners of four straight and owners of a season record of 9-10, will have their work cut out for them this weekend when they host the rampaging Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox have the best record in baseball 15-2. They have won six straight and 15 of the last 16. They are playing the Los Angeles Angels Thursday night and will arrive in Oakland after the game. The Red Sox beat Angels’ pitcher Shohei Ohtani Tuesday night in Anaheim. Ohtani beat the A’s twice in the two games and was dominant.

The A’s are playing better. The hitting is starting to come around as they are second in the league with home runs hit. Jed Lowrie, who came up with the Red Sox, leads the club with six homers and the league with 21 RBIs. Khris Davis and Matt Chapman have also hit five home runs to pace the A’s attack. Matt Joyce, Marcus Semien, Matt Olson, Chad Pinder, and Mark Canha have also provided punch to the A’s offense. The A’s, however, are ranked just 22nd in the Power Rankings. Number one honor goes to the Red Sox. The Red Sox have scored 108 runs this year, and the pitching has allowed just 48 for a plus-60 ranking. The A’s have produced 104 runs, but the pitching has given up 99 for a plus-five margin.

The A’s will be facing three left-handed hurlers this weekend. On Friday, Boston will send Drew Pomeranz to the mound. Pomeranz will be making his season debut on Friday. Pomeranz, a former Oakland Athletic, won 17 games last year for Boston. He will be opposed by Kendall Graveman. Graveman will be making his fifth start of the year, and things have not gone well for him so far. Graveman’s ERA is 9.87 and has given up six home runs so far. He did not make it past the fourth inning in his last start nor has he made it past the fifth inning in any game this season. The A’s need him to regain the promise he showed two years ago, but he has a tough task facing him as he tries to shut down the Boston offense. The game on Saturday will feature two lefthanders at the top of their game. The A’s Sean Manaea ( 2-2, ERA 1.63) has been superb for Oakland. He could be 4-0 if he had some run support in the two games he lost. He has pitched past the seventh inning in all four games that he started. He will be opposed by the ace of the Boston staff, Chris Sale. Sale( 1-0, ERA 1.23) has been outstanding and will be a contender for the Cy Young award again. On Sunday, Daniel Mengden will go for Oakland. Mengden is 2-2 with an ERA of 4.50, but he pitched 8 plus innings last Monday against the White Sox and gave up just one run and six hits. The Red Sox will counter will send former Cy Young winner David Price to the hill. Price is 2-1 with an ERA of 2.25.

The Red Sox have a formidable lineup. They won the AL East last year with a record of 93-69. They were last in home runs in the Al but this year they added a tremendous power hitter, J.D.Martinez, and so far the early results are good as the Red Sox have been sensational. They are led by Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley, Junior, Andrew Benintendi, Rafael Devers, Mitch Moreland, Hanley Ramirez, Eduardo Nunez, Brock Holt. Dustin Pedroia and Xander Bogaerts are on the DL and will not play this weekend.

Hopefully, the stands will be full of fans to see the teams play. The A’s have talent on the field. They can hit. The pitching, however, is suspect. If the A’s hope to move up in the AL West standings, the will need more consistency from their starter. Manaea has done his job. Mengden pitched will his last time out, and Trevor Cahill looked sharp as he defeated the White Sox. Andrew Triggs had two good starts, but he was pounded by the White Sox Wednesday and did not last past the second inning. The A’s will have to be at their best this weekend as the Red Sox are blistering hot right now. Let’s see if the A’s can rise to the occasion.

Matt Olson’s walk-off single ends third longest game in A’s history with 12-11 win over White Sox

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Photo credit: @Athletics

Chicago White Sox: 11 | 17 | 0
Oakland Athletics: 12 | 16 | 0
14 innings

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND — When Andrew Triggs took the mound for the Oakland Athletics this afternoon, the team hoped to sweep the Chicago White Sox in their three-game series that had opened on Monday evening. 23 runs, 33 hits, 556 pitches, and five hours and 48 minutes later, Marcus Semien crossed home plate with the winning run, giving the A’s their fourth consecutive triumph, their ninth victory, and their first series sweep of the season. It also brought the team within two games of the Seattle Mariners for third place in the strong American League West.

