Category: Oakland Athletics

Oakland A’s pitcher Mason Miller was the highlight of the game for the A’s pitching four plus innings giving up two runs before being lifted in the fifth inning against the Chicago Cubs at the Oakland Coliseum on Wed Apr 19, 2023 (@Athletics image)

On the A’s podcast with Jerry Feitelberg and Troy Ewers:

The Oakland A’s starter Mason Miller making his rookie start pitched a decent outing against the visiting Chicago Cubs going 4.1 innings, four hits, two earned runs, five strike outs one walk and was replaced in the fifth inning. After that the Cubs went to work on the A’s releivers with four in runs in the top of the sixth and five runs in the top of the ninth coming away with a three game sweep of the A’s and a 12-2 win at the Oakland Coliseum. The Cubs averaged nine runs a game during the three game series.

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Chicago Cubs’ Cody Bellinger hits an RBI single against the Oakland Athletics during the eighth inning at the Oakland Coliseum on Tue Apr 18, 2023 (AP News photo)

Chicago (NL) 000 000 040. -4 8 1

Oakland. 000 000 000 -0 2 1

Time: 2:54

Attendance: 5,196

Tuesday, April 18, 2023

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND–Your Oakland Athletics reported for work today dragging a five game losing streak and a won-lost record of 3-14 behind them. That record, incidentally gave them a winning percentage of .176. If that were a batting average it would be 12 percent below the Mendoza line. Their starting pitchers had an ERA of 9.39; the bullpen, one of 5.97. The team’s fielding percentage over its initial 17 contests was .981, third worst in the American League and only four percentage points over the league worst Boston Red Sox.

So it came as a surprise that the A’s battled the Cubs through seven innings tonight before succumbing to a four run eighth inning Chicago outburst in the episode that doomed the host to their sixth consecutive loss 4-0.

Before game time, the A’s announced that they had placed Dany Jiménez on the 15 day injured list, effective yesterday and in his place recalled pitcher Adam Oller from their Las Vegas Aviators affiiliate in the PCL. Before being optioned to Vegas, he had an ERA of 9.00 and an opponents’ BA of .320 with Oakland.

Oakland’s starting pitcher, Ken Waldichuk woke up this morning with an 0-2, 10.20 record.. He was in trouble early, loading bases with only one down in the first but escaping unscathed. He held the Cubs at bay for the next nine hitters and exited after having throw five shutout innings, in which he allowed five hits, including the dreaded curse of the leadoff double and three walks.

He notched five Ks and threw 102 pitches, 60 for strikes. He reduced his ERA to 7.65 but, leaving with the score tied at zero, was deprived of any chance of being credited with the win. Sam Moll replaced him on the mound to open the sixth and held Chicago scoreless before turning the ball over to James Kaprielian, the erstwhile starter.

The North Siders’ starting pitcher, Starboard Sider Marcus Stroman, pitched excellently in two of his previous starts and had what is called a “quality start” in the other, giving him a record of 2-1, 1.00 so far this season. He tossed six scoreless innings of two hit, two walk ball, striking out five. He threw an even 100 pitches, 63 counting for strikes. Mark Leioter, Jr, relieved him for the seventh frame and preserved the scoreless tie.

It was Trevor May on the mound for the green and gold inthe top of the eighth. And it was May who proved to be the weak link in the chain of Athletics hurlers. He walked Seiya Suzuki on four pitches. Patrick Wisdom followed that with a double to left that moved Wisdom to third.

Yan Gomes sent a liner off Mays’ glove over to shortstop Kevin Smith, who threw Wisdom out at first, allowing Wisdom to score. That brought Richard Lovelady in from the bullpen. After Eric Hosmer grounded out to first, moving Bellinger to third. Nick Madrigal, who had run for Luis Torrens in the seventh, singled to enter, plating Bellinger and upping the Cubs’ lead to 3-0.

Conner Capel then dropped Hoerner’s fly ball to right for a two base error, and it was 4-0. That was it for Lovelady. The newly recalled Adam Oller stopped the bleeding, getting Swanson to fly out to Capel. This time he held on to the ball.

Leiter was the pitcher of record when Michael Fulmer relieved hin for the home eigth , allowing nothing but a walk to Noda. That made Leiter the winning pitcher. He now stands at 1-0, 0.00.

Oller stayed on too pitch the top of the ninth for Oakland and held A’s deficit to a seemingly insurmountable four runs.

Michael Rucker showed it was insurmountable, earning his first save.

May took the loss. His record now stands at an ugly 2-3, 12.00.

