Category: Oakland Athletics

Oakland Athletics’ Brent Rooker (25) celebrates with Tony Kemp (5) after hitting a home run against the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards at Baltimore on Wed Apr 12, 2023 (AP News photo)

On the A’s podcast with Jerry Feitlelberg:

#1 The Oakland A’s snapped their six-game losing streak Wednesday night as they downed the Baltimore Orioles 8-4. The A’s scored eight runs for the second night in a row.

#2 The A’s starter, lefty Ken Waldichuk, had his best outing of the season. He did not get the win, but he pitched into the seventh inning. The A’s bullpen did the rest.

#3 The A’s jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Leadoff hitter Tony Kemp doubled to deep right-center field. Brent Rooker hit a homerun to help contribute to the eight run total.

#4 A’s reliever Domingo Acevedo has been put on the 15 day Injured List due to a lower back strain. Acevedo has struggled in the relief in particular the A’s last home stand against the Angels and the Guardians running his ERA up to 13.50 in his first five games surrendering ten hits and eight runs. Acevedo did have a good spring training with an 0.96 ERA.

#5 .The A’s will start Adam Oiller (0-0 ERA 4.66) Former A’s pitcher, lefty Cole Irvin (0-2 ERA 9.35), will pitch for the Birds. Irvin will be making his first start as an Oriole, and the crafty lefty would love a victory over his former teammates. The game will start at 10 am.

Jerry does the Oakland A’s podcasts each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Oakland Athletics’ Carlos Perez watches his home run against the Baltimore Orioles during the fifth inning at Camden Yards in Baltimore on Wed Apr 12, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

What a difference a day makes. The Oakland A’s snapped their six-game losing streak Wednesday night as they downed the Baltimore Orioles 8-4. The A’s scored eight runs for the second night in a row. What was the difference? The answer is pitching and hitting.

The A’s starter, lefty Ken Waldichuk, had his best outing of the season. He did not get the win, but he pitched into the seventh inning. The A’s bullpen did the rest. Oakland’s pitching held the Orioles’ Austin Hays and Ryan Mountcastle hitless Wednesday night.

Hays has homered in each of the first two games. On Tuesday, Ryan Mountcastle had two homers and nine RBIs but was held hitless. The A’s offense rapped out 15 hits, including two home runs. It was a gritty win for the Green and Gold. There were a lot of smiles in the A’s clubhouse after the game. Here’s how they did it.

The A’s jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Leadoff hitter Tony Kemp doubled to deep right-center field. With one out, Orioles starter, Dean Kremer, hit Ramon Laureano with a pitch to put two men on base. Right fielder Brent Rooker blasted his first homer of the season over the centerfield wall to give Oakland an early advantage.

The Orioles scored twice in the bottom of the second. Orioles shortstop Ramon Urias reached on an infield single. Waldichuk walked Gunner Henderson. Second baseman Jorge Mateo doubled to drive in Urias with the Orioles first run. Henderson went to third on the play. Ryan McKenna’s sacrifice fly drove in Henderson with Baltimore’s second run. The A’s lea 3-2 after two innings.

In the top of the fifth, A’s catcher Carlos Perez belted his first home run of the season to give the A’s a 4-2 lead. It was Perez’s first home run 2018.

With the talent the Orioles have, no lead is safe. The Orioles came back from a 7-3 deficit on Tuesday to beat the A’s 12-8. A’s manager Mark Kotsay let Waldichuk start the seventh inning. With one out, Orioles right fielder Adam Frazier singled.

Kotsay ended Waldichuk’s night as he brought in Jeurys Familia to pitch. Frazier was able to advance to second on a passed ball. Familia gave up a single to Cedric Mullins. Frazier was able to score on the hit. Familia got Austin Hays to ground out, and Mullins went to third on the play.

Familia had to face the dangerous Adley Rutschman. Rutschman won the battle as he singled to drive in Mullins with the tying run. The score was tied 4-4 after seven.

Orioles’ manager Brandon Hyde brought Keegan Akin to pitch the eighth inning. The A’s played small ball and put three more runs on the board. Brent Rooker singled to get things rolling for the A’s. Kotsay inserted Esteury Ruiz to run for Rooker. The next hitter, Jace Peterson, singled. Ruiz stopped at second.

The Orioles summoned Cionel Perez from the bullpen to relieve Akin. A’s second baseman Aledmys Diaz reached on a bunt single to load the bases. Jesus Aguilar’s sacrifice fly drove in Ruiz with the a’s fifth run. Peterson tagged and went to third on the play. Kotsay sent Nick Allen into the game to run for Diaz.