The game began uneventfully enough and soon settled into a long and boring slug fest, with Oakland on the short end of the stick until the bottom of the eighth.

The White Sox used their speed to take an early lead after Yoán Moncada led off with a single, stole second, and scored on Nicky Delmonico’s single to center. Oakland tied the game in their half of the first when Matt Joyce doubled off Chicago’s starting pitcher, Carson Fulmer, went to third on Marcus Semien’s single, and then Jed Lowrie popped out on a 3-0 offering, scoring on Khris Davis’ grounder to first.

The brief equilibrium between the teams ended in the White Sox’ next turn at bat. With the bases loaded and no outs, Adam Engel, batting all of .188, singled, bringing Leury García in with the tie-breaking run and leaving the bases full. Moncada then deposited a 1-0 delivery by Triggs over the Stanley Tools sign in right field.  Just like that, the A’s trailed 6-1. Three batters later, Danny Coulombe was pitching for the Green and Gold.

The A’s scrambled back into cont ention in the bottom of the frame on Mark Canhas lead-off homer to left and a sacrifice fly by Semien to center that plated Stephen Piscotty. The next man up, Bruce Maxell, walked and eventually reached third, from where he scored even though it looked to first base umpire as if Héctor Sánchez, who had entered the game to pitch for Chicago after the walk to Maxwell, had induced Lowrie to ground into an inning-ending double play. Miller’s call was reversed on an appeal that took 45 seconds to be decided, a brevity that stood out in the context of what was, and continued for a few more innings to be, a v e r y s l o w m o v i n g game.

In the top of the fourth, full count walks to Moncada and Sánchez ended Coulombe’s stint on the mound. Santiago Casilla came in as the third Oakland hurler, and he allowed José Abreu a double on a hard line driven double to left center that both runners and put the White Sox up, 8-4. Davidson singled to left, and it was 9-4.

Oakland came charging back right away. After Sánchez issued a four pitch passport to Joyce, Aaron Bummer relieved his teammate. Lowrie and Davis singled, Davis’s hit driving in Lowrie. Olson doubled, scoring Davis. Right hander Chris Volstad came into pitch to Matt Chapman, who singled Olson home, and it was a one-run game, 9-8. That was the only hit Volstad would allow before being relieved by Danny Farquhar at the end of the seventh.

The game was getting interesting. Chicago tacked on another run in the sixth on singles off Emilio Pagán by Abreu, Delmonico, and Leury García. But it still looked like anyone’s ball game.

And then, bingo! Farquhar took over from Volstad, who, after three and a third strong innings, had done all he could to preserve the Chicago lead. Stephen Piscotty greeted Farquhar with a double to left center and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Maxwell brought him home with a sac fly to right. That was it for the Farquhar.

In came southpaw Luis Avilán. He got Chad Pinder, pinch hitting for Joyce, to fly out to center but walked Semien. Lowrey then planted Avilán’s 3-2 change up behind the Rooted in Oakland sign, 375 feet away in left field. For the first time in the game, the A’s were leading, 10-9.

Melvin called on his closer, Brad Treinin, to give him the three outs Oakland needed to seal an exciting 10-9 victory. Treinin gave him two. Then the two-one punch of a Welington Castillo double and a Tim Anderson single knotted the game up again at ten.
Oakland failed to score in the bottom of the ninth, and the game went into extra innings. Treinin allowed the White Sox two singles but no runs in the 10th and shut them down 1-2-3 in the 11th.

Lou Trivino, who had made his big league debut the night before with a wobbly, but score-free inning of relief, entered the game to start the twelfth. He got out of that pressure chamber with a double and a single but without allowing a run. He didn’t allow anyone to reach base in the 13th or 14th.

Joakin Soria allowed two A’s singles in the 10th, but, like Treinin, escaped without allowing anyone to score. Bruce Rondón got through the 11th in spite of a passed ball by Narváez that allowed Piscotty, who had walked, to reach scoring position with two outs. Rondón also kept Chicago alive through the 12th by striking out Pinder and Semien and getting Lowrie to ground out to second. He also got into trouble but escaped unharmed in the 13th.

