Category: Oakland Athletics

A’s and Giants commentary: A’s would like to see run production unlike 1-0 Fri loss;Cain set for surgery for bone chips

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by Michael Duca

OAKLAND–In Friday’s 1-0 shutout there were a lot of pitches that were spoiled that weren’t hit like 70 of them, seven-zero, a few of those pitches could have landed in the stands and could have been hit off the great pitching of Royals starter Jeremy Gutherie. A’s starter Sonny Grey pitched well enough to win but your never going to win a game if your team can’t score.

The A’s will miss Yoenis Cepedes because when he would run into a ball it would turn into instant runs, the truth is if you look at Cepedes’ numbers the best year he had was his rookie season his offensive production was on a steady decline since his first year, his on base percentage was below average this season, and that’s not a Billy Beane (A’s general manager) type player.

Beane wants guys who will work the count, take some pitches, and someone who can make the opposing bullpen work hard to try and get someone out, Beane’s idea of game success is not a 1-0 three hour loss. The A’s would like to win these games but that doesn’t always happen. The long at bat usually don’t go in the hitters favor it goes in the pitchers favor.

It seems to be more physcological than actual and Cepedes doesn’t seem like he can give you 150 games per year, the team is going to get some injuries and it’s questionable if he was producing (.256, 17 homers, 67 RBIs) in games rather than home run derbys at the level that people think he was and at the level the A’s were paying him.

SF Giants update: Regarding pitcher Matt Cain’s bone chip surgery is relatively benign if you remember correctly former Giants infielder Rich Aurilla was out after surgery for six week. Obviously each player reacts differently according to each surgery and this isn’t something you take in a cavilier fashion. All things being equal when your big horse is down which Cain is with the elbow the last thing you want to hear is surgery.

When you do hear the word surgery and you hear it’s bone chips you could recover from it, it’s not a one year rehab like Tommy John surgery is. Having bone chips is not going to cause permanent damage to the elbow. So if he guts out the pain and misses some of the season he will rest and come back in September and get him a roster spot and stretch him out a little.

Cain could get six or seven days spot starting him and have him available to a post season spot if the Giants make it that far. On the other hand what it should do everybody is looking at this thing saying “oh my God” the Giants opening day starter for a number of years has gone down with an elbow injury “oh dear oh dear whatever will we do.”

Cain is out but it’s not like he died he’s still a presence in the Giants clubhouse, he’s there he’s in the clubhouse he’s around the team, you can find him, but whatever he’s a non physical presence in the rotation. In terms of the rotation they only missed him for only one turn, he’s done a credible job in the one turn that he pitched and then they replaced him with Jake Peavy whose able as Cain and is a disciplined pitcher.

Michael Duca does commentary on the A’s and Giants each week for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Jon Lester & Jonny Gomes Give First Press Conference Since The Trade

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OAKLAND – In their first press conference appearance since the monster trade that sent Cespedes to the Red Sox, Jon Lester and Jonny Gomes took to the mic to address the trade and the future of the team. Listen below:

Jon Lester:

On trade: “Excited. After leaving Boston after being there for so long I’m excited to be here. I’ve got a few faces here that I recognize that should make the transition easier.”

On rotation: “It looks great. I’ve got to see a few of these guys on the other side and see them do really well. Hopefully I can do my job and fill my spot and get some innings and get these guys some opportunity to swing the bat and get some runs.”

Impression of the A’s: “They play the game the right way. Full of energy. The youth and the energy will always be there and I’m excited to see it.”

On pressure to compete: “I wouldn’t say pressure. These guys have been in the playoffs before. It’ not going to be anything new to a lot of these guys here. Hopefully with adding us hopefully we can add more experience. I wouldn’t consider it pressure, I’d say these guys expect to go to the playoffs each year.”

Jonny Gomes:

On coming home to Oakland: “Being an A’s fan, I always thought it was unique coming here. I went from A’s pajamas to an A’s uniform in about 22 years. I put a lot of work into it. I’m proud to see these guys take off. Seeing six A’s in the All-Star game this year was amazing.”