Kevin Smith’s sacrifice bunt allowed Peterson to score on the play. Allen went top second. Carlos Perez singled to drive in Allen. The A’s led 7-4 midway through the eighth inning.

Oakland added a run in the top of the ninth. Ryan Noda reached on an infield single. Ramon Laureano singled, sending Noda to third. Esteury Ruiz reached on an infield single. Noda scored the A’s eighth run of the game. A’s reliever Chad Smith pitched a scoreless eight and ninth innings to secure the win for the A’s.

Game Notes: With the win, the A’s are now 3-9. The Orioles fall to 6-6.

Waldichuk had his best game this year. Waldichuk’s line was six and one-third innings pitched. He allowed five hits and three runs. Waldichuk walked three and struck out four. Familia went 2/3rd of an inning and allowed two hits and one run. Chad Smith earned his first Major League win. 

The line score for Oakland was eight runs, 15 hits, and one error. The Orioles line was four runs, eight hits, and no errors.

The hitting starts for Oakland were Brent Rooker and Carlos Perez. Rooker had two hits. One of his hits was an Earl Weaver special- a three-run dinger. Carlos Perez has three hits and two RBIs. One of Perez’s was a home run.

The A’s pitching held the Orioles’ big three, Hayes, Rutschman, and Mountcastle, to one hit in eleven at-bats. 

After the game, Mark Kotsay said:” I thought the guys did a great job.” “We played offense tonight.” I am “happy about the way we executed.” 

The A’s finish the four-game series with the Orioles on Thursday. Mark Kotsay has selected Adam Oller to pitch for Oakland. Former A’s pitcher, lefty Cole Irvin, will pitch for the Birds. Irvin will be making his first start as an Oriole, and the crafty lefty would love a victory over his former teammates. The game will start at 10 am.

The time of the game was two hours and fifty-one minutes. Attendance was 10,181.

The Baltimore Orioles Ryan Mountcastle was a one man wrecking crew gets congratulated in the Orioles dugout after one of his hits against the Oakland A’s at Camden Yards in Baltimore on Tue Apr 11, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s ( finally got some offense Tuesday night in Baltimore. The A’s hitters put eight runs on the board. The A’s had 12 hits in the game. The only problem is the A’s pitching surrendered three homers to the Orioles (6-5), and the A’s lost their sixth straight game 12-8.

The A’s pitching could not stop the Orioles’ offense. O’s first baseman Ryan Mountcastle was a one-man show. Mountcastle alone beat the A’ 9-8. Mountcastle had three hits, including a three-run home run and a grand slam. Mountcastle’s nine RBIs were the most ever by an A’s opponent.

The A’s pitching needs to be fixed. The A’s have the worst run differential in baseball this year. They need better performances from the starters, and the bullpen has not stopped anyone. 

The A’s drew first blood in the top of the first. Oakland put a run on the board when Brent Rooker singled to drive in Tony Kemp. Baltimore answered with a run in the bottom of the first. Austin Hays doubled and scored on Mountcastle’s single.

Oakland went ahead 2-1 in the third. The Orioles tied the game in their half of the inning 2-2. Baltimore took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fourth. O’s second baseman, Ramon Urias, leading off, walked. DH James McCann doubled to deep right field to drive in Urias. 

In the fifth, the A’s batted around, scoring five times to go ahead 7-3. The rally started when O’s starter Grayson Rodriguez walked leadoff hotter Ryan Noda. A’s DH Jesus Aguilar struck out. Rodriguez walked Rooker and Jace Peterson to load the bases. O’s manager, Brandon Hyde, brought in Austin Voth to pitch.

A’s shortstop Kevin Smith singled to drive in Noda. Conner Capel grounded out, and Rooker scored on the play. The A’s led 4-3. The next hitter, catcher Shea Langeliers, blasted his second big fly of the season to put the A’s ahead 7-3. The Orioles plated three more runs as they did in the first and third.

Kyle Muller was still on the mound for the A’s. Orioles leadoff hitter Austin Hayes reached on an infield single. Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman singled to put men on at first and second with no out. Ryan Mountcastle was the next hitter. Mountcastle homered to make it 7-6. The big first baseman had driven in five of the Orioles’ six runs.

