Oakland Athletics’ Matt Chapman follows through on a two-run single off New York Yankees’ Jonathan Holder during the eighth inning of a baseball game Friday, June 16, 2017, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
On the Oakland A’s podcast with Charlie O: A’s brought rookie Matt Chapman up with much fanfare because he had been a number four prospect in the whole system. The A’s brought him up because he’s done so well in Triple A Nashville. Chapman was showing all kinds of power with home runs and just about everything else. At this point the A’s had to bring him up because they have to have some kind of impetus to give them a new energy to try to get things going.
They started him in the big Yankee series a four game series against a club that’s in first place in the AL East that has all kinds of talent. The Yanks have the big number 99 Eric Judge 6’7 265 lbs rightfielder who looks like he’s just ready to launch a ball into heaven everytime he comes to the plate. Then you ask what can Chapman do? Well he came in and infused an energy into the club that no one can believe, he had a great series and he does better than anyone can anticipate.
Houston Astros’ George Springer, right, celebrates with Carlos Correa (1) after hitting a home run off Oakland Athletics’ John Axford in the eighth inning of a baseball game Monday, June 19, 2017, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
by Jerry Feitelberg
OAKLAND-The visiting Houston Astros showed the A’s and the fans several reasons why hey have the best record in the American League as they sent the A’s down to defeat 4-1 Monday night at the Coliseum. The A’s starting pitcher Daniel Gossett, making his second career start, pitched very well for Oakland. Gossett, who was routed in Miami last week, went six and 2/3rds innings and allowed six hits and two runs.
He did not walk a batter and struck out six, He deserves a better fate but the Astros’ Brad Peacock, a former Athletic, did a better job as he allowed just four hits and just one run. The Astros’ offense hit three homers that produced all four runs. The ‘Stros came into the game having hit 109 homers and trailed the Yankees by one for the league lead. They now lead the league with 112 as the Yankees were idle on Monday. The Astros bullpen of Will Harris, Chris Devenski, and Ken Giles did not allow a hit over the last 3 and 1/3rd innings of play. The Astros have power, speed, good defense, and pitching. All the ingredients needed to make a winning team.
A’s starter Daniel Gossett was cruising along nicely until the fifth inning. Evan Gattis, who has killed the A’s in the past, led off the inning with his second double of the night. Gossett retired the next two hitters. However, the Astros’ Jake Marisnic, who had two strikes on him, took Gossett deep with a drive that went over 400 feet to give Houston the lead 2-0.
The A’s cut the deficit to just one run in the bottom of the sixth. With one out, Matt Joyce continued his hot hitting with a double to right. Peacock walked Chad Pinder to put men on at first and second with Jed Lowrie coming to bat. Lowrie, who has been a doubles machine this year, came through with a double to right-center-field to drive in Joyce with the A’s first run. Pinder, running all the way from first, was nailed at the plate on a very strong throw from shortstop Carlos Correa, who was the relay man. The A’s trail 2-1 after six complete.
The Astros stretched the lead to 3-1 in the top of the eighth. George Springer, leading off the inning, nailed John Axford for his twentieth home run of the year to give the Astros an insurance run. The Astros scored another run in the top of the ninth. With one out, Derek Fisher, playing left field for Houston, hit his second big fly of the season into the right-field bleachers to make it 4-1 in favor of Houston with the A’s coming up with just three outs left. Houston’s closer Ken Giles retired the A’s in order to secure the win for Brad Peacock, and Giles recorded his seventeenth save.
Game Notes- The Astros, with the win, are now 47-24 for the year, and the A’s are now eight games under .500 with a mark of 31-39. The Astros snapped the A’s modest four-game winning streak.
Game two of the four-game set will feature the A’s, Sonny Gray handling the pitching chores for Oakland. Gray will be seeking his third win of the season. The Astros will counter with Francis Martes who is 1-0 and has an ERA of 5.19.
Time of game was two hours and fifty-six minutes and 10,482 people watched the A’s go down to defeat.
Matt Chapman takes congratulations from Khris Davis Photo Newsday
We at SportsRadioService.com have been sharing a dark joke about the Oakland Athletics being the “M.A.S.H. Unit” of Major League Baseball for several years. This year has been no different as the A’s have used the Disabled List 17 times and they have seven players on that list as of today.
Now promising rookie call-up Matt Chapman is fighting to stay off the list that has killed the hopes of better days for the A’s for the past several years.
