Category: Oakland Athletics

The Oakland A’s Abraham Toro (right) scores in the in front of Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Joey Bart (right) in the bottom of the second inning at Oakland Coliseum on Tue Apr 30, 2024 (AP News photo)

Tuesday, April 30, 2024

Pittsburgh (14-17). 100 100 000. 2. 5. 0

Athletics (13-17). 020 010 020. 5. 8. 0

Time: 2:02

Attendance: 3,876

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND–Tuesday night’s come from behind 5-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates was their third straight triumphed and their fifth win in their last six games. Rookie Taylor Nevin continued to amaze with his hitting, and JJ Bleday was responsible for 60% of the A’s scoring. And let’s not forget the phenomenal mound mastery of Mason Miller, the relief revelation of the young season.

The A’s chose as their starting pitcher 10 year veteran Alex Wood, who spent the last three seasons toiling for the Giants as they descended from 107 games winners to mediocrity. Whoever writes the Athletics’ game notes has a sense of humor, because they gave the title of “Qualifications” to this summary of the lefty’s record: “Has compiled a 6.59 ERQ … which is sixth highest in the majors among pitchers with at least 25 innings pitched … using the same minimum, he has the highest opponents OPS (1.018), on-base percentage (.444), and slugging percentage (.574) and third most pitches per inning (19.2).

Wood lived down to his numbers tonight. He escaped with a no decision that shaved 0.27 runs from his ERA, lowering it to 6.32. He threw 93 pitches in just four innings of work and allowed two runs, both earned, on four hits, one a home run, on four walks. He also struck out four.

Mitch Keller, the Pirates’ starting pitcher, had a better 2023 than Wood. He pitched in the all-star game and also set the Pittsburgh franchise record for strikeouts by a right handed pitcher, with 210. He wound up the year with a record of 13-9, 4.21 and came to work tonight at 2-2, 5.14.

He ended his stint after throwing 96 pitches, 59 for for strikes, over five mediocre frames, in which he gave up 3 runs, all earned, on five hits and two walks. He took the loss and now is 2-2, 5.18.

The Pirates wasted no time in jumping to an early lead. Connor Joe, batting third, drove a 2-2, 91 mph sinker over the left field scoreboard for his third home run of the year. Like on Monday night, the A’s trailed 1-0 before their first turn at bat.

Undaunted, the A’s pulled ahead in the bottom of the second. Shea Langeliers defied The Curse of the Leadoff Double by scoring on Abraham Toro’s game tying single to right. Toro then went to second on single to right by Darell Hernaiz and scored when Tyler Nevin extended his consecutive game hitting streak to eight with a Texas League single that dropped safely in front of Edward Oliveras in right. It now was 2-1 in favor of the resurgent Athletics.

But not for long. Leading off in the top of the fourth, Jared Triolo singled to center and advanced to second when Wood walked Michael A. Taylor. Alika Williams moved both runners up on a sacrifice bunt to third that was originally called a hit. But the A’s challenged first base umpire Tony Randazzo’s safe call, and the ruling his decision was overturned on video review. A sacrifice fly to right by Ke’Bryan Hayes knotted the score at two all.

Mitch Spence relieved Wood to start the next, fifth, inning, and allowed only an infield single. That meant that JJ Bleday’s second four bagger of 2024, a 399 foot blast to right, returned the lead to the A’s, 3-2. The shot came off an 84 mph sweeper.

Luis Ortiz hurled a scoreless sixth for Pittsburgh in spite of a double by Toro. Josh Fleming, who replaced him for the seventh, wasn’t as successful. Bleday slammed a 417 foot shot to center for his second homer of the evening, making this his first career multi-homer game. Nick Allen, running for Nevins, who had singled, was on base. That meant that Bleday’s shot made the score 5-2 and that Bleday had driven in three of the Athletics’ five runs.

Lucas Erceg protected that three run margin by striking out the three Pirates he faced in the eighth, setting the stage for Mason Miller to earn his eighth save in as any opportunities by setting the side down on three straight Ks.

The Athletics will go for the sweep tomorrow, Wednesday, afternoon at 12:37. Ross Stripling, who’s lost five games, will be looking for his first win of the season and to lower his ERA of 4.98. He’ll go against the Bucos’ righting Quinn Priester ((0-1, 3.48)

Oakland A’s announcers Jenny Cavnar (left) and Dallas Braden (right) during a broadcast on NBC Sports California in March 2024 during a Cleveland Guardians and Oakland A’s game. Cavnar is the target for a petition drive to get her fired. (photo by Michael Zagaris Oakland A’s photographer)

On That’s Amaury News and Commentary podcast:

#1 Amaury, there is a petition going around that already has over 600 signatures demanding that the Oakland A’s fire the first woman full time lead play by play announcer in MLB history Jenny Cavnar. Reasons given by the fans petition, “extremely poor job announcing”, also Cavnar said while working another announcing job that former Oakland Mayor Libby Schaff was responsible for not building a ballpark in Oakland, and Cavnar is “not a baseball voice..” Sources say the Oakland A’s stand behind her and that she’s not going anywhere anytime soon.

#2 Los Angeles sports investment banker Sal Galatioto has been retained by the Oakland A’s owner John Fisher to invest in the A’s Las Vegas ballpark at the Tropicana Hotel and Resort location. Fisher’s share of the construction costs is $500 million and has been trying to drum up investment support in the Las Vegas casino community or business community. Since Galatioto has stepped forward this might have answered the question where Fisher was going to the money for his share of the Vegas ballpark construction costs.

#3 In spite of he Oakland A’s defeating the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday over the weekend the Orioles have hit seven home runs.

#4 The Orioles are if not one of the best teams in the American League they have 41 home runs in 27 games considering that kind of offense it was impressive the A’s even came away with two wins out of three to take the three game series?