On leaving the A’s last time: “When I left here, it was one of the most unique things on a baseball field. To finish the season with a loss and get a standing ovation from the crowd and even get your opponents to tip their hat, it really showed what we accomplished.”

On getting his world series ring: “I thought I was hungry but now I’m starving for it.”

On being a clubhouse leader and the trade being a baseball decision not just a leader decision: “I’m a firm believer in team chemistry. Winning from the inside out. This is a results driven industry. 25 best friends aren’t going to win the World Series. It’s not about your relationships. The chemistry really comes about in the lows of the season.”

 

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Cespedes refusal to play center main factor for trade to Boston

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by Amaury Pi Gonzalez

ANAHEM–Nobody that follows the game should be surprised by Athletics Genral Manager Billy Beane dealing A’s outfielder Yoenis Céspedes to the Boston Red Sox for three-time All Star lefhander Jon Lester. On that same deal, the Oakland A’s also get popular outfielder Jonny Gomes (Petaluma’s own) who played for the A’s in 2012.

After 2015 Céspedes can be a Free Agent, and the A’s were probably not ready to give the two-time Homerun Derby Champ a lucrative deal, so Céspedes (.256 17 Homeruns 67 runs batted in) value was high and the reigning World Champion Boston Red Sox, today living in the cellar of the American League East, took Billy Beane’s deal without a problem.

Remember, Lester said he would not mind going back to Boston after this season) so this could be a two-month rental, and one that could bring a World Series Championship to Oakland, the first since 1989. It could also backfire for Billy, but such are the risk General Managers take when they wheel and deal.By-the-way in that same deal, the A’s received cash from the Red Sox.

More action today, the A’s traded left hander pitcher Tommy Milone (27 years old) 6-3 with a 3.55 earned run average) somebody that the lowly Twins can insert right away in their rotation.

It is only poetic that this Saturday the Athletics have “La Potencia”T-Shirt promotion at the Oakland Coliseum. “La Potencia”is what they called Yoenis Céspedes in Cuba prior to his defecting to the US. First time I interview the Cuban-born star was during his first season as he got ready to put the A’s uniform on in Spring Training, in Phoenix, Arizona. I will never forget that moment, his locker was next to that of Bartolo Colón, and Céspedes was ready to take the field for practice with his glove that sported a Cuban flag on it.

Céspedes was a good player for the A’s, recently he told manager Bob Melvin he didn’t want to play center-field, Colón was not re-signed by the A’s after he won 18 games and wanted a two-year deal, one that the Mets gave him. Colón is also a pitcher that many teams have talked to the Mets about. At 41 the man throws nothing but strikes and even with the Mets (not a good team) has a very good number. Both Colón and Céspedes were part of A’s history.

Yoenis Céspedes was the most exciting player the A’s have had during the past few seasons, but baseball is a business and nobody does that better than A’s General Manager Billy Beane. So I wish the A’s good luck and hope the deal works for the team. Coco Crisp continues with his neck problems, Craig Gentry who was signed as a fourth outfielder is out with a broken hand, Céspedes didn’t wanted to play centerfield recently in Houston.

Melvin said he doesn’t know when Crisp will return to the lineup. … left fielder Yoenis Cespedes told him that he didn’t want to move to center field. … outfield, Brandon Moss is not a candidate to play center field, Melvin

Adiós Yoenis!

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for Oakland A’s baseball and does News and Commentary each week on http://www.sportsrradioservice.com

What a Day for the A’s

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by Jerry Feitelberg

A’s report for July 31st 2014

Today’s report was just going to be a pretty strait forward report on the upcoming ten game home stand against the Kansas City Royals, Tampa Bay Rays an Minnesota Twins.

All that changed this morning when A’s General Manager Billy Beane pulled off a huge trade on the last day that non-waiver deals could be made. The A’s acquired the ace left handed pitcher, Jon Lester, and an old old friend, Jonny Gomes, from the Boston Red Sox early Thursday morning. As exciting as that was getting those two players, the big news is the the A’s are sending their All-Star left fielder, Yoenis Cespedes, to Boston. Cespedes in the third year of a four year contract and would be a free agent after the 2015 season. It was doubtful that the A’s could pony up the kind of money that Cespedes could command as a free agent in the future.

