A’s rally from an 8-run deficit to beat Rangers 13-10

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By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s continued to perform their magic act as they came back from an eight-run deficit to beat the Texas Rangers 13-10 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas on Tuesday night.

Things initially did not go well for the A’s as the Rangers scored two runs in the bottom of the first to take an early lead. Mark Canha, with one out in the third, homered to left field to make it a 2-1 game. Jed Lowrie tied the game with a solo home run off Rangers’ starter Mike Minor.

The Rangers plated two more runs in the bottom of the fifth off A’s starter Frankie Montas. Willie Calhoun led off the fifth with a solo home run. Shin-Soo Choo singled and went to third on Rougned Odor’s double. Elvis Andrus drove in Choo with a sacrifice fly to right field. Montas was done for the night, and he left the game trailing 4-2.

The Rangers appeared to break the game open in the sixth. Lefty Ryan Buchter was now pitching for Oakland. Joey Gallo, playing right field for Texas, started the onslaught with his 25th of the year. Isiah Kiner-Falefa then doubled. Carlos Tocci, playing center field, singled to drive in Kiner-Falefa. Choo reached on Marcus Semien’s fielding error. Buchter walked Odor to load the bases. A’s manager Bob Melvin took the ball from Buchter and brought in J.B. Wendelken to face Andrus. The strategy failed as Andrus hit his first career grand slam to put Texas in the driver’s seat with a 1-2 advantage after six innings of play.

The A’s, who have never come back to win after trailing by eight runs after six innings, made history Tuesday. The A’s scored 11 unanswered runs in the seventh, eighth, ninth, and 10th innings to come away with what could be the most improbable win of the season. The players know that they can come back, but no one ever would believe that they could overcome an eight-run deficit. They tallied three runs in the seventh. Texas reliever walked Matt Chapman and Mark Canha to start the rally. Mann retired Lucroy, but Marcus Semien doubled to drive in Chapman and Canha. Nick Martini followed with a double to drive in Semien. The A’s trailed 10-5 and had two more innings to get more runs.

The A’s scored four in the eighth to make it a 10-9 game. They scored four times and had just one hit. Lefty Jake Diekman could not find the strike zone. With one out, Diekman walked Chapman, Canha, and Lucroy. Semien hit a ground ball to Rangers’ shortstop Elvis Andrus. Andrus mishandled the ball and Chapman scored. The bases were still loaded. Diekman hit Nick Martini with a pitch to force in another run. Rangers’ manager Jeff Banister ended Diekman’s night and brought in his closer Keone Kela to pitch. Jed Lowrie was the next hitter. Lowrie, hitting from the left side, hit a rocket up the middle that appeared to bounce off Kela’s hand. The ball went into center field, and Lucroy and Semien scored. Kela retired Khris Davis and Matt Olson to end the threat.

In the top of the ninth, Stephen Piscotty hammered his 14th homer of the season to tie the game. Kela retired the A’s with no further damage. A’s reliever Jeurys Familia, who entered the game in the eighth inning, set the Rangers down in order and the game went into extra innings.

In the 10th inning, the A’s scored three more times. Austin Bibens-Dirks was on the hill for Texas. Bibens-Dirks retired the first hitter. Nick Martini then singled. Lowrie walked to put men on at first and second. Khris Davis was the next hitter. Davis had a tough night as he was 0-for-5 with three strikeouts. Davis, who had three home runs in his last two games, came through once again as hit his 25th of the season into the seats in left field to give the A’s the lead for the first time in the game. Bob Melvin summoned his closer Blake Treinen from the bullpen and Treinen retired the Rangers to preserve the win for Oakland. The A’s won 13-10.

Game Notes: Khris Davis hit his 25th homer of the year and has knocked in 72. It was the biggest and best comeback of the season for Oakland. They had never come back from an eight-run deficit when trailing after six innings.

Stephen Piscotty’s home run was his seventh in July. Jed Lowrie’s home run was his 17th of the year. Lowrie never hit more than 16 before this year. The A’s improve to 59-43 and are now just 1 1/2 games behind the Seattle Mariners for the second Wild Card Slot. The Mariners lost to the San Francisco Giants 4-3 in Seattle.

The line score for Oakland was 13 runs, 11 hits, and two errors.

The Rangers’ line was 10 runs, nine hits, and they also made two errors.

The A’s announced that Kendall Graveman would undergo Tommy John surgery. Graveman, who started for the A’s on Opening Night, was demoted to Nashville and spent a considerable amount of time on the DL. He is done for the year and will probably not be able to pitch until September 2019.

18,249 people were in attendance.

Up Next: The A’s and Rangers will meet again Wednesday at 5:05 pm PDT.

Edwin Jackson (1-2) will make his sixth start for Oakland, and he will be opposed by Texas lefty Martin Perez (2-4).