It was in the bottom of the 14th that the A’s finally completed their comeback victory. Big game James Shields, now Long Game James Shields made his first relief appearance since 2010 and got both Lucroy and Pinder to fly out to center field. Then he gave up a single to Semien, who proceeded to steal second. This was a pivotal play, since it allowed Shields to pitch around the two subsequent batters without fear of putting a meaningful run on base. And so Shields walked Lowrie and Davis, each on five pitches. This brought Olson to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs. Shields got him to swing and miss on an 83 mph change up. His next pitch was a knuckle curve that Olson blasted over Delmonico’s head and against the left field wall. Semien gleefully bounced home, and the longest game of this short season ended with the A’s on top, 12-11.

The well deserved win went to Trivino, who now boasts an immaculate record of 1-0, 0.00. The loss was charged to Shields (1-1, 4.50).

The A’s will have a chance to recuperate tomorrow and part of Friday before they face the Boston Red Sox at the Coliseum at 7:05 pm PT.

Ex-Athletic lefty Drew Pomeranz is expected to come off the Red Sox’ disabled list and make his first appearance of the season, starting for Boston. Kendall Graveman will pitch for the A’s, who hope he can improve his record of 0-3, 9.97.

A’s celebrate 50th anniversary with 10-2 blowout of White Sox

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Photo credit: @Athletics

Chicago White Sox: 2 | 8 | 0

Oakland Athletics: 10 | 13 | 0

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND — At 7:46 in the evening of April 17, 1968, after the players on both teams had been introduced, Miss California had paraded onto the field, Governor Ronald Reagan had thrown out the first ball (and was booed when he asked the crowd if they’d paid their taxes), Lew Krausse did something no one else ever had done; he threw a pitch in a major league game in Oakland. Unfortunately for the A’s, the performance of Baltimore’s Dave McNally, Krause’s opposite number, was a better one. He held the A’s to two hits over nine innings, a solo home run to Rick Monday and a pinch hit single by Tony LaRussa, to defeat the home town team, 4-1. The paid attendance was 50,164.

There was no paid attendance tonight because the Oakland Athletics—four-time world champions, often bloodied, but still, 50 years later, unbowed—celebrated the golden anniversary of that inaugural contest by issuing free tickets to their game against the Chicago White Sox to as many guests as the now venerable Coliseum could hold. 46,028 showed up and watched Lew Krausse throw out the ceremonial first pitch, after which the A’s, resplendent in their 1968 uniforms took on the pale hose, dressed in natty blue 1968 unis.

Starting for the A’s was Trevor Cahill, who, like the Coliseum and the team that calls it home, has seen better days and hopes (a if concrete structure can hope) to see them return. The 30-year-old right handed hurler, pitched for Oakland in 2009-2011, going 18-8, 2.97. Since then, he’s plied his trade for the Diamondbacks, Braves, Cubs, Padres, and Royals. His lifetime major league record is 73-79, .411 (40-35, 3.1 with the A’s). He has been battling injuries for the last two seasons and was on the DL five times in the last two seasons, not counting tonight, his first start in an  Oakland uniform since September 27, 2011. If Cahill didn’t take us back to 1968, he at least took us back to 2010; he was magnificent.

He got off to a rocky beginning, walking Yoan Moncada to start the game, but closing out the frame by setting down the next three batters to keep the White Sox off the board.

The A’s gave Cahill a five-run cushion early on, scoring five runs in their half of the first on Jed Lowrie home run over the right field scoreboard,  Mark Canha’s bases loaded single, which drove in Khris Davis and Matt Olson, and Stephen Pescotti’s double to center, which plated Matt Chapman, who’d walked, and Canha.

With a lead like this to work with, Cahill had no trouble mowing down the Chicago line  up. Working effectively on the basis of two seam fast balls and knuckle curves, he pitched seven complete scoreless innings, allowing only five hits and no walks, while throwing 92 pitches. In only one inning, the third, did the A’s mounds man allow more than one base runner.

Throughout the game, the A’s just kept tacking on tallies. They followed their five-run first with a three-run fourth when Canha, who had hit an infield single, and Piscotty, who had driven a double to left through a drawn-in infield, scored on a single by Jonathan Lucroy, was was advanced to third on a double by Matt Joyce, and then scored on Semien’s sacrifice fly to right.

