Category: Oakland Athletics

Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Jharel Cotton (45) eyes the camera in the dugout before the game between the Oakland A’s and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Angel Stadium in Anaheim, CA, Photographer: Peter Joneleit (Cal Sport Media via AP Images)

On the Podcast with Jerry F:

1  A’s pitcher Jharel Cotton had his mix of pitches which was working for him to start 2017 but afterwards teams started learning about his pitches and Cotton started tailing off and Wednesday night he dropped his record to 5-9 and raised his ERA to 5.72

2 Was Cotton’s success primarily due to the fact that he got called up early in the season and no one knew how to hit him

3 A’s catcher Josh Phegley is back in the batting cage after suffering an oblique injury also outfielder Jake Smolinski had a shoulder injury has rehabbed and now can throw 90 feet

4 A’s catcher Dustin Garneau has worked well behind the plate he has played in three games worth but has impressed so much that manager Bob Melvin is planning to use him this month and considering activating Phegley when the call ups arrive in September

5 The A’s are having a “Player Weekend” using jerseys that instead have the last names on the back of the jerseys they’ll be using nicknames this will happen on the weekend of Aug 25-27

Jerry Feitelberg does the Oakland A’s podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

Seattle Mariners’ Nelson Cruz drops his bat as he hits a solo home run against the Oakland Athletics during the fifth inning of a baseball game Wednesday, Aug. 9, 2017, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

by Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND- The Seattle Mariners beat the A’s 6-3 Wednesday afternoon at the Oakland Coliseum to sweep the brief two-game Series. The A’s starter, Jharel Cotton, has been having a tough go of it this year. He has been inconsistent and has been sent down to Nashville a couple of times, too. Also, he had a short stint on the 10-day DL due to blisters on his right hand. Cotton performed well last year after he came over to the A’s in the trade with the Dodgers for Rich Hill and Josh Reddick. He just hasn’t found the mojo that he had last year, and his record fell to 5-9, and his ERA, which was 5.48 at the start of the game is now 5.72. The Mariners’ starter Yovani Gallardo has also struggled this year. Gallardo was demoted to the Mariners’ bullpen earlier, but due to injuries to Felix Hernandez and Hisashi Iwakuma, the Mariners put him back in the starting rotation. Neither pitcher had a stellar outing on Wednesday. Gallardo lasted just 4, and 1/3rd innings and Cotton left the game after going six not so good innings.  The hitting stars for the Mariners were Kyle Seager and Nelson Cruz.

The Mariners did not waste any time as they scored three runs on five hits in the very first inning. Mariners’ shortstop Jean Segura led off with s single. Cotton retired Yonder Alonso who was making his second start in a Mariner uniform. Alonso received a warm welcome from the A’s fans for the second game in a row. Alonso failed to get a hit his first time at bat. Robinson Cano followed with a single to put men on at first and second with one out. Cotton retired the ever-dangerous Nelson Cruz for the second out. He did not get out of the jam as Mariners’ third baseman Kyle Seager clobbered his 17th round tripper of the year to give Seattle a 3-0 advantage before the A’s came to bat. The A’s, in the bottom of the inning, put one on the board when Matt Joyce led off the frame with a solo dinger. For Joyce, it was his fifteenth of the campaign, and the A’s trailed 3-1 after the first inning.

Cotton had a better second inning. He retired the Mariners in order and needed just seven pitches to record the outs. He threw twenty-four in the first inning. However, in the third inning, the Mariners scored twice to take a 5-1 lead. Robinson Cano singled and scored when Nelson Cruz, who loves to feast on Oakland A’s pitching, blasted a 450-foot home run that went deep into the left field seats. The A’s cut the deficit to three when Khris Davis hit a solo homer to center field just left of the 388-foot marker. For “Krush” it was his 31st of the year.