Oakland A’s podcast with Charlie O: Familia part of the A’s family; Will the A’s look to make more deals before the deadline?; plus more

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Photo credit: @Athletics

On the Oakland A’s podcast with Charlie O:

1) What’s your reaction to the Jeurys Familia trade?

2) Are the A’s are done in the trade market or will they make more deals? If they aren’t done, who do they need to add to their roster?

3) Should the A’s only goal be to make the Wild Card game?

4) After Oakland finishes this short seven-game, two-city road trip, their schedule really gets crazy!?

5) Finally, the A’s got some bad news concerning pitcher Kendall Graveman.

Charlie O does the Oakland A’s podcast each Tuesday night at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Is Jimmy Garoppolo’s rumored girlfriend Kiara Mia going to ruin his image?

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By: Ana Kieu

Whether or not you’re a San Francisco 49ers fan, you probably know all about quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, who has an all-around good guy type of aura around him…or so they say.

Garoppolo managed to stay out of the tabloids during his three-year tenure with the New England Patriots from 2014 to 2017. But, now, the 26-year-old made shocking headlines after recently going on a date with porn star Kiara Mia in Beverly Hills, California.

Of course, TMZ was the first to break the out-of-place story, but still. What happened to Garoppolo’s reported ex-girlfriend, Alexandra King? The former couple became Instagram official in February, hung out at Disneyland in March, and King even responded to an Instagram question from a fan that she hoped to be married to Garoppolo in five years. We don’t know yet, but hopefully, something will come up on this attractive pair that apparently went their separate ways.

Anyhow, Mia looked really giddy with Garoppolo on their post-ESPY’s date last Thursday. That shouldn’t come as a surprise, as a veteran porn star likely wouldn’t friend-zone a young stud like Garoppolo. According to TMZ, Kia said that there would be more dates with Garoppolo, so it doesn’t look like a casual situation is the correct label for the pair.

You might recognize Mia’s previous work, as she starred in a porn spoof on “Keeping Up With The Kardashians” back in 2015. But, if you don’t know her, that’s okay too. Just know that Mia’s 14 years older than Garoppolo. So if Garoppolo is looking for a woman with experience, then he’s found the right person in Mia.

Like some of us, you might be wondering if Kia is going to ruin Garoppolo’s image and scare away some of his existing and future sponsors? When it comes to the sponsors, it’s likely not going to happen, unless if the company is very family-friendly. When it comes to Garoppolo’s image in general, that’s going to depend on the person, as everyone has their own opinion.

Personally, I don’t think this particular relationship is going to ruin Garoppolo’s image nor is it going to last long, but only time will tell. Also, I’d like to add that if you’re going to judge Garoppolo based on his personal life, you might want to treat other powerful men the same way, like, say, President Donald Trump. Just saying.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: 1962 Mets? Move Over, Here Comes the 2018 Orioles

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By: Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

The 1962 New York Mets lost 120 games during their inaugural season. That year the Mets started play in New York a few years after the Brooklyn Dodgers left for Los Angeles and the New York Giants left for San Francisco. With the 1962 Mets, the National League had a new team in town and they adopted the colors of Dodger blue and Met orange. The Mets’ manager was the very colorful Casey Stangel. They played 1962 at the old Giants park, the Polo Grounds, while they were building Shea Stadium in Queens.

With the worst record in history, the 1962 Mets ended their season in last place with a 40-120 record and 60 1/2 games behind the first-place San Francisco Giants, who went on to the World Series and lost in seven games against the New York Yankees. Things were easier back then, as each league had 10 teams and after they won the pennant in a few days they went directly to the World Series.

Besides the 1962 Mets, other bad teams include the 1904 Washington Senators (38-113), the 1916 Philadelphia Athletics (36-117), the 1932 Boston Red Sox (43-111), the 1935 Boston Braves (38-115), and most recently, the 2003 Detroit Tigers, who came within one game of tying the Mets, with a 40-119 record.

Right now, the 2018 Orioles are on a pace to lose around 128 games.On this day, the Orioles have a 28-73 record, and there are 61 games remaining, before their game tonight versus the Boston Red Sox in Baltimore, Maryland.

How they talk in New York, it could be, “Forget about it” for the 1962 Mets in a couple of months, which is not something that veteran skipper Buck Showalter is looking forward to, but something he likely is not be able to prevent.

Baseball is like horse racing, you can have the best jockey in the world, but if the horse is limping, you are never going to win the race.

San Francisco 49ers podcast with David Zizmor: Garoppolo had the confidence he could beat Brady for job when in New England

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San Francisco 49ers starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (10) waves to the crowd before their game against the Jacksonville Jaguars for their NFL game at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on Sunday, Dec. 24, 2017. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

On the SF 49ers podcast with Dave:

When San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo first came on the scene in 2014 with the New England Patriots, he had the confidence that he could be better than Patriots’ starting quarterback Tom Brady. He