What this says is that Beane wants to win it all in 2014. The A’s under Beane have been eliminated in the first round of the playoffs except for 2006 when they were swept by the Detroit Tigers in the AL Championship Series. Beane know that good pitching will stop good hitting and he now has four starters that all could be an ace on anyone’s team Lester, Sonny Gray, Scott Kazmir and Jeff Samardzija

are all terrific pitchers. The fifth man in the rotation is still Jason Hammel who has been ineffective since coming to Oakland in a trade.

The A’s then traded lefty Tommy Milone to the Minnesota Twins for outfielder Sam Fuld. Fuld was with the A’s early in the season but was Designated for Assignment as the A’s had too many outfielders at that time. Fuld is hitting .263 with an on base percentage of .356 and .722 ops.

The A’s plan to platoon Fuld and Gomes in left field. Gomes will play against lefties and Fuld will face the righties. Gomes is a local lad from Petaluma and he had a great clubhouse presence when he played he in 2012. Welcome back, Jonny.

Now to look at the three teams the A’s will face in the next ten days. The Kansas City Royals arrive Friday night for a three game set with the A’s. The Royals are currently in second place in the AL Central. Their record is 54-50 and they trail the Detroit Tigers by 4 ½ games. The Royals sent three players to the All-Star game. The standouts are outfielder Alex Gordon, catcher Salvador Perez and closer Greg Holland. The Royals also feature Eric Hosmer at first base, DH Billy Butler, third baseman Mike Moustakas and second baseman Omar Infante. The Royals cannot be taken lightly.

The Tampa Bay Rays arrive in Oakland on Monday with a record of 53-55 and have been playing better lately. The Rays had a lot of injuries to the pitching staff early in the season but some of the pitchers have returned from the DL and have been pitching well. One pitcher the A’ s won’t have to face is former Cy Young award winner, David Price. Price went to the Detroit Tigers Thursday in a three-way trade between the Rays,Tigers and Mariners. The Rays received Drew Smyley from Detroit and Nick Franklin from Seattle while Austen Jackson went to Seattle. The Rays, under Joe Maddon, play the game the right way and the A’s will be tested during this three game set.

Rounding out the home stand will be a four game series with the Minnesota Twins. The Twins are in last place in the AL central with a record of 48-58. The Twins have always played the A’s tough in the past. Former A’s catcher, Kurt Suzuki, is the team leader hitting .304 so far this year and Kurt made the AL All-Star team.

It will be interesting to see how the revamped A’s starting rotation performs during the next ten days.

The A’s have four goals in mind right now. One, win the division. Two, win the ALDS, 3, Win the ALCS and finally, win the World Series. They have made the moves to make this team very formidable. All the A’s have to do is go out and win.

Astros Jump on Hammel Early to Top A’s 8-1

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By Matthew Harrington

For the fourth time in as many outings, the Oakland Athletics lost a game started by trade acquisition Jason Hammel. In need of a win to keep the Los Angeles Angels over a game back entering play Wednesday afternoon, the A’s instead fell to the Astros 8-1 at Minute Maid Park. The Green and Gold (66-41) also dropped Monday’s contest in Houston 7-3, marking Wednesday as only the second series loss in 11 chances all-time against the Astros (44-64) since the start of interleague play and Houston’s move the American League last season.

Two starts removed from a brief two-inning July 19th start where the right hander yielded five runs against the Orioles, Hammel again found himself in early trouble Wednesday afternoon. The other starter acquired in the July 4th Jeff Samardzija blockbuster surrendered six runs in a six-hit first inning, then served up a two-run home run to Jon Singleton in the fifth for eight earned runs. Hammel (8-9, 3.87 ERA) struck out four, walked a trio of Astros and scattered seven hits in his 4 1/3 innings of work to take the loss. He has now allowed 18 runs over 17 innings with the Athletics.

The lone bright spot for the A’s came in the second inning after Josh Donaldson took the first pitch, an 88 mile-per-hour fastball, of the inning over the Crawford boxes in left field. Donaldson’s 23rd homer of the season was the only run Oakland scored off Astros starter Dallas Keuchel. The southpaw (10-7, 2.97) went the distance, notching five strikeouts and a scant three hits over his complete-game gem. Billy Burns went 0-for-4 in his first major league start in the leadoff spot for Bob Melvin with Coco Crisp still in Oakland after receiving an MRI on his neck Monday.