Nelson Cruz hit another homer in the fifth. Seattle owns a 6-2 advantage, and Cruz now has twenty-six homers and his second multi-homer game in 2017. In the bottom half of the fifth,  Oakland plated their third and final run of the day. Matt Joyce singled and scored when Jed Lowrie sliced a double down the left field line to drive in Joyce. The Mariners manager Scott Servais removed Gallardo from the game. He went 4 and one- third innings and he allowed six hits, three runs, and gave up two homers. He threw 98 pitches. The Mariners bullpen, as they did Tuesday night, shut down the A’s offense the rest of the way and allowed just one hit and no runs as they secured the win for Seattle.

Game Notes – The A’s bullpen did a good job for Bob Melvin on Wednesday. Simon Castro retired the Mariners in order in the seventh and Josh Smith, who was the losing pitcher Tuesday night, went two innings and did not allow a hit or a run. The pitching line for Cotton was six innings pitched, eight hits, and six runs.

The Mariner bullpen of Emilio Pagan, Tony Zych, and Edwin Diaz allowed just one hit and no runs after Gallardo was removed. Zych received credit for his 11th hold, and Diaz recorded his 25th save.

The Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays, and Kansas City Royals were all tied for the second Wild Card spot in the American League. With the win, the Mariners now own a half-game lead over both teams.

The A’s welcome the Baltimore Orioles to the Coliseum for a four-game series starting Thursday night. Lefty Wade Miley( 5-9, ERA 5.51) will pitch for the Orioles, and the A’s have not announced who will start for the home team.

Time of game was two hours and fifty-eight minutes and 14,989 fans watched the MAriners down the A’s.

Seattle Mariners’ Leonys Martin hits a solo home run during the 10th inning of a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics Tuesday, Aug. 8, 2017, in Oakland, Calif. Seattle won 7-6. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

by Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND-The Seattle Mariners fighting for a Wild Card playoff spot rallied from a 6-2 deficit to win the game in extra innings 7-6. The M’s entered the game a half-game behind the Kansas City Royal and Tampa Bay Rays who were tied for the second Wild Card slot. With the win, the Mariners would be in the playoffs if the season were to end today.

The A’s Kendall Graveman made his second start since coming off the disabled list. Graveman didn’t do well in his first start last week in San Francisco, Graveman pitched well but lost it in the sixth inning. His line for the night was five and 1/3rd innings pitched, and he allowed seven hits and four runs, one of which was unearned. The Mariners took advantage of three A’s errors and the failure of the  A’s bullpen to keep the M’s off the board. The Mariners used five pitchers, and their bullpen stopped the A’s offense cold.

The A’s jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Rajai Davis doubled to left field. Mariners’ starter Ariel Miranda walked Marcus Semien to put men on at first and second with no out. Miranda stuck out Ryon Healy for the first out. The next hitter, Khris Davis, hit a towering fly ball to deep right field. The ball kept carrying and landed over the fence near the Raiders’ Return to Greatness” sign. It was Khrush’s 30th big fly of the season.

In the top of the third, the Mariners scored an unearned run to cut the deficit to 3-1. Graveman was sailing along as he retired the first seven hitters he faced. Mariners’ catcher Mike Zunino reached on an infield single to short and advanced to second on Marcus Semien’s throwing error. Zunino went to third on a single to left and then scored on Jean Segura’s ground out. The A’s got that run and added one more as tallied two runs in their half of the third. Ryon Healy led off with a single. He scored when Khris Davis blasted a triple off the left-center field wall. Davis scored on a Matt Chapman sacrifice fly. The A’s lead is now 5-1.

The Mariners parlayed a walk and two singles in the fourth to narrow the gap to three. With one out, Graveman walked Nelson Cruz. Kyle Seager reached on a force out. Singles by Ben Gamel and Jarrod Dyson produced the Mariners second run of the game.

In the bottom of the fifth, the A’s first baseman Ryon Healy hammered his twentieth dinger of the season that went over the 400-foot marker in center field.  The A’s now lead 6-2.