Lucroy’s single drove Chicago’s hapless starter, Miguel González from the box. He was followed by a parade of four relievers who managed to hold the Oaklanders to only two more runs in the remaining five innings of play. They scored those runs in the eight off Bruce Rendón, who walked Chapman, who advanced to third on Canha’s hooking double down the left field line, and scored on Pescotty’s sacrifice liner to right. Canha’s plated the A’s last run when Lucroy’s single to center, his third hit in four at bats, drove him in.

Melvin brought in Ryan Dull, just up from Nashville, to replace Cahill in the eighth. He surrendered Chicago’s only two runs on a blast into the right field seats by Moncada with Omar Narváez on base. Narváez had struck out and reached first because both he and Lucroy missed Dull’s pitch. Dull ended up striking out four White Sox batters in his one inning of work.

Right handed Lou Trevino made his major league debut in the ninth, pitching in and out of trouble, and emerging unscathed, or at least unscored upon.

Daniel Mengden’s performance last night and Cahill’s tonight as we are hopeful about signs that the A’s rotation, anchored by Sean Manaea, is becoming a force to be reckoned with. In spite of Dull’s four strike out inning and Trevino’s 98+ mph fastball (that’s a redundancy), the bullpen remains a source of uncertainty.

Still, the Athletics now own a record of 8-10, which is approaching respectability. They take on the Chisox at 12:30 tomorrow afternoon with Carson Fulmer (0-1,4.66) joining for the Chicagoans and Andrew Triggs (1-0,2.87), another bright light in the rotation, taking the mound for the hometown team.

Oakland A’s podcast with Charlie O: Taking a look at how the A’s are faring so far; White Sox just the cure A’s looking for

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Photo credit: @Athletics

On the Oakland A’s podcast with Charlie O:

1) How are the A’s doing so far this season in your opinion?

2) You say starting pitching is a problem–what can the A’s do to chance the situation?

3) Should the A’s be considering making trades for starting pitchers?

4) What should be the A’s immediate goals?

5) Will solving the stadium problem help the A’s get back on track on the field?

Charlie O is your host for the Oakland A’s podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Mengden throws gem in A’s 8-1 laugher of White Sox

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Photo credit: @Athletics

Chicago White Sox : 1 | 6 | 4
Oakland Athletics: 8 | 8 | 0

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND — After escaping from Minneapolis, where over 13 inches of snow had caused the postponement of their last three games, the Chicago White Sox must have felt as if they’d be transported to the beach at Waikiki when they took the field Monday evening at the Oakland Coliseum under partly cloudy skies and the thermometer showing 53 degrees.

When he took to the mound, Chicago’s starting pitcher, Reynaldo Pérez, hadn’t thrown a ball in anger in eight days since pitching seven innings of two-hit ball without giving up an earned run, but still managed to lose 1-0 to Detroit. The involuntarily well-rested  righty brought an impressive ERA of 0.69 with him to the Coliseum.

Pérez picked up where he had left off back on April 8, holding the A’s scoreless for the first three innings. Then, Matt Olson blasted Pérez’s first offering in the fourth into the right field seats above the Stanley Tools sign to end an 0-for-12 slump and give the home team a 1-0 lead. They tacked on another run in fifth when Khris Davis’s two-out double  to center drove Matt Joyce in from second to stretch the A’s lead to two runs.

Pérez finished his night’s work by striking out the side in the sixth. He needed only 13 pitches to retire Matt Chapman, Mark Canha, and Stephen Piscotty, in that order.

Atrocious fielding in the seventh and eighth frames cost the Pale Hose any chance they might have had to salvage the game. Luis Avilán relieved Pérez to start the seventh and immediately walked Jonathan Lucroy on a 3-2 count. Matt Joyce laid down a bunt between the mound and first base. First baseman José Abreu fielded, and then bobbled the ball, which was grabbed by Avilán, who threw late to second sacker Yoan Moncada, covering first. Joyce was credited with a sacrifice, Abreu was charged with an error, and the A’s had runners on first and second with nobody out. Marcus Semien’s single to right loaded the bases and set up the next scene in Chicago comedy of errors.