Chapman was called up from Triple-A Nashville to play third base in the four-game series with the New York Yankees. Chapman started all four games going 3-for-14 at the plate including a double and two walks. He scored two runs and posted three RBI. The batting average for the weekend was just .214 but the On-Base-Percentage was a very Oakland “A-like” .318.
The rookie third baseman also showed off his very impressive speed on the base path and his very strong throwing arm on defense. To call A’s fans excited is to make a true understatement.
When the lineup card for the game on Monday versus the Houston Astros was posted and Chapman’s name was not written on that card, an air of concern rose quickly around the Coliseum.
The A’s revealed that Chapman has developed an infection in his left knee. It is believed he may have developed the infection after sliding into a fence in a Triple-A game with Nashville prior to joining the big club.
A’s head trainer Nick Paparesta indicated that the infection will be treated with antibiotics. The Athletics are hoping that it will be a quick regimen of antibiotics for Chapman and a fast return to the lineup without a stop on DL.
After a four-game sweep of the Yankees, the Athletics would like have the talent and enthusiasm of Chapman on the field versus the Astros.
San Francisco Giants relief pitcher Mark Melancon follows the flight of a three-run, walkout home run that he gave up to Colorado Rockies’ Nolan Arenado in the ninth inning of a baseball game, Sunday, June 18, 2017, in Denver. The Rockies won 7-5. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
On the Giants podcast with Morris:
1 The Giants dropped a four game series to start the road trip not a great tone to begin an eight game stint
2 The Giants dropped a 7-5 decision on Sunday in Denver and had a 5-3 lead but closer Mark Melancon ended up blowing his fourth save opportunity after the Rockies scored four runs to come back for the win
3 Morris talks about who’s at fault most for the Giants current downfall the hitting or the pitching
4 In Sunday’s game Melancon gave up four straight hits his fourth blown save opportunity
5 Six straight losses going into Atlanta how does manager Bruce Bochy prepare for this series with the Braves
Oakland Athletics’ Khris Davis (2) is congratulated by Chad Pinder (18) after hitting a two-run home run against the New York Yankees during the third inning of a baseball game on Sunday, June 18, 2017, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)
By Morris Phillips
OAKLAND-On one of the hottest days on record at the Coliseum, it didn’t matter that Khris Davis had been swinging a cold bat.
The A’s home run leader took an 0 for 5 collar with four strikeouts on Saturday, dropping his batting average to .236 and boosting his strikeout total to an alarming 90 just 68 games into the season. Any big-league hitter knows that struggles to that degree can be mentally taxing.
But obviously not as taxing as facing an inexperienced pitcher who’s on the ropes is invigorating. With the Yankees’ early lead suddenly wiped out and starter Luis Cessa offering a 2-1 pitch with a runner aboard, Davis had his slump busting scenario in place.
Cessa’s mid-90’s fastball up in the zone made the Yankees’ rookie making only his second big-league appearance look as if he hadn’t consulted the scouting report on Davis. The mighty mite slugger who uses his quick hands as much as his lower-body base to drive baseballs out of the park jumped on Cessa’s offering and deposited it beyond the centerfield wall just like that.
Davis’ team-leading 18th home run traveled an estimated 445 feet, and came just two batters after Chad Pinder erased the Yankees’ two-run lead with a double into the gap. Pinder taxed Cessa by fouling off four, consecutive pitches before finding one to his liking. The A’s entered the third with no hits. They exited with four hits, and a 4-2 lead.
“The first two innings, (Cessa) was down in the zone,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. “He got some balls up and it led to some balls in the gap and the home run, and that was the difference.”
Jharel Cotton pitched into the seventh inning, and Sean Doolittle gained the save as the A’s held on for a 4-3 win, and a four-game sweep of the AL East-leading Yankees. The A’s entered the series off a disappointing road trip, but won three of the games against New York by one run. One key was their season-long bugaboo of committing costly errors disappeared. The A’s had just two errors in the series, the second coming in the ninth inning on Sunday.
“That’s a great team on the other side, they’ve got a lot of power guys, and we just battled and battled,” outfielder Matt Joyce said. “It showed how relentless we can be.”
The A’s entered the series buried in the American League basement, and even after the sweep, are still in possession of the AL’s worst record. But at 31-38, and still 15 games behind division-leading Houston, you get a sense the young-and-getting-younger A’s are building on something.
Manager Bob Melvin brushed off comparisons to the 2012 A’s, who also swept the Yankees on their way to earning a division title on the season’s final day. But he was quick to point out that for the team’s newest members–and likely their future core–this was an eye-opener and confidence builder.