The Mariners, a team loaded with good hitters and fighting for a playoff spot, rallied to tally two runs in the top of the sixth. With one out the Mariners scored twice on the strength of two singles and a two-run double by Ben Gamel. A’s manager went to the mound and removed Graveman from the game. Ryan Dull retired the next two hitters to end the Mariners rally. Seattle trailed 6-4 midway through the sixth inning. In the seventh, the Mariners continued to chip away at the lead. Liam Hendriks was now pitching for Oakland. Hendriks retired the first batter he faced. The next hitter, Jean Segura, singled to right and then advanced to second when Matt Joyce mishandled the ball. Yonder Alonso, the former A’s first baseman and in his first game as a Mariner, singled. Segura went to third on the play. Melvin brought in the lefty, Daniel Coulombe, to pitch to Robinson Cano. Coulombe did his job as he retired Cano on a soft liner to Marcus Semien. Melvin then replaced Coulombe with Santiago Casilla. Casilla’s job was to get Nelson Cruz out. That did not happen as Cruz singled to drive in Segura with the Mariners’ fifth run of the game. Casilla struck out Kyle Seager to end the inning.

In the seventh, the Mariners continued to chip away at the lead. Liam Hendriks was now pitching for Oakland. Hendriks retired the first batter he faced. The next hitter, Jean Segura, singled to right and then advanced to second when Matt Joyce mishandled the ball. Yonder Alonso, the former A’s first baseman and in his first game as a Mariner, singled. Segura went to third on the play. Melvin brought in the lefty, Daniel Coulombe, to pitch to Robinson Cano. Coulombe did his job as he retired Cano on a soft liner to Marcus Semien. Melvin then replaced Coulombe with Santiago Casilla. Casilla’s job was to get Nelson Cruz out. That did not happen as Cruz singled to drive in Segura with the Mariners’ fifth run of the game. Casilla struck out Kyle Seager to end the inning.

The Mariners tied the game in the eighth. Simon Castro was now pitching for Oakland. The leadoff hitter, Ben Gamel, hit a rocket to A’s third baseman Matt Chapman. Chapman threw the ball past the A’s first baseman for an error. Gamel ended up on second. It was the third error of the game for Oakland. Gamel went to third on a ground out and scored when Danny Valencia, another former Oakland Athletic, hit a sac fly to center. Rajai Davis’ throw home was offline and Gamel scored the tying run.

The Mariners, in the tenth inning, took the lead for the first time. Josh Smith, the eighth A’s pitcher of the night, retired the first two hitters. The next hitter, Leonys Martin, hit a solo homer to right. Martin entered the game with a woeful batting average of just .171 and the home run was just his second of the year. The A’s rally in the bottom of the tenth fizzled and the Mariners win the game 7-6.

Game notes- Former A’s first baseman, Yonder Alonso, played his first game as a Seattle Mariner and had one hit in five tries. The other former Athletics in the game was Danny Valencia for whom the A’s received Paul Blackburn and the reliever Marc Rzepczynski who earned the win.

Khris Davis was the A’s hitting star with a home run and a triple.

The two-game series will conclude Wednesday afternoon at 12:35 pm. Jharel Cotton will pitch for the A’s and Yovani Gallardo will go for Seattle.

Time of game was three hours and twenty minutes and there were 12,354 loyal fans on hand to watch the A’s lose.

A’s are planning to go young and use their younger players to develop for the future such is the case in using catcher Dustin Garneau. Seattle Mariners’ Kyle Seager, left, scores past Oakland Athletics catcher Dustin Garneau after a double from Ben Gamel during the sixth inning of a baseball game Tuesday, Aug. 8, 2017, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

On the Oakland A’s Podcast with Charlie O:

1) People shouldn’t feel sorry for A’s fans. They should feel sorry for Giants fans! Why is that?

2)Do the A’s have a plan. What is that plan in your opinion?

3) What about the Giants? What do u think their plan is?

4) The A’s and Giants minor league organizations are going in opposite directions – where are they headed?

5) Charlie called it back in early July – the A’s traded Yonder Alonso to Seattle over the weekend-any thoughts on the trade?

6) Are there anymore deals to be done for Oakland?

7) What’s coming up for the A’s?