The series will continue tomorrow, Wednesday, at 12:37. Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Justin Steele (2-0,1.42) will face the Athletics’ Mason Miller (0-0 ERA 0.00)

Chicago Cubs’ Patrick Wisdom, left, runs the bases after hitting a three-run home run against Oakland Athletics pitcher Adrian Martinez, foreground, during the eighth inning at the Oakland Coliseum on Mon Apr 17, 2023 (AP News photo)

Chicago (NL). 011 400 040. – 10 20 0

Oakland. 100 000 000. – 1 8. 0

Time: 2:49 Attendance: 4,714

Monday, April 17, 2023

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND–Since their return from Baltimore, the Athletics have broken a slump. The New York Mets, with their $364,000,000 payroll, were an underperforming 7-6 when they arrived at the banks of the Nimitz last Friday. They were 10-6 when they departed after Sunday night’s game. On Monday night the A’s lost in a 10-1 contest to the Chicago Cubs at the Oakland Coliseum.

I’m not being entirely facetious when I say that the A’s have broken a slump. Even though the A’s were swept by New York and lost tonight to the North Siiders, by a 10-1 score.

There have been definite signs of improvement on this home stand. Rookies Brent Rooker (.333) and Esteury Ruíz (.308) have been hitting well, and two members of the rotation, Shintaro Fujinorami and today’s starter, Kyle Muller, have shown what it is about them that the Athletics like.

Two of the three games in the series were close, tight even, and it took a two out, ninth inning circus catch by New York’s Brandon Nemmo to rob Oakland of the win in Sunday’s finale.

But baseball is not, as MLB would have you believe, a succession of highlight reel moments. For those who love the game, it is a tightly woven dramatic, sometimes comic, ever evolving pattern that includes moments of great excitement, beauty, and boneheadness.

As Oakland native Gertrude Stein said, “if not,not.” Fans with a rooting–or betting–interest in the events on the field will have a less dispassionate attitude towards the game. There are, of course, many shades along this spectrum of appreciation.

In tonighht’s ontest, Muller (0-0 5.52 at game time) was mismatched against right hander Hayden Wesnesky (0–0, 7.50). The final scoree was 10-1 in favor the boys from Wrigley Field.

Wesnesky coughed up a run to the A’s in the bottom of the first on back to back singles by Ruíz and Ryan Noda, followed by an RBI ground out by Aledmis Díaz.

Patrick Wisdom promptly knotted the score with his seventh home run of the young season, a 428 foot blast into the left with two down in the second. The Cubs picked up another tally in the third on a walk to Nico Hoerner, Dansby Swanson’s single, and Seiya Suzuki’s run producing safety.

The hits kept coming as the wheels fell off in Chicago’s half of the fourth. Cody Bellinger: one out double to right cebnter, bouncing off the 388 foot marker. Yan Gomez: RBI single to right. Nick Madrigal: double to right, Gomes to third. Hoerner: single to left, driving in Gomes; Madrigal runs through stop sign, overslides home and is called out, 7-2. Happ: single to center, driving in Hoermer and Swanson. Chicago up, 6-1.

Singles by Mancini, Belllinger, and anGomes ended Muller’s misbegotten outing. Miraculoously, Jeurys Familia sllammed the door on rhe Cubbies.

Muller had gone four innings but threw 98 pitches, 60 for srikes, but that’s because when a batter makes contact, it’s considered a strike. All six runs he allowed were earned, and the bases were loaded with no outs when he left. He surrendered 13 hits and struck out three and walked two. His ERA now is 7.23.

Adrián Martínez replaced the heroic Familia for the sixth. He kept the visitors off the board until the eighjth, whjen Hoerner singled, went easily to third Swanson’s single to right, near the foul line, and scored on Happ’s sac fly to left that knocked Rooker on his patootie.

It got worse. Suzuki singled and Wisdom hit a 93.9 mph slider 412 feet deep into center field forr his seventh dinger of the year and a 10-1 Chicago lead. Chad Smith took over at this point and restored a semblance of order.

By now, Wesnwaki had thrown eough pitches, 90, 66 of them strikes. He held Oakland to just that one run in the first, and it was earned. It came on five hits and no walks, striking out seven,. and bringing his ERA down to 4.15.

Brandon Hughes surrendered a couple of hits but kept the score at 10-1 in the eighth. Julian Merryweather took over to wrap it up in the ninth for the Cubs. He had no trouble.

The winning pitcher was Wesneski; the loser, Mulleer.

Tomorrow, Tuesday the 18th, we’ll see Marcus Stroman (2-1, 1.00) face Ken Wldichuk (0-2, 10.20). Game time is scheduled to be at 6:40.