With the A’s idle Thursday, the Angels could pull a half-game back of Oakland by the time the AL West Leaders open up a 10-game homestand Friday night against the Kansas City Royals. The Halos, sitting two games back at the moment, play an evening game against the Baltimore Orioles Wednesday before wrapping up the four-game set at Camden Yards Thursday.

Opening Day starter Sonny Gray will open the weekend series for the A’s Friday night looking for a superhuman effort on a night when O.Co Coliseum will be lit up with a postgame super hero-inspired fireworks display. He’ll clash with the Royals’ Jeremy Guthrie in an attempt to save the dwindling AL-West lead from peril.

After three against the Royals, the surging Tampa Bay Rays roll into town (with or without hot trade commodity David Price) for a three-game set followed by a four-game series against former Athletic Kurt Suzuki and the Minnesota Twins. August 9th against the Twins, fans will receive a special Tony La Russa Hall of Fame bobblehead in honor of the legendary skipper’s induction into Cooperstown earlier this month.

The A’s rally to defeat the Astros

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by Jerry Feitelberg

A’S SNATCH VICTORY FROM THE JAWS OF DEFEAT

Holy Toledo!! That’s what the late great A’s broadcaster would say when a great play or a great win would occur on the field. Tuesday night in Houston, the A’s came back from a three run deficit trailing 4-1 in the top of the ninth and they were down to their last strike when they rallied for six runs and beat the Houston Astros 7-4. The Astros have played the A’s tough so far this year and the won the first game of the three game series on Monday night. Had the A’s lost , the team would have had a record of 2-3 on the five game trip to Texas and the best they could hope for was a 3-3 road trip. However, the never-say-die guys from Oakland came to life and stunned the Astros with their comeback.

The A’s sent Jeff Samardzija to the hill and he was opposed by the Astros’ Scott Feldman. The game didn’t start well for Samardzija as Marwin Gonzalez, the second batter Samardzija faced, hit a home run to give Houston an early 1-0 lead. The A’s tied the game in the top of the fifth when Josh Reddick blasted his sixth home run of the year to make it a 1-1 game. The Astros, however, came back and scored two in the bottom of the fifth. Robbie Grossman singled singled and then stole second. Enrique Hernandez followed with a triple and the American League leader in batting and hits, Jose Altuve singled to drive in the third run of the game for the Astros. The Astros scored another run in the bottom of the seventh to make it a 4-1 game and A’s manager Bob Melvin took Samardzija out of the game.

Samardzija went 6 2/3rds innings giving up six hits and four earned runs. He walked two and struck seven while throwing 104 pitches. The Astros Scott Feldman probably had the best game of his career against the A’s Tuesday night going seven inning allowing just five hits and one run. At this point in the game it looked like Feldman was going to pick up the win.

However, we are talking about the Oakland A’s and as Yogi Berra once said “it ain’t over till it’s over.”

It’s also the magic of baseball. A team can look lethargic and beaten for eight innings but then can rally in the ninth to come back and win the game. That is exactly what the A’s did to the Astros Tuesday night. The Astros brought in their closer, Chad Qualls, to pitch. With one out, A’s catcher Derek Norris reached base on an infield single. The next batter was Josh Reddick. Reddick, who had homered earlier in the game, doubled to left center field advancing Norris to third base. Alberto Callaspo, pinch hitting for Eric Sogard, slammed a double to right center and drove in Norris and Reddick making it a 4-3 game. The A’s replaced Callaspo with the very fleet footed Billy Burns. The next batter John Jaso ground into a fielder’s choice, Jaso reached second on a wild pitch and was now in scoring position to tie the game. Shortstop Jed Lowrie walked on a 3-2 pitch to put men on at 1st and 2nd. Quall had two strikes on Cespedes and needed one more strike to win the game but Yoenis Cespedes was able to hit a blooper to right field to drive in Jaso with the tying run. Astros’ manager Bo Porter had seen enough. He brought in left Tony Sipp to pitch to Brandon Moss. With the count at 3-2, Moss singled sharply to right field allowing Lowrie to score the go-ahead run. That was it for Sipp and he was replaced by Jose Veras. Donaldson swung and missed at the first pitch thrown by Veras but he didn’t miss the second one as he blasted a shot to deep center field that went way over the center fielder’s head and two more runs scored. 7-4 in favor of the A’s as the game headed to the bottom of the ninth. The A’s brought in closer Sean Doolittle and he set the Astros down 1-2-3 to secure the win and pick the save.