Catch Charlie O with the A’s podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

newballpark.org photo: Simulated overview of location shot of Oakland A’s new park at Laney College Lake Merritt location

On Amaury’s Podcast, News and Commentary:

1 Three ball park locations to choose from for the Oakland A’s but now the A’s first choice Laney College near Lake Merritt at first might have met some difficult opposition from Laney College. But after much discussion and some unofficial negotiations the college is taking under consideration the benefit of having the Oakland A’s new stadium nearby. The major task right now can the college find a new location on their campus for their offices and make room on the property for the A’s new digs. One thing for sure some of the students and faculty are excited at the notion of having a big league ball park on the campus.

2. A’s team president David Kaval said that a new Laney College location would bring not only business in for the A’s but it would bring about retail, great panoramic views of the downtown skyline and Lake Merritt, hotels, restaurants, and housing.

3 An A’s Laney College Stadium would also be walking distance two blocks from Oakland’s Lake Merritt BART station something that Kaval says is critical in considering a new park. If the A’s were to build there Kaval who always took public transit as a must under consideration for the fans, seniors and disabled as priority.

4 The Jack London Square Howard Terminal location was the A’s second choice of the three locations. Howard Terminal runs a distant second if the Laney College negotiations heats up. The Waterfront idea with the existing restaurants and retail at Jack London square is appealing but the downsides are there is no BART going within two blocks of Jack London, and the weather is reported to be as frigid off that waterfront as old Candlestick Park if that’s believable.

5 Will a new park at Laney or even Howard Terminal backfire on the San Francisco Giants who enforced their territorial rights in San Jose which prevented the A’s from going to the South Bay. San Jose is some 50 miles distance from the City but a new Oakland ball park would be just a zip code across the bay from the Giants and those fans that now go to AT&T might just switch allegiance for a brand new park in either of those Oakland locations which would be a lot closer than going to the South Bay

Amaury Pi Gonzalez has much more on his latest Podcast, News, and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com, plus Amaury is the Spanish radio talent for the A’s and the Spanish TV talent for the Angels

 

Former Oakland Athletics first baseman Yonder Alonso (17) swings a bat during batting practice before a game against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, on August 4, 2017, played at Angel Stadium of Anaheim in Anaheim, CA He was dealt to Seattle during the series. (Photo by John Cordes/Icon Sportswire) (Icon Sportswire via AP Images)

by Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND- The Oakland A’s have an off-day on Monday. They finished the short five-game road trip to San Francisco and Los Angeles with a record of three wins and two losses. The A’s resume play Tuesday night in Oakland against the Seattle Mariners.

The Mariners beat the Kansas City Royals on Sunday to remain one game above the .500 mark with a record of 57-56 and are in second place in the AL West. The Mariners trail the Royal by a game and a half in the race for the second wild card spot. The Mariners made a move on Sunday as they acquired the A’s first baseman and All-Star, Yonder Alonzo. The Mariners claimed Alonso off waivers and then made a deal that sent outfielder Boog Powell to the A’s. Alonso will platoon with former Athletic Danny Valencia. The A’s announced that they will recall Matt Olson from Nashville. Olson will get more playing time at first base now that Alonso is gone.

The pitching matchups for the short two-game series will feature Kendall Graveman(2-3, 4.96 ERA) pitching for the A’s and the Mariners will have Ariel Miranda (7-5, 4.41 ERA) doing the honors for Seattle. Graveman did not have a good outing against the Giants last Thursday in San Francisco. He lasted just two innings, and it looked as if Graveman was pitching batting practice. It was his first start since May 19th, and there was no doubt that there was a little rust on the arm but Graveman just could not get loose, and he did not have a lot of velocity on any of his pitches. On Wednesday, Jharel Cotton (5-8, 4.96 ERA) is on the hill for the A’s and the veteran Yovani Gallardo(5-8, 5.48) will go for the M’s. Both of these pitchers have been struggling this season, and the A’s hope is that Cotton will find the magic that he showed last season when he arrived in Oakland in the trade with the Dodgers for Rich Hill and Josh Reddick. The Mariners’ Gallardo has been around the block several times, and he is hoping to do better as the Mariners need him to get them a win so they can possibly move up in the race for the Wild Card.