“If you’re a Matt Chapman, a Chad Pinder, a Jaycob Brugman, guys that are just getting here, to know you can have a series like this gives you a lot of confidence, not only in yourself but as a team,” Melvin said.
NOTES: The first pitch temperature at the Coliseum was 90 degrees, the hottest such reading since 2008.
The A’s improved to 22-13 at home, giving them MLB’s biggest disparity between home and road results. The A’s are only 9-25 on the road with a three-game series in Chicago against the White Sox starting Friday night as their next opportunity to improve their road numbers.
Reliever Santiago Casilla was hit by a batted ball in the shoulder during Saturday warmups, and despite declaring himself as unscathed and healthy, Melvin reiterated after the game that he had no plans to use Casilla in Sunday’s game.
This is a 2017 AP File Photo of pitching coach Scott Emerson of the Oakland Athletics baseball team poses for a portrait. This image reflects the Athletics active roster as of Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2017, when this image was taken. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
On the podcast with Daniel:
1 Athletics fire pitching coach Curt Young 2 ½ months into the season; trade infielder Trevor Plouffe to Tampa Bay 1a A’s continue dominance of Yankees with 5-2 win.
2 Rockies beat Giants again on Saturday, hammering Matt Cain
3 Diamondbacks on six-game winning streak, setting up key series this week against NL West first-place Colorado
4 LA Dodgers’ local TV blackout now in its fourth season
5 Indians sweep doubleheader from Twins, surge into first place in AL Central; Earlier, Twins sign first overall choice in free agent draft
6 Reds honor Pete Rose with perfectly designed statue outside Great American Ballpark
Oakland Athletics pitcher Sonny Gray works against the New York Yankees during the first inning of a baseball game Thursday, June 15, 2017, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
On the MLB Podcast with Matt:
1 Talk has Oakland A’s pitcher Sonny Gray mutually interested in going to the Houston Astros. Matt takes a look how practical of a move that would be for both teams
2. The Astros have their share of injuries which has impacted their starting rotation. Their the winningest team in baseball at 46-23 but have a variety of injuries to their pitching staff hence their interest in Gray.
3 When the Astros front office takes a look at injured pitchers Dallas Keucel, Lance McCullers, Charlie Morton, and Collin McHugh all on the DL, Gray himself has had a Lat injury and back pain
4 Can the Astros offer anything to the A’s for Gray that might be in young pitching prospects
5 Matt also takes a look at how a team like Houston can withstand all those injuries and what their chances are at finishing in first place
— Sports Radio Service (@SportsRadioSrvc) June 18, 2017
by Charlie O. Mallonee
As Butch Cassidy asked the Sundance Kid in that now timeless movie as they were being pursued by a posse who would not give up, “Who are these guys?” Who are these guys indeed? The Oakland Athletics have come home and looked like an entirely different team against the powerful New York Yankees.
The A’s have won the series
The 5-2 win on Saturday guarantees the Athletics will win the four-game series. In a four-game series you pray for split. You fear a 3-1 loss. Your worst nightmare is being swept.
On Father’s Day Sunday, the A’s will have the opportunity to sweep the Yankees in this four-game series. Oakland leads the season series 4-2.
The Athletics are 20-12 versus the Yankees over the last five years. That is the best record against the “Bronx Bombers” by an American League team over that period of time.
Jesse Hahn picked up the win but struggled early on
Jesse Hahn worked hard for the win on Saturday Photo Neville E Guard USA Today Sports
Jesse Hahn got the start for the A’s and it looked like it was going to be a very short outing. He threw 31 pitches in the first inning while walking two New York hitters. He worked out of that jam and managed to work 5.0-innings in the game.
Hahn gave up two runs (both earned) on three hits. He struck out six and walked three. Hahn threw 105 pitches (69 strikes). His record improves to 3-4 with a 3.56 ERA.
Liam Hendriks, Josh Smith and Ryan Madson each worked an inning of scoreless relief.
Sean Doolittle came on in the ninth to earn his second save of the season.
Santiago Casilla was not going to pitch on Saturday but he was hit in the left shoulder by a foul ball while standing in the dugout. X-rays proved negative so he will be fine.
Ryon Healy had a monster day
Healy hit two round-trippers on Saturday — one in the first inning and one in the third inning. He now has 17 home runs for the season.
This was is third multi-home run game. All three have come in this month of June.
Healy finished the game going 3-for-4 with two home runs, a double, two runs and two RBI. His batting average currently stands at .288.
Matt Joyce also had a big game
Joyce led the game off for Oakland by hitting the first pitch from Tanaka over the right field wall for his eighth home run of the year. Joyce came to the plate five times — hit a home run, a double, a single and walked twice.