Jed Lowry smacked a hard ground ball to shortstop Tim Anderson, just what Avilán needed to get a double play and minimize the damage Abreu’s miscue had cost him. But the ball skipped through Anderson into left field, where it was fumbled by Leury García, who had just entered the game to replace Nicky Delmonico. Lowrie scored on Anderson’s error, which also allowed Semien to move on to second. He advanced to third on García’s error.

Danny Farquhar came in to replace the put-upon Avilán and did so in splendid fashion, striking out Olson—who, in spite of his home run, went down swinging for the third time in the game—and then closing out the A’s by getting Khris Davis, Oakland’s other RBI producer so far, to ground into a 6-4-3 double play. After seven innings, the A’s led 5-0.

The Green and Gold put the game out of reach in the eighth through a combination of their hitting and Chicago’s continued ineptitude in the field. Christ Volstead surrendered a walk to Chapman to open the inning and then a single to center by Mark Canha, sending Chapman to third. Adam Engel juggled the ball in center, which allowed Canha to reach second.

Piscotty also singled to center, bringing in Chapman with Oakland’s sixth tally and advancing Canha to third. He didn’t get any further because Lucroy’s Volstead fielded Lucroy’s comebacker to mound and fired the ball to his catcher, Welington Castillo, who tagged Canha out before the A’s center fielder could scamper back to third. That was Volstead’s last act of the game, but the runs soon to be scored by Piscotti and Lucroy, the runners he left on base would be charged to his account.

Manager Rick Rentería removed Volstead  and replaced him with Aaron Bummer. who walked Semien and gave up a single to Lowrie, which drove in the A’s final two runs of the game. He also got the two outs needed to end the slaughter.

Meanwhile, Mengden was magnificent. He held the South Siders scoreless on five hits through eight innings, striking out six and giving up but a single walk. In this, he was aided by some nifty fielding, including an inning-ending double play that occurred in the second frame when, with Yolmer Sánchez on first, Anderson hit a sharp ground ball to Chapman at third, who threw the batter out at first. Sánchez, who had reached second, kept on running, expecting to arrive safely at third, but a perfect throw by Olson to Semien, who was covering the bag, retired daring and resourceful Sánchez.

Mengden lost his shutout and complete game when Abreu hit a 400-foot homer to center to lead off the ninth, and Yusmeiro Petit came in to set the remaining White Sox down in order. Mengden got the well-deserved win. He’s now 2-2 with a 4.50 ERA. The loser, López, is 0-2 with a 1.42 ERA.

The two teams will match up tomorrow at 7:05 pm PT with Miguel González facing Trevor Cahill.

That’s Amaury’s Podcast, News and Commentary: A’s attendance figures all the talk; compare tonight’s attendance to Tuesday’s free-for-all game

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sfgate.com file photo: Whenever the Giants come to Oakland the Coliseum like this 2017 visit it gets busy otherwise it’s been pretty quiet around the Oakland Coliseum

On the That’s Amaury’s podcast:

#1 A’s attendance figures to have been all the conversation as the team is currently 29th of 30 teams in crowd counts.

#2 The A’s average attendance for games played at the Coliseum Mondays through Thursdays is at 8653, the lowest counts in some 15 years.

#3 What is most attributed to the drop in the crowds fans say it’s non-recognizable players and A’s president David Kaval says the amount of ticket sellers have been shifted to accommodating season ticket holders who reportedly are also below the average number in MLB.

#4 The A’s are having a struggle keeping top talent. The A’s have become an audition stage for top talent, who later bolt for bigger and better pay and end up leaving.

#5 The Oakland economy: Does the high rents, cost of living, low wages, play into fans sports dollars who may not be able to pay the $30 parking fee, tickets and feed a family of four at a ball game?

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the A’s Spanish radio play-by-play talent and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Manaea deals, Lowrie provides the punch as the A’s win in Seattle

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1616492-1024x708
Photo courtesy of Ken Lambert/Seattle Times

By Morris Phillips

Felix Hernandez made his 47th career start against the A’s on Sunday. From his perspective, this may have been the most frustrating.

Hernandez allowed just five hits, no walks and during one stretch, retired 13 batters in a row. He worked into the seventh inning for the first time this season, baffled the A’s with a couple of changeups, and picked off Marcus Semien, caught breaking from a base in the first inning.

Or did he?