The A’s are now committed to the youth movement. Matt Chapman, Ryan Healy, Mark Canha, Marcus Semien, Bruce Maxwell and Chad Pinder along with the veteran Khris Davis all made significant contributions in the 11-10 win over the Angels on Sunday. The A’s may make other moves before the end of the season. There is no information available if the put Jed Lowrie, Matt Joyce, and Rajai Davis on waivers.  The young guys will see most of the action the remainder of the season.

The Mariners, on the other hand, are a veteran team with several All-Stars. The offense is led by second baseman Robinson Cano. Cano is hitting .272 with 19 dingers and 75 RBIs. Kyle Seager at third, Jean Segura at short, and Danny Valencia and Yonder Alonzo handling first base give the Mariners a good infield, and each of the hitters has a lot of pop in their bats. The outfielders are Ben Gamel, Jarrod Dyson, and Guillermo Heredia.  Gamel came to the Mariners from the Yankees and is hitting .303. Carlos Ruiz and Mike Zunino handle the catching. Nelson Cruz, who is having another productive season, is the DH and his batting average is .272 with 24 homers and 84 ribbies. Cruz has an on base percentage of .365 and a very high OPS (on base plus slugging) of .882.

The A’s pitchers will have their hands full trying to slow down the Mariners offense, and the same could be true for the Mariners as the young A’s players have a lot of power and the A’s play much better at the Coliseum than they do on the road.

The pressure will be on the Mariners as they are fighting for a spot in the playoffs while there is absolutely no pressure on the A’s. The A’s are building for the future. The starting rotation has been hard hit by injury and the trade of Sonny Gray to the Yankees. The A’s have several new faces in the bullpen due to trades and injury. The new guys will also be auditioning for the future.

Tuesday’s game starts at 7:05 pm at the Coliseum and Wednesday’s game will be at 12:35 pm. The A’s will welcome in the Baltimore Orioles for four games starting Thursday night.

 

Oakland Athletics’ Matt Chapman, right, is congratulated by Mark Canha, left, and Chad Pinder after Chapman and Pinder scored on a single by Bruce Maxwell during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Sunday, Aug. 6, 2017, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

~ By Pearl Allison Lo

ANAHEIM– Oakland took the three-game series with a five run rally in the eighth to win 11-10 over the Los Angeles Angels Sunday.

The 4 hours, 12 minute game tied the Angels record set August 25, 1998 and broke the record for longest nine-inning home game in franchise history.

Bruce Maxwell brought in the game tying and game winning run, ending a 0-for-11 run.” Of the long and hot day game, he replied, it was “…more of mental stability, than it is physical…” and deadpanned, “…felt like I was sitting in an oven, at Thanksgiving, but it could be worse. It could be 12 degrees and freezing.”

The eighth inning was almost over, with the score 10-5 and the A’s left to their final at bat. However, Oakland got six straight baserunners for the second time in a row to take the lead. Two of the runs came against Blake Parker, snapping a 27-game streak and the three remaining versus closer Bud Norris.

The win went to Josh Smith, the loss Norris and Blake Treinen earned the save.

Some of A’s Manager Bob Melvin comments were, “there’s just no quit,” “they like to play,” and “an all-around team win.”

According to Susan Slusser from the San Francisco Chronicle, Oakland had a …”record season-high 18 hits, 10 extra-base hits. First series win at Anaheim since June 23-26, 2016.” The A’s hit three home runs and the Angels two. Both teams had hits in each inning except the last, the only 1-2-3 inning, leaving 10 runners on base overall.

Los Angeles came close to their own rally. C.J. Cron had a one-out double in the eighth. A wild pitch from Santiago Casilla got Andrelton Simmons on his left side. Casilla then later loaded the bases with a walk, but was able to prevent any damage.

Oakland’s Chad Pinder went 4-for-5 with a home run, three runs and two RBIs. Teammate Mark Canha reached home plate this whole successful series with his three-run blast.

The Angels scored for the first time this series when Yunel Escobar hit a leadoff home run. Sean Manaea recovered well though, as he got the next three outs against Mike Trout (strikeout), Albert Pujols and Cron.