He also raised his batting average 13 points from .211 to .224.
Rookie Matt Chapman continues to be hot
Chapman who joined the A’s from Triple-A on Thursday had a 2-for-4 day. He hit a double, a single and scored a run. Chapman also had the opportunity to show off his speed on the base path and it is quite impressive.
His batting average is now at .273.
They all stood but the Judge did not rule
Aaron Judge went hitless for the fourth time this month Photo Neville E Guard USA Today Sports
The Yankees young superstar — Aaron Judge — caused a stir in the big crowd every time he came to the plate. Fans were hoping to him display the power that has allowed him to record 23 home runs so far this year.
Judge walked in the first inning and was stranded at first base. He then struck out swinging twice and went down on strikes looking in his final at bat in the eighth inning. Yes fans — he is human.
Tanaka had a strange day on the mound for New York
Tanaka had a rough start taking the loss for the Yankees Photo Neville E Guard USA Today Sports
Masahiro Tanaka (5-7, 6.34) started the game for the Yankees. The right-hander has been struggling recently and Saturday was no exception.
He worked just 4.0-innings giving up all five runs (all earned) on eight hits. Three of those hits were home runs — all solo shots. Tanaka walked one and struck out 10. He had a double-digit strike out game and took the loss. That is a rough start.
Domingo German entered the game in the fifth inning to relieve Tanaka. He pitched four scoreless innings giving up just four hits, walking three and striking out six. German earned himself some more pitching time with his performance on Saturday.
Where the teams stand after the game
Oakland
The A’s are 30-38 on the season and have won three consecutive games. They are 4-6 in their last 10 games. The A’s are in last-place in the American League West 15-games behind division leading Houston. They are 2-games behind the fourth-place Mariners.
Yankees
The Yankees are still in first-place in the AL East with a record of 38-28 and will probably stay there as Boston is losing as this story is being written. They started the day with just a one-half game lead over the Red Sox.
New York has now lost five games in a row and are 5-5 in their last 10 games.
Up next
The final game of the four-game series will get underway at 1:05 p.m. PDT on Father’s Day Sunday on Rickey Henderson Field. The Yankees will send Triple-A call-up RHP Luis Cessa (0-0, 5.40) to mound for the series finale. The A’s will counter with RHP Jharel Cotton (3-7, 5.52).
Oakland Athletics’ Matt Chapman swings for an RBI ground out off New York Yankees’ Luis Severino in the second inning of a baseball game Friday, June 16, 2017, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
By Matthew T.F. Harrington
OAKLAND–Oakland A’s fans were very excited when the team’s no.4 overall prospect, Matt Chapman, was called up Wednesday to play third base. Friday night against the Yankees, Chapman gave a glimpse of the future, making his “second” first career hit a game-winner in the bottom of the eighth inning of the 7-6 win. It was the A’s second consecutive time taking the lead in the eighth inning or later to open the four-game series against the Yankees.
“The kid is here for a reason,” said A’s Manager Bob Melvin. “He’s a tough kid. He wants to play, he likes to play. He’s not afraid of those situations.”
Chapman took a Jonathan Holder offering with the bases loaded, one out and the A’s trailing 6-5, skidding a ball down the third base line to plate the tying and go-ahead runs in a second consecutive back-and-forth game between Oakland and New York. Before that, he’d “singled” in a run on a slow roller to third, but after Yankees manager Joe Girardi challenged the call, Chapman had to settle for just his first RBI after being called out by a step.
“I guess having your first hit taken away from you means you’re just waiting for something sweeter,” said Chapman.
After a second inning rally, Oakland looked to be in total control, but a New York comeback forced some dramatics from the rookie at the hot corner. The A’s had Yankees starter Luis Severino on the ropes early with a four-run second inning, but the Yankees rallied back over the next three innings to tie the game, then took the lead in the sixth on a Chris Carter solo homer Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player front-runner Aaron Judge hit his league-leading 23rd homerun and knocked in three runs for the Pin Stripes. Stephen Vogt, Jaycob Brugman and Chad Pinder collected RBI basehits. Sean Manaea pitched sixth innings, striking out seven Yankees but the two homers had him departing the game in line for the loss. It wasn’t until the New York bullpen entered the game that the A’s did their damage.