First base umpire Carlos Torres thought not, seeing King Felix react to yelling from his dugout with a quick turn, and slightly disjointed throw to first that had Semien hung up in a rundown. Torres immediately declared a balk, but that was changed once the umpires huddled and reversed his call. A video replay showing Hernandez’s feet close up reinforced the changed call. Call it baseball’s version of a do-over as Semien was allowed to return to first as if nothing happened at all.

“I stepped off the rubber,” Hernandez said. “I don’t know what happened there. It was a weird play.”

“They’re trying to get it right, so it kind of worked out either way for us, based on the fact that Marcus was picked off,” said A’s manager Bob Melvin. “So if they’re saying that they got the call wrong, then they can’t call Marcus out. So I understand where they were going with it.”

Hernandez–vindicated, but bewildered by the sequence–started the next batter, Jed Lowrie, with three, consecutive balls. With 11 hits, including three homers already on the road trip, Lowrie was an obvious candidate to be swinging 3-0. Hernandez misread the situation, and saw his grooved fastball deposited into the right field bleachers.

“I didn’t know he was going to swing because he’s so patient, but he did swing and it cost us the game right there,” Hernandez admitted.

If Lowrie made King Felix pay, then A’s starter Sean Manaea was sent to collect, by fiercely protecting the early two-run lead, and turning it into a 2-1 victory, good enough to allow the A’s to avoid being swept in the three-game series.

Manaea allowed just two hits in seven innings, and one run on Taylor Motter’s solo shot in the fifth. But in the pressure of a one-run ballgame, Manaea held up, retiring the final seven batters he faced after failing with Motter.

The outing marked the third time in four starts this season Manaea has pitched into the seventh inning. Saying this could be Manaea’s finest season yet would be an understatement. The 26-year old allowed the Mariners two hits on Sunday with Kyle Seager’s fourth inning single joining Motter’s blast. Manaea walked two, doubling his walk total (four allowed) on the year.

Last season Manaea walked 55 in 158 innings. This season, he’s on pace to surpass 200 innings pitched for the first time while dramatically lowering his walk total. His struggles early in ballgames have subsided as well.  And Manaea’s ERA? Low and getting lower, with it currently standing at 1.63.

“Where I am now, solo home runs aren’t going to kill you,” Manaea said. “That’s just kind of the mindset.”

“He saves the bullpen,” said Melvin of Manaea. “He’s pitched great and won games for us. He’s had a heck of an April, for sure.”

On Sunday, the bullpen saved the bullpen as well, quite an upgrade on two meltdowns earlier in the roadtrip. Ryan Buchter got the first two outs of the eighth, and Blake Treinen followed with the final four outs of the ballgame. Neither reliever allowed a hit.

The A’s open a six-game home stand Monday at 7:05pm with Daniel Mengden facing Reynaldo Lopez of the White Sox.

 

A’s lose slugfest in Seattle on Saturday night 10-8

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
10-8 Ms
Graphic: @athletics

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Oakland A’s can score runs. On Saturday night in Seattle, they put eight runs up on the board which frankly should be enough to win any major league game. The problem is the A’s pitchers gave up 10 runs to the Mariners and Oakland lost their second game in a row 10-8.

The Athletics four pitchers gave 10 runs off 17 hits. They gave up four home runs in the game. The A’s pitchers gave up three 2-out RBI which breaks the back of team trying to get healthy on the road. Ironically, the Oakland pitchers issued only two walks.

The performance of A’s starting pitcher Kendall Graveman (0-3) has to be of real concern to the coaching staff and the front office. Graveman made his fourth start on Saturday night and lasted only four innings. He gave up five runs (all earned) on eight hits. Graveman – who was the losing pitcher – recorded five strikeouts and walked two hitters. He gave up one home run – a three-shot with two out in the bottom of the second to Jean Segura (1).

A’s television color analyst Ray Fosse believes Graveman needs to change his pitching style back to what he was doing last season. Graveman was pitching like a classic “sinker-baller” who was working to get a ground ball out and not a strikeout. This season, Graveman appears to have upped his velocity and is going after strikeouts which does not seem to be working out very well for the pitcher.

Oakland used three relievers on Saturday. Danny Coulombe came on in relief of Graveman and was hit hard by the M’s. He issued three runs (two earned) off four hits including one home run. Emilio Pagan worked 1.1 innings of relief and posted all deuces in the book. He allowed two runs (both earned) on two hits – both home runs.