Until the A’s rally, every time they scored, Los Angeles had an answer. The Angels had two runs come by errors. Four runs originated from walks

Manaea got Escobar out the second time around, but gave up a home run to the man behind him, Trout with his 999th career hit.

Each team used their whole lineup and scored four apiece in the fourth inning.

Oakland finally broke through pitcher Ricky Nolasco with their first of six straight baserunners. After a one out double by Pinder, Mark Chapman doubled him home to cut the lead to 2-1. Nolasco then walked Maxwell. Canha then gave the A’s their only lead before the end with a three-run homer, continuing his success this series. It was his first long ball since May 20.    

Manaea did not help matters thought, as two walks and a single loaded the bases in the bottom inning. Juan Graterol re-tied the game by clearing the diamond partly with a two-run double. Then Cliff Pennington brought in Shane Robinson and on an error by Jaycob Brugman, Graterol scored to make it 6-4. This brought in Simon Castro to pitch.

Oakland tried again in the fifth. After a leadoff double, Nolasco was replaced too by Cam Bedrosian. Ryon Healy scored from third on a wild pitch to make it 6-5.

Los Angeles got the run back in the bottom and more. Simmons hit a one out double and was able to score on a single by Kole Calhoun. Calhoun then scored on a groundout

In the sixth, the A’s had two two-out singles but Yusmeiro Petit closed it out with his third strikeout of the inning.

Two leadoff walks by Oakland’s Liam Hendriks turned into runs in the bottom to put the A’s into a 10-5 hole.  

The A’s then tried to knock their way back into the game, equaling the Angels’ four runs, and adding one more. It started with a solo shot from Pinder in the seventh and a two-run blast by Khris Davis in the eighth. Davis’ shot came with two outs and was the first of the five run eighth.

Daniel Coulombe, Smith, Casilla and Treinen held Los Angeles to two hits in 3 and ⅓ innings.

Game notes: Escobar had to leave the game with a right intercostal strain, will need a MRI and was replaced by Kaleb Cowart in the seventh. Before the game, Seattle made a waiver claim for Oakland All-Star Yonder Alonso in exchange for former A Boog Powell, which will give Matt Olson from the minors a chance to play. The end of this three-game series marks the end of Oakland Matt Joyce’s two-game suspension for uttering a gay slur during Friday’s game. The A’s will see Alonso again at their next game Tuesday at 7:05pm.

Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Paul Blackburn throws to the plate during the first inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Saturday, Aug. 5, 2017, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

~ (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

~ ANAHEIM– Paul Blackburn (3-1) pitched 6 and ⅔ innings as the Oakland Athletics shutout Los Angeles 5-0 Saturday.

Blackburn threw a career high 112 pitches to new catcher Dustin Garneau who the A’s claimed Friday. Six of Blackburn’s seven starts now have gone six or more innings. His complete line read five hits, no walks and one strikeout for a game score of 73. It was his first start versus Los Angeles.

The last time the Angels were shut out was July 7. No player was able to get more than a single against any of the Oakland pitchers.

On the hitting side, the A’s had timely runs, walks and stolen bases with help from wild pitches/throws. Four of their runs came with two outs.    

Rajai Davis had three stolen bases, Matt Chapman had two walks and Mark Canha had two infield singles that led to runs.

Garneau also lent his bat to the cause with a two-run single in the fourth.  

Technically, with the way the game went, Oakland could have won with the first inning. Davis stole second, third and eventually home on a wild pitch for the game’s first run. Manager Bob Melvin commented, “He’s playing his best baseball here the last month and a half or so and when he’s on the bases, he creates havoc….“  

Davis tried traveling the bases in the third again, but was not as lucky. Skaggs missed first base, but Davis was thrown out then trying to reach second.

In the fourth, with two outs, the A’s got four runners on base. Chad Pinder hit a double, Chapman walked and Canha hit a grounder but no out was able to be recorded, loading the bases. Garneau then made it count with a two-run single to make it 3-0.