Lefty Trevor May was on the hill for Oakland in the bottom of the sixth. With one out, Austin Hays jumped on a hanging curve and sent it out of the park to tie the game 7-7

The Orioles’ onslaught continued in the bottom of the seventh. Baltimore put five runs on the board. With one run in and the bases loaded, Ryan Mountcastle sent the Orioles’ fans into delirium when he sent a Danny Jimenez pitch over the wall for a grand slam. The pitch was right over the center of the plate, and Mountcastle did not miss. 

The A’s scored a run in the ninth, but it was not enough as the Orioles down the A’s 12-8.

Game Notes: With the loss, the A’s are now 2-9. Oakland has the worst record in baseball right now. A’s starter Kyle Muller did not get a decision. His line was four innings pitched, seven hits, and six runs. He gave up a home run to Mountcastle. Muller walked three and struck out three.

The hitting stars for the A’s were Brent Booker, Jace Peterson, Kevin Smith, and Shea Langeliers. Booker, Peterson, and Smith each had two hits. Langeliers had a three-run blast.

Baltimore’s starter Grayson Rodriguez went four and 1/3rd innings. He gave up six hits and five runs.

The hitting stars for the Orioles were Mountcastle, Rutschman, and Austin Hays. Mountcastle had three hits to drive in nine runs, including a three-run dinger and a grand slam. Rurschmand had two hits and scored two runs. Austin Hays homered for the second night. Hays finished with four hits, four runs scored, and two RBIs.

The time of the game was three hours and eight minutes. 12,305 were on hand to see the Orioles beat the A’s

On Wednesday, the A’s will send lefty Ken Waldichuk (0-2 ERA 14.54) to the hill to face the Orioles righty Dean Kremer (0-0 ERA 10.13) will pitch for Baltimore. The game will start at 3:35 pm.

Oakland Athletics starting pitcher JP Sears (38) looks on after surrendering a solo home run to Baltimore Orioles’ Adley Rutschman during the third inning at Camden Yards in Baltimore on Mon Apr 10, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s met the Baltimore Orioles Monday night at Camden Yards in Baltimore and extended their losing streak to five games bowing to the Orioles 5-1. The A’s hoped to play better after being swept by the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays outscored Oakland 31-5 in that series.

Oakland needed to get back in the win column. A’s manager Mark Kotsay hoped the A’s could turn things around. That did not happen. The Orioles, a team that turned things around in 2022, showed why they are among the better teams in the tough AL East Division. In his six and 1/3rd innings of work, the Orioles’ starter Kyle Gibson allowed five hits and one run. The Orioles beat the A’s 5-1.

The A’s grabbed an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first. With one out, Ryan Noda walked. With Aledmys Diaz at bat, Gibson saw Noda with a big lead. With a quick throw to first, Gibson picked off Noda for the second out of the inning. Diaz then walked.

A’s right fielder Ramon Laureano tripled off the right field wall to drive in Diaz with the game’s first run. The lead didn’t last long. In the Orioles half of the first, the Orioles scored two runs to take the lead 2-1. Cedric Mullins walked to get things going for Baltimore.

With one out, Mullins stole second. Mullins went to third on A’s catcher Shea Langeliers’ throwing error. Orioles’ first baseman Ryan Mountcastle homered to left center to put the Orioles ahead. The A’s didn’t know it, but they were done scoring for the night.

In the bottom of the third, The Orioles’ outstanding young catcher Adley Rutschman homered to put the Orioles ahead 3-1. 

The Orioles put another run on the board in the sixth. Jeurys Familia was now pitching for Oakland. Familia retired the first two hitters. He didn’t get by Austin Hays. Hays sent Familia’s pitch over the wall in center field. 

Baltimore added another run in the eighth inning. With Dominga Acevedo pitching for Oakland, Hays doubled. Ramon Urias singled to drive in Hays with the Orioles’ fifth and final run of the game. The Orioles win 5-1.

Game Notes: With the loss, the A’s are now 2-8 for the young season. They have lost five in a row. The Orioles improved to 5-5.

The line score for Oakland was one run, eight hits, and one error.

Baltimore’s line was five runs, six hits, and no errors. The O’s hit three home runs.

J.P. Sears was the losing pitcher. Sears is 0-1. He went five innings and allowed three runs and three hits. Two of the three hits were home runs. 

Kyle Gibson improved to 3-0.

The A’s used five pitchers. Sears, Famila, Sam Moll, Zach Jackson, and Acevedo. 

The A’s play the second game of the four-game series with the Orioles on Tuesday. Lefty Kyle Muller ( 0-0, 2.53 ERA) will go for Oakland. The Orioles will counter with Grayson Rodriguez (0-0, 3.60 ERA). The game will start at 3:35 pm.