The one positive out of the bullpen in the for the Athletics was the performance of Yusmeiro Petit. Petit came on in the seventh inning and stopped the Mariners in their tracks. He worked two innings allowing no runs on three hits while striking out two batters.

Seattle used seven pitchers in the contest. The M’s starter Marco Gonzales lasted just 3.1 innings giving up four runs (all earned) off five hits. Chasen Bradford relieved Gonzales and ultimately was awarded his first win of the season. Edwin Diaz came in for the top of the ninth inning to record his sixth save of the season. It is not very often you will see a team score 10 runs and need their closer to come into the game to record a save.

The seven Mariners pitchers gave up eight runs (all earned) on 10 hits. They walked three and combined for 11 strikeouts.

A’s with the bat

a-m's
Photo: @athletics
  • Mark Canha had a big game. He went 2-for-5 at the plate and hit his first home run of the season.
  • Jed Lowrie went 3-for-4 on the night with one RBI and a run scored.
  • Khris Davis hit his fifth home run of the season – a two-run shot in the seventh inning with two outs.
  • Stephen Piscotty also had a nice game with the bat. He hit his first home run of the season while going 2-for-4 in the game picking up two RBI.

Seattle was in power mode with their bats

vogelbach hr
Voglebach home run Photo: @mariners
  • Segura, Haniger, Seager, and Vogelbach all hit round-trippers off A’s pitchers in the Mariners win.
  • Seager and Vogelbach each recorded a double.
  • The M’s went 4-for-14 with runners in scoring position.

Up next

The final game of the series and the road trip will take place on Sunday afternoon at 1:10 PM. The A’s will send lefty Sean Manaea (1-2, 1.74) to the hill to face the Mariners “King” Felix Hernandez (2-1, 6.00).

 

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: Forbes–Oakland Athletics’ valuation $1.02 Billion

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KTVU FOX 2 photo: Rendering of an Oakland A’s waterfront ballpark under the lights a dream that has had some stop gaps for A’s team president David Kaval who is trying to build it at Howard Terminal

By Amaury Pi Gonzalez

OAKLAND–According to Forbes Magazine,which is considered the Bible for finance in all industries, the Oakland A’s are #26 among all 30 major league clubs in total valuation worth about $1.02 billion; followed by #27 Kansas City,#28 Cincinnati,#29 Miami and Tampa Bay #30 are the four teams below the A’S The real big boys are the top three: New York Yankees valuation of $4 billion, followed by the Los Angeles Dodgers $3 billion and the Chicago Cubs $2.9 billion.

An interesting situation is that of the Miami Marlins, with a valuation of $1 billion, yet they were sold this past October for $1.2 billion. Yes, The Fish are swimming deep in debt and in very shallow water in attendance. The New York Yankees generated the most in revenues last year $619 million. Forbes professionals specializes in appraising the estimate of worth among most industries.On this recent 2018 list all major league teams except the Tampa Bay Rays had evaluations upwards of $1 billion. The Tampa Bay Rays $900 million, and they are last. A lot of things are taken into consideration on these evaluations, like size of the market, debt by the team, revenue projections and potential plans for the team(in this case of the A’s a new ballpark) plus other factors.

In the case of the Oakland Athletics, who have a valuation of a little above $1 billion, they also have the lowest payroll, #30 of $69 million this season. Commissioner Manfred had said repeatedly that he wants the A’s to stay in Oakland, and with the move of the Raiders to Las Vegas and the Warriors to San Francisco within two years, the A’s are all but assured they will stay in Oakland. The possibility of a new ballpark for the Athletics with or without a Gondola are good.

They probably have odds in Vegas about that also and my guess will be like 10 to 5 odds, that they will build a new park someplace in Oakland. The Howard Terminal is the front runner, with the Oakland Coliseum as the “pinch hitter”if the Terminal strikes out. The San Francisco Giants valuation is $2.85 Billion. Every year teams valuations go up. The average team worth is $1.645 billion, which is 7% more than in 2017.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the play-by-play Spanish announcer for the Oakland A’s and is the vice president of the MLB Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum and does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com