Opposing pitcher Tyler Skaggs (1-2), who had not played since April 28, due to injury, was replaced by Kenyan Middleton in the fifth inning. Skaggs threw 83 pitches in four innings, giving up six hits, three runs, two walks, three strikeouts and two wild pitches, ending with a game score of 42. He is now 0-3 versus the A’s.

Oakland tacked on two more in the sixth. With two outs, Chapman and Canha both had another walk and infield single respectively. Kaleb Cowart was unable to make a play at second. Yunel Escobar then tried to get the final out at second when Davis hit, but his throw went into the outfield, scoring Chapman. A double steal by Canha and Davis turned into the second run when Canha was called safe at the plate.

Ryan Dull, Santiago Casilla and Blake Treinen backed up Blackburn the rest of the way with one strikeout and limited the damage to one hit.

Game notes: The rubber match of the series concludes with a day game Sunday at 12:37pm.

~ Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Troy Scribner sits on the ground after falling off the mound while pitching during the fifth inning of the team’s baseball game against the Oakland Athletics, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

~ By Pearl Allison Lo

~ ANAHEIM– Though Oakland held the lead for most of the game, the Los Angeles Angels’ chips finally felled the A’s, as the Angels rallied again with an 8-6 win Friday.

Pitching, walks, a stolen base and fielding all commingled to play a part in the loss. Oakland’s biggest lead was four runs.

Yunel Escobar’s 1,500th career hit led to the game-winning run. Jesse Chavez got the win, Bud Norris the save and Daniel Coulombe the loss.   

The A’s were able to fend off two previous rally attempts in the second and sixth. Starter Jharel Cotton and reliever Ryan Dull were able to get big men Mike Trout and Albert Pujols out when Los Angeles came within tying range.

On Trout Bobblehead Day, he was the first player to get on base.

The first two innings saw errors and runs by both teams.

With a walked runner on base and one out, Oakland’s Ryon Healy hit a ground ball which was at least one out, if not two. However, Escobar’s throw merely touched his teammate’s glove as the situation turned to two runners on base. After one more out, Matt Chapman brought all of the runners home with a three-run homer.

The A’s committed multiple errors in the bottom of the inning. The Angels responded well with a flurry of hits, starting with two straight. The second hit resulted in runners on the corner with no out when Jaycob Brugman misplayed the ball. Kole Calhoun was then able to score on a fly out from Ben Revere. Cotton had a wild pitch and then his next pitch hit Martin Maldonado on the back of his helmet, loading the bases. With two outs, Chapman also had a fielding error which made the score 3-2 and brought up Trout, but Cotton preserved the lead by inducing a fly out.

Brugman made a nice diving catch in the bottom of the fourth.

Opposing starter Troy Scribner fell after throwing a pitch in the top of the fifth. He was then replaced by Keynan Middleton after walking his second batter with no outs. Khris Davis eventually scored the two walked batters to make it 5-2. After an intentional walk, Middleton got the final two outs.  

It was a long sixth inning.

First, Oakland used two doubles an out apart to make it 6-2 in the sixth.

The A’s used three pitchers in the bottom of the inning as Los Angeles had their biggest threat of the game since the second. Cotton gave up a leadoff single and a walk, bringing in Liam Hendriks and signaling the rally monkey. C.J. Cron stole second base which allowed him and Andrelton Simmons to score when Cliff Pennington hit a single. Another single signaled in Dull to relieve Hendriks. Dull walked Trout to load the bases but then ended the threat when he got Pujols to pop out as Chapman traveled from third base to the other side of the left field foul line to catch the ball.

Oakland had a tougher start in the seventh inning. New pitcher Coulombe gave up two leadoff walks and went on a 2-0 count to Revere before walking him too.This brought in Blake Treinen. One out later, pinch hitter Luis Valbuena finally brought the Angels to a tie with a two-run single. Los Angeles then took the lead when Escobar bounced the ball to third and Chapman was unable to make a play. Trout made it 8-6. The four runs marked the highest scoring inning of the game.