Chad Pinder picked up a sacrifice fly off reliever Chasen Shreive to plate Rajai Davis in the bottom of the 7th inning, pulling the A’s within one and giving the Oakland shortstop his second RBI on the night. An inning later, the A’s rallied off Jonathan Holder (1-1, 3.49 ERA) for two runs in the eighth after loading the bases with one out on singles by Ryon Healy, Yonder Alonso and an intentional walk to Stephen Vogt. Chapman’s two-run double handed Daniel Coulombe (1-1, 1.99) his first win of the season. Santiago Casilla worked around a one-out walk, punching out three Yankees for his 11th save.
New York found itself in a 4-0 hole after the second inning, but used a two-out rally in the top of the third to take a heavy dent out of the Oakland lead. With Mason Williams and Rob Refsnyder on base, Yankees manager Joe Girardi’s ideal hitter, Judge, came to the plate. The slugger capable of turning a game instantly on the back of his 96 MPH average exit velocity on contact did just that in remarkable fashion.
The native of Linden, Calif., far outside of Stockton, Judge enjoyed his return to Northern California but displaying his light-tower power. Judge took a Manaea offering to the opposite field in right field, deep into the bleachers for his 50th, 51st and 52nd RBIs, good for second in the American League and a 4-3 deficit. An RBI single by Williams off Manaea two innings later would tie the game.
“All the sudden a 4-0 game is a 4-3 game on one pitch,” said Melvin. “[Manaea] didn’t have his best fastball command today. He used his other pitches effectively and kept it simple.”
Carter tagged Manaea for the then potential game-winning shot to open the sixth on a 1-0 count. The lefty hurler grooved a change-up low and outside that the Bronx bomber crushed halfway up Mount Davis for his eighth homer of the season. Carter also struck out three times to fulfill his “Three True Outcomes” designation.
New York scored its sixth unanswered run in the seventh after Judge tripled off Josh Smith with one out. Smith walked designated hitter Matt Holliday then yielded a single to Thursday’s goat Starlin Castro for a 6-4 New York lead.
Severino took the no-decision, but he was nearly knocked out of the game in the second inning. Back-to-back walks to Khris Davis and Yonder Alonso put runners on first and second with no outs. Ryon Healy struck out, but catcher Stephen Vogt knocked in a run on a double. Chapman squibbed his grounder to third that scored Alonso that was a hit nullified by replay.
“I don’t get replay anymore,” said Melvin. “It looked like it should have been the other way for us. Don’t get me started on replay. It was announced as a hit, then replay, as it has done all year to us, took a hit away from us.”
After back-to-back-to back singles and a 4-0 A’s lead, the Yankees trainer and Girardi came out to check on the starter. He remained in the game, retired Jed Lowrie to end the inning and wound up with six innings of work on the day.
The Yankees send Masahiro Tanaka to the mound looking for the same success but a different result from his last outing against Oakland. The former Ace struck out a career-best 13 batters in the Bronx May 23rd, but gave up a single run in what wound up being a 4-1 loss. The A’s hand Jesse Hahn the ball Saturday looking for an improvement on his last outing. The righty went five innings, allowing three runs in a 5-4 loss to Tampa Bay in his second start since returning from injury June 6th.
AP File Photo: Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Jesse Hahn, center, wipes his face as he visits with catcher Josh Phegley, left, and pitching coach Curt Young in the third inning of the second baseball game of a doubleheader against the Baltimore Orioles in Baltimore, Saturday, May 7, 2016. Baltimore scored four runs against Hahn in the third. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
On the A’s podcast with Charlie:
Former A’s pitching coach Curt Young held the longest tenure of anyone in an A’s uniform whether it was as a pitcher or pitching coach. Now that’s got to mean something it really does. This guy is not some fly by night, flitter around, Young did go to Boston to be pitching coach during the 2011 season. We all understand why Young went to Boston. He had suffered with the A’s, the Boston thing was a big opportunity unfortunately he went to Boston during a very bad time.
It didn’t work out they let him go after that season and he came back, the A’s opened up their arms and said, “man glad to have you back.” Young worked so hard in Oakland working with very young pitchers most of the time. He was working with pitchers young and old that was his plight on an ongoing basis and when I got to the email that announced the new pitching coach (Scott Emerson) on Thursday in very small letters “Curt Young relieved of duty” I shocked.
I was really shocked I wasn’t expecting Young to be fired just because of the way things have been going. If there was going to be some coaching shake ups I didn’t know a thing anyway, shape or form that the shake up would come with the pitching coach. Now it’s true that the pitching staff has been in trouble but they’ve been mostly in trouble due to injury.
Charlie has more commentary regarding the firing of long time pitching coach Curt Young on today’s podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com