Winning pitcher was Evan Scribner who pitched the eighth inning for the A’s and Chad Qualls took the loss.

After the game Chad Qualls said “They make contact. They take a lot of pitches Two of the hits they got tonight weren’t hit really hard.-Norris’ to start everything off was a little nubber to third and the Cespedes that tied it was just a jam shot they got to the outfield. They found some holes when they needed to and hit the ball on the screws when they needed to. I just didn’t get it done.”

A’s manager Bob Melvin said ‘That’s amazing. For a late-inning at bat, that’s as good as I’ve ever seen in a team.The 27th out, we don’t give that away. It’s an attribute. That’s the way this team is.”

Mark Davis says Raiders could bolt for San Antonio football team not happy with A’s lease

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by Jeremy Kahn and Joe Hawkes Beamon

ALAMEDA–The Oakland Raiders said before signing a ten year lease with the Oakland Coliseum they wanted the stadium torn down and a new one built in it’s footprint and ready to go by 2016 just before the City Council approved the Oakland A’s lease. The Raiders owner Mark Davis in response to the signing of the lease and the Coliseum very unlikely to be torn down said the Raiders could move to San Antonio on Tuesday.

The Alameda County Board of Supervisors voted on Tuesday to approve the A’s ten year lease after the City Council approved it last week and that was the last straw for Davis as he said the Raiders could leave very soon. With a “possible relocation of (Davis’)NFL team to San Antonio” according to San Antonio City manager Sheryl Scully.

Ironically the A’s had said that they would move to San Antonio or Montreal if the Oakland City Council refused to approve the ten year lease. If the A’s had gone to Texas they would have to play at Alamo Stadium where the short porch in left field is well under 300 feet. The Raiders could play at Alamo Stadium if they so choose to get out of the Coliseum.

Oakland Mayor Jean Quan who panicked to get the City Council to sign the lease before the A’s would move now is under pressure to try and save another franchise. The Raiders who want the Coliseum torn down and a new stadium built and ready by the 2016 season. Quan who said she wanted the Coliseum Complex to be a sports village for the Raiders and A’s particularly after the Warriors move out of Oracle Arena for their new digs in San Francisco’s Mission Bay.

According to wire reports Davis met with San Antonio Mayor Henry Cisneros, former mayor Julian Castro, Shelly, San Antonio Economic Foundation’s Mario Perez, Richard Hernandez and David McGee who is the president of the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce. Critics who were following the discussion with Davis and San Antonio officials think that the Raiders won’t move and that this whole thing about moving is a bluff so the city would build the Raiders a new stadium, but never say never.

Davis and the Raiders organization is not too pleased with the City Council’s decision to keep the A’s at the Coliseum for ten years and getting by passed as a main tenant. The Raiders feeling shunned will seriously take a look at San Antonio and see what their stadium aspirations will be. The Raiders moved back in 1995 from L.A. after leaving Oakland in 1982 came back.

The Raiders who are in camp right now in Napa plan to review this a little closer this time because the Raiders feel their going to get nowhere with the City of Oakland. San Antonio’s history for professional sports franchises have been the San Antonio Spurs who started out in the ABA in 1970s then moved over to the NBA. San Antonio also was in the USFL for two years with the Gunsligers 1984 and 1985 for San Antonio’s only two times in the show.