Cotton had only given up one earned run until he left the game. He finished pitching five innings, giving up seven hits, four runs, three earned, one walk and two strikeouts on 83 pitches.

Scribner’s stat line in his first MLB start was four innings, two hits, five runs, two earned, four walks and three strikeouts on 74 pitches.

Game notes: The middle game of the series begins Saturday at 6:07pm  

San Francisco Giants’ Ty Blach, left, is congratulated by third base coach Phil Nevin (16) after hitting a three-run home run against the Oakland Athletics during the fifth inning of a baseball game in San Francisco, Thursday, Aug. 3, 2017. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

by Jerry Feitelberg

SAN FRANCISCO– The San Francisco Giants pounded the A’s Thursday night winning the game 11-2. Kendall Graveman, the A’s starter, came off the 10-day DL and made his first start since May 19th. Graveman did not pitch well as he lasted just two innings and gave up seven runs on eight hits. The Giants’ starter, Ty Blach, handled the A’s quite easily. Not only did Blach pitch well, but he also hit a three-run homer in the fifth inning. It was the first three-run homer hit by a Giants at home this season.

The A’s Kendall Graveman had a very rocky first inning. The Giants sent eight men to the plate as they scored four times on five hits. With one out, Ryder Jones singled. Brandon Belt doubled to send  Jones to third. Buster Posey singled to drive in Jones with the Giants’ first run. Brandon Crawford singled to drive in Belt. Graveman retired Hunter Pence for the second out but gave up a double to Jarrett Parker that plated Posey and Crawford to give the Giants a 4-0 lead after one inning of play.

The Giants continued to treat Graveman as if it was batting practice.  Denard Span started the rally going in the second with a  leadoff double. Ryder Jones singled to drive in Span. It was Jones’ second hit of the game. Brandon Belt followed with his eighteenth homer of the year to give the Giants a commanding 7-0 lead.

The A’s put one on the board in the fourth. Jed Lowrie and Khris Davis singled to put men on at first and second with no out. Healy popped out, and Blach struck out Chad Pinder looking. Matt Chapman, with the count 3-2 and Lowrie and Davis running on the pitch, blooped a single to right. Lowrie scored, but Davis was not able to score. Blach retired Bruce Maxwell to end the inning.

The Giants continued the rout as they scored four times in the fifth to blow open the game. Chris Smith was on the hill for Oakland. He retired the first two hitters. However, the Giants scored a run on back to back doubles by Pence and Parker. The A’s issued Joe Panik his second intentional walk of the night to pitch to Ty Blach. The strategy backfired as Blach unloaded his first home run of his career. The ball was hit over the 399-foot marker in center field.The Giants’s fans were ecstatic as the the guys in Orange and Black were pounding the A’s 11-1 with four more innings to go.

The A’s Rajai Davis hit a solo homer in the eighth to make it an 11-2 game.  Giants’ manager Bruce Bochy removed Blach after the eighth inning, and he replaced him with Cory Gearrin.  Gearrin was able to retire the A’s in the ninth to preserve the win for the Giants and Ty Blach. The Giants win 11-2, and Tony Bennett serenaded the crowd with his famous rendition of “I left my heart in San Francisco.” as the fans headed home.

Game Notes- The Giants’ had lots of highlights in the game. Jarrett Parker just off the 60-day DL had two doubles and a single and drove in three runs. Ryder Jones just recalled from Sacramento, singled his first two plate appearances. Brandon Belt had a double and a home run. The star of the game was Ty Blach. Blach went eight innings and allowed two runs and just six hits. Blach also hit a three-run homer.

Bob Melvin didn’t have much to say about Graveman’s performance other than this:”his velocity was down.”

The A’s Rajai Davis hit a solo homer in the eighth, and Simon Castro retired all six hitters he faced in his two innings of work. Chris Smith pitched the last four innings of the game for the A’s.

The A’s travel to LA to play a three-game series with the Angels starting on Friday. Jharel Cotton will go for Oakland, and Troy Scribner will pitch for LA.

Time of game was two hours and thirty-eight minutes and 39,883 fans were on hand to see the Giants split the four game series with the A’s