#5 Another impressive run fact the A’s are playing .500 ball over the last few weeks. On the road they won in Detroit and Texas on their first road trip of the season and this last road trip they split with the Yankees and won the series against the Orioles after starting the season at 1-7.

#6 A large part of the A’s wins has been lent to closer Mason Miller whose 103 MPH fast ball has been impossible to hit. He’s throwing shades of relief pitchers like the Minnesota Twins Jhoan Duran who clocks in from 100-104 MPH or the Cleveland Guardians Eammanuel Chase who can throw at 99 MPH.

#7 Pittsburgh Pirates and A’s get after it tonight at the Oakland Coliseum in game 2 of the three game series. The Pirates will start RHP Mitch Keller (2-2 ERA 5.14) he’ll be opposed by A’s starter Alex Wood (1-2 ERA 6.59). Amaury if Wood could get his ERA down and cut his runs against total he can pick up some wins?

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the lead play by play voice on the Oakland A’s Spanish radio network at 1010 KIQI San Francisco and 990 KATD Pittsburg and does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Oakland A’s catcher Shea Langeliers takes a hack while the ball takes a piece of the bat in the bottom of the eighth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at the Oakland Coliseum on Mon Apr 29, 2024 (AP News photo)

Monday, April 29, 2024

Pittsburgh (14-16). 100 000 000 1. 2. 0

Athletics (13-17). 100 220 00x. 5. 8. 0

Time: 2:18

Attendance: 3,528

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND–With Monday night’s 5-1 defeat of the Pittsburgh Pirates, the 2024 version of the Nomad Athletics have shown that, while they might not yet be playoff contenders, they are a respectable baseball team. They now have won four of their last six games and 12 out of their last 22. Their three pitchers of the evening held their opponents to just two hits and none between the first and ninth innings.

It’s depressing to read what the A’s game notes had to say about the team’s Joe Boyle, the team’s starting pitcher. They say that he is “tied for fifth in the majors among rookies in games started (5) and ranks ninth in strikeouts (24) …leads ML rookies in most runs (18), ranks second in most walks (16)…. Has taken the loss in four of his first five starts and is tied for second in the majors in losses.” You get the picture.

Monday night, though, in spite of a rough opening frame, the youngster lasted five innings and left with a 5-1 lead, when Dany Jiménez replaced him to open the visitors’ sixth. Boyle had allowed only one hit, but also yielded four free passes. Those five innings weren’t elegant; he needed 91 pitches (45 strikes) to get through them. He was the winning pitcher improved his numbers 2-4, 6.08. Not good, but better than the 1-4, 7.06 he began with.

Pittsburgh’s starter, the 26 year old Bailey Falter, whom they got in exchange from the Phillies in exchange for Rodolfo Castro at last year’s trade deadline, brought a 2-3, 3.33 record to the Coliseum. He had gone seven plus innings in Milwaukee in his last start, earning the win by holding the Brewers to one run, earned, on three hits and two walks.

Monday night, he was less impressive. He lived up to his name by faltering in the fourth and becoming undone in the fifth, after which Roansy Contreras replaced him on the mound. Falter had allowed five runs, all earned, on six hits, one of them yard, in his brief stint. He did not, however, give up any bases on balls. He took the loss and dropped to 2-2 while his ERA rose to 4.22.

The first inning was a study in contrasts. Boyle was the absence of control personified. 10 of his 26 offerings were balls, two of them were wild pitches; and he issued two free passes. Yet he logged a swinging strikeout and escaped from the impending disaster trailing by a single run.

Falter, on the other hand, found the plate with ease; he got through the inning on 14 pitches, 12 of them for strikes. But he found the plate with too much ease, and Tyler Nevin sent a 91 mph four seamer of his over the left centerfield fence, where it landed, 404 feet from home, to tie the game at one. It was the third round tripper of his big league career and came in his 23rd at bat. That stretched the rookie’s consecutive game hitting streak to seven.

Boyle settled down, Falter was steady, and the score remained knotted until the bottom of the fourth, when the green and gold broke through with a pair of tallies. Brent Rooker led off with a single to right. Abraham Toro smacked a line drive to right center that went past Jack Suwinski and sliced back towards the foul line for a double that sent Rooker to third.

Shea Langeliers’ high fly to the warning track in center drove in Rooker and brought Toro to within 90 feet of home, which he reached on Max Schuemann’s sacrifice fly to left. The homeless wonders now led, 3-1.

They piled it on in the fifth. Darell Hernaiz led off with a single to left center, was bunted over to second by Nick Allen, and scored on a single by Esteury Ruíz, who promptly stole third and came home on Nevin’s sac fly to right.

The A’s threatened again against Contreras in the sixth, loading the bases on a Langelliers’ double and two walks, one intentional, before Allen took a called third strike for the third out. The A’s didn’t score against Contreras in the seventh, and Kyle Nicolas relieved him for the eighth. This time Allen made the final out of a scoreless inning by swinging at the third strike.

Jiménez did a nice job of maintaining the Athletics’ lead, holding the Bucos to just a walk while striking out four in two innings, after which Michael Kelly took over mound duties and tossed a perfect top of the eighth, with a little help from a beautiful tumbling catch and throw by Schuemann at second to get the final out of the frame. He came back to finish the Pirates off in the top of the ninth.

He started off by getting Bryan Reynolds to take a called third strike but yielded a single to center by ONeil Cruz, who quickly was wiped out by a broken bat game inning 4-6-3 double play.

Tuesday, the A’s and Pirates will clash again at 6:40 in the second of a three game series. Alex Wood (1-2, 6.59) is expected to start for the Athletics and Mitch Keller (2-2, 5.14) will toe the rubber for the gang from Steel City.