Jeremy Kahn and Joe Hawkes Beamon are covering the 2014 Oakland Raiders for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Levis stadium now the latest rage;Alameda County Supervisors concur vote to approve A’s ten year lease

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by Amaury Pi Gonzalez

ANAHEIM–The new Levis Stadium in Santa Clara bodes well for South Bay the reason being they are already a major league county with the San Jose Sharks who was founded in San Jose and they’ve played in San Jose since 1993. Now the South Bay has the San Francisco 49ers and my point on all this, this is all good.

You can publicize this, they should tell the world that the San Francisco 49ers have a new stadium a state of the art stadium a beautiful park a $1 billion park in Santa Clara. Why do I say this? For years now the media and everybody have concentrated on the story that the Oakland A’s are moving to San Jose. San Jose wants to be a Major League city.

Well the A’s don’t look like their going to be moving to San Jose, and they signed a lease in Oakland and Alameda County Supervisors voted on Tuesday to approve the lease agreement keeping the A’s at the Oakland Coliseum until 2024. The lease was approved by the Oakland City Council last week and needed approval by the County supervisors Tuesday.

The 49ers the most lucurative franchise and a team that has won more Super Bowls than any other NFL team are going to be playing in Santa Clara. The San Francisco 49ers are going to be playing in Santa Clara, so this is a huge benefit for the South Bay. This is the most lucrative sports league in America which is the National Football Leauge.

The 49ers are most top of the line franchise with the New York Giants, Dallas Cowboys, and the Green Bay Packers and those types of teams. This is good for the South Bay and the 49ers of San Francisco are not going to be playing in San Francisco they’re going to be playing in the South Bay. This is a good story, I agree 1000 per cent that the South Bay can boast that they can tell the whole world that they have the 49ers San Jose-Santa Clara is the largest city and county in the Bay Area with over one million people.

The past rages of stadiums used to be San Jose Arena when it was first built in 1993, then there was AT&T Park in San Francisco and now the newest rage is Levis Stadium. The Bay Area is very trendy and Levis Stadium is now the place to be. There was a time that Oracle Arena when the Warriors played there was the place to be when the team first move there in 1971 after moving from the Cow Palace in Daly City.

There were big stars in attendance and there were celebrities showing up there in attendance and the Warriors would play the Lakers with Kareem Abdul Jabbar. I also remember Nate Thurmond on the Warriors and all those guys. So at one time Oracle Arena was trendy, now the 49ers are going to be trendy with their new Stadium in Santa Clara.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish TV voice for Angels baseball and does News and Commentary each week on http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Astros Blast Off With Four Homers, Seven Runs to Send A’s Crashing to Earth

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By Matthew Harrington

The Houston Astros scorched the Oakland Athletics to a 7-3 series-opening win at Minute Maid Park Monday night, launching four home runs to beat the American League West leaders for the fourth time in 11 games against the Green and Gold this season. Houston scored all seven of its runs on long balls, including a three-run shot by Chris Carter and a two-run blast by Jason Castro. Oakland starter Jesse Chavez (8-7, 3.44 ERA) yielded six of the seven runs on three round trippers, pitching 5 1/3 innings while being saddled with the loss.

The big damage came in the bottom of the sixth with both teams knotted at three runs apiece. Chavez started the inning before back-to-back one-out homers to Castro (a two-run shot) and Marc Krauss chased the A’s starter. Dan Otero then entered the game in relief, getting Jon Singleton to fly out for the second out, but saw Matt Dominguez take him deep on the first pitch he saw for a 7-3 lead.

Oakland took the lead early off Astros starter Brett Oberholtzer, scoring a run in the second on a Derek Norris RBI single then taking on another in the third Stephen Vogt’s fifth homer of the season. Former Athletic Chris Carter put the Astros ahead with a three run shot in the bottom of the inning for a 3-2 lead before Yoenis Cespedes brought the A’s even on a sacrifice fly of Oberholtzer in the fifth. Oberholtzer (3-7, 4.30) went 6 2/3 innings, allowing eight A’s hits but only three runs to pick up the win.

The A’s were without Craig Gentry and Coco Crisp. Crisp received an MRI Monday on his neck and is still listed as day-to-day, but Gentry was placed on the disabled list with a broken right hand earlier in the afternoon. The A’s called up outfielder Billy Burns, who went 0-for-1 in his major league debut after pinch hitting for Josh Reddick in the ninth, from Double-A Midland to fill the speedster role. The switch hitter batted .303 in spring training with 10 steals pilfered 51 bases in 91 games with the RockHounds this season while being caught only five times. Jed Lowrie batted in the leadoff spot with both fleet of foot outfielders missing Monday and went 2-for-4 with a run.

