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Sacramento A’s starter Gage Jump (61) rears back to pitch to the Boston Red Sox line up at Fenway Park in the first inning on Sat Aug 8, 2026 (AP News photo)

By Mauricio Segura

Gage Jump came through as the Sacramento A’s savior in the Boston sun this afternoon. The rookie left-hander struck out a career-high 11 over six innings, and the A’s rallied from an early two-run deficit to beat the Boston Red Sox 7-3. The victory ended the Athletics’ nine-game losing streak and stopped Boston’s own nine-game winning run, giving the Green and Gold a chance to win after woe after woe of gut wrenching baseball.

Boston struck first in the opening inning. Jahmai Jones singled, stole second and then took third as Caleb Durbin stole second. Andruw Monasterio followed with a two-run single to right, putting the Red Sox ahead 2-0. That was all Boston managed against Jump. He scattered six hits and two walks, striking out 11 while keeping the Athletics within range. The outing was a major rebound after he allowed six runs in 3 2/3 innings against Detroit in his previous start.

The A’s began their comeback in the fourth. Jacob Wilson doubled to left, Tommy White kept the inning moving with a two-out single, and Brian Serven beat out a soft grounder that brought Wilson home. One inning later, the Athletics moved ahead for good. Alika Williams was hit by a pitch, Wilson doubled again, and Jonah Heim lined a two-run single to left that scored both runners for a 3-2 advantage.

The sixth inning turned a narrow lead into breathing room, and it came from the bench. Lawrence Butler drew a walk, stole second, then moved to third as Jeff McNeil drew another walk and later stole second. Pinch-hitter Donovan Walton followed with a ground-rule double into right-center, scoring both runners and pushing the lead to 5-2. It was exactly the kind of inning the Athletics had struggled to produce during their skid: traffic on the bases, aggressive running and a hit that cashed in both runners.

Tyler Soderstrom added a solo homer in the seventh, and Henry Bolte added another in the ninth to make it 7-2. The two long balls gave Jump and the bullpen some extra room before Boston mounted one last threat. McNeil, meanwhile, remained stuck on 999 career hits after drawing a walk and later flying out. He entered the game needing just one more to become the latest player to reach 1,000 while wearing an A’s uniform.

The final inning carried some tension. Jones doubled and scored on Durbin’s single. Willson Contreras then singled, Monasterio drew a walk, and the bases were loaded with two outs. Hogan Harris, who had entered in the eighth, got Eli White to line out to center and finished the 7-3 win for his tenth save. The Athletics’ bullpen allowed only one run over the final three innings after entering the game with the highest ERA in the majors.

There was also a piece of history at shortstop. Wilson entered the game with a 109-game errorless streak, one shy of the Major League record for a shortstop. He handled the position without a miscue and reached 110 straight games, tying the mark set by Baltimore’s Mike Bordick in 2002. For a team that had spent more than a week stacking losses, the afternoon finally delivered something worth carrying forward.

Sunday’s series decider will send J.T. Ginn (8-6, 3.51 ERA, 105 strikeouts) to the mound for the Athletics at 10:35 a.m. Pacific, while Boston had still not announced its starter as of publication.

Costa Rican-born Mauricio Segura has been covering sports in the Bay Area since 2001 for a variety of magazines and newspapers, as well as his own publication, Golden Bay Times.

Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Payton Tolle pitches to the Sacramento A’s line up in the top of the first inning at Fenway Park in Boston on Fri Aug 7, 2026 (AP News photo)

By Mauricio Segura

The Sacramento Athletics needed something to interrupt an eight-game losing streak, but Payton Tolle gave them almost nothing to work with. Boston’s left-hander struck out 14 over six innings, while the Red Sox piled up 15 hits in a 13-1 rout. The loss stretched the A’s skid to nine games and dropped them to 45-71. It was another hard turn in a stretch that already had the Athletics at 4-24 over their previous 28 games and riding a run of 12 consecutive series losses.

Tolle set the tone immediately. He retired all 12 Athletics hitters he faced through four innings, with nine of those outs coming by strikeouts. Henry Bolte and Jonah Heim struck out in the first, Tolle struck out the side in the second, and he did it again in the fourth against Bolte, Jacob Wilson and Heim. The A’s could not produce a baserunner until the fifth.

Boston had already built a five-run advantage by then. Andruw Monasterio drew a one-out walk in the second before Jarren Duran sent a two-run homer to left-center. Anthony Seigler followed with a double, and Jake Rogers doubled him home. Nick Sogard then drew a walk before Wilyer Abreu doubled in Rogers and Sogard for a 5-0 lead. Jack Perkins survived the third without further damage, but his outing ended after three innings with five runs allowed on five hits, three walks and three strikeouts.

The game moved further away from the Athletics in the fourth after Hayden Juenger replaced Perkins. Rogers opened with a double and Sogard singled him to third. A throwing error by Juenger on a pickoff attempt allowed Rogers to score, then Abreu singled home Sogard. Masataka Yoshida added an RBI double, and Monasterio singled home Yoshida before being thrown out trying for second. Boston had four more runs and a 9-0 lead. It was another difficult inning for an A’s bullpen that began the game with a 5.59 ERA, the highest in the majors.

Tyler Soderstrom finally broke through against Tolle to start the fifth, driving a solo home run to right-center for his 18th homer of the season. The blast ended Tolle’s perfect-game bid and accounted for the Athletics’ only run. Soderstrom had entered the game with 17 homers. Max Muncy added an infield single in the sixth, but that was the A’s only other hit. Tolle completed six innings with two hits allowed, no walks and 14 strikeouts, and Boston pitching finished with 16 strikeouts overall.

The Red Sox kept adding. Ceddanne Rafaela singled to begin the sixth, and a throwing error by Jonathan Ornelas helped put two runners in scoring position. Caleb Durbin and Yoshida each delivered sacrifice flies to make it 11-1. In the seventh, Rafaela singled home Rogers and Durbin doubled home Rafaela, pushing the margin to 13-1.

There were at least two small defensive footnotes for the Athletics. Wilson played six innings at shortstop without an error, extending his errorless streak to 109 games, one shy of Mike Bordick’s major-league record of 110. Carlos Cortes then took the mound for the eighth and retired Monasterio, Duran and Seigler in order. It was Cortes’ eighth pitching appearance of the season, extending the Athletics record he already held for the most pitching appearances by a position player in one year.

The A’s get another chance against Boston in Game 2, with left-hander Gage Jump (4-7, 4.59 ERA, 73 K) facing fellow lefty Jake Bennett (7-4, 2.90 ERA, 50 K) at 1:10 p.m. Pacific, and Jump will be looking to summon the form that produced six scoreless innings against the Red Sox in his previous start against them.

Costa Rican-born Mauricio Segura has been covering sports in the Bay Area since 2001 for a variety of magazines and newspapers, as well as his own publication, Golden Bay Times.

Whether you’re pre-gaming with the Kings or celebrating an A’s win, Cyprus Grille at the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena is your downtown go-to.

⚡Craft cocktails? Check.
🔥Game-day bites? Oh yeah.
🏟️Steps from Golden 1 Center? You bet.

Open daily, Cyprus Grille is serving up local flavor with a front-row seat to the action. Stop by before or after the game—or make it your new downtown hangout.

Cyprus Grille—where fans fuel up.

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Happy Hour – 4pm-6pm

Show your ticket for additional discounts when dining in.