With the Los Angeles Angels inactive Monday, the A’s AL West lead drops to 1 ½ games Monday despite the day marking the 100th consecutive day Oakland (65-40) has been in first place this season. The A’s send Jeff Samardzija to the mound Tuesday looking to top the Astros’ Scott Feldman and keep Oakland more than a fraction of a game up.

A’s crush the Rangers 9-3

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By Charlie O. Mallonee

The Oakland Athletics defeated the Texas Rangers on Sunday night by the score of 9-3. The A’s combined efficient hitting with solid pitching to win the third and final game of the series. The loss dropped the Rangers 24.5 games behind the division leading Athletics.

The A’s used a five run second inning to propel them to victory. Josh Reddick popped out to lead off the inning. Jed Lowrie then drew a walk. Eric Sogard walked to put runners at first and second. Craig Gentry reached base on a throwing error charged to the pitcher Miles Mikolas that allowed Lowrie to score. John Jaso hit a single to center field driving in Sogard. Stephen Vogt hit a double to right field that drove home Gentry. Yoenis Cespedes hit his 24th double of the season driving in Jaso and Vogt.  By the time inning was over, the A’s led the game 5-0.

The Rangers did not remain scoreless for long. With one out in the second inning, Chris Gimenez singled off A’s starter Scott Kazmir. Former Oakland Athletic Adam Rosales then hit a 1-1 change up over the left field wall for his first home run of the season. After two full innings, the A’s led the Rangers 5-2.

The A’s put up a crooked number in the top of the fifth inning. Josh Donaldson led off the inning with a single to center. With one man out, Eric Sogard hit a double to right field allowing Donaldson to score. Craig Gentry then walked. John Jaso doubled (17) to center field driving in Sogard and Gentry. That made the game 8-2 in favor of the A’s.

Oakland would score one more time in sixth inning. Yoenis Cespedes led the inning off with a single. Cespedes moved up to second when Moss grounded out. Donaldson popped out bringing Josh Reddick to the plate with two out and a runner at second. Reddick hit a line drive single to right field that allowed the speedy Cespedes to score the A’s ninth run of the game.

The Rangers scored a run in the bottom of the eighth inning, but that was last run they would score giving the A’s the 9-3 win.

Oakland started Scott Kazmir worked five innings giving up two runs (both earned) on seven hits. He struck out two batters and walked two men while issuing one home run. Kazmir threw 94 pitches (62 strikes) in the 100 degree heat in Arlington. O’Flaherty, Cook, Scribner and Abad worked a combined four innings of relief to close out the game for the Athletics.

Scott Kazmir’s record improved to 12-3 on the season. The A’s record is now 65-39 giving them two game lead over the Los Angeles Angels who also won on Sunday.

Callaspo off the DL … Alberto Callaspo has been reinstated from the 15-day disabled list as of Sunday. To make room for Callaspo on the roster, the A’s sent first baseman Nate Freiman to Triple-A Sacramento.

Callaspo went on the disabled list on July 12 with a right hamstring sprain. He appeared in one rehab game with Stockton on Saturday night. Callaspo did not start the final game in Texas.

Freiman was batting .212 with one home run and six RBI in 14 games with the Athletics. He hit .277 with 14 home runs in 76 games for the River Cats before being called up to Oakland.

Crisp to Oakland … The A’s sent outfielder Coco Crisp back to Oakland after the Sunday night game in Texas. Crisp will have further examinations of his sore neck. Crisp did not start the final game in Texas due to the neck problem.

Up next for the A’s … The A’s will begin a three game series with the Houston Astros on Monday night. RHP Jesse Chavez will start for Oakland while the Astros will send LHP Brett Oberholtzer to the hill. On Tuesday evening, Jeff Samardzija will face off against Scott Feldman. Jason Hammel will start the Wednesday afternoon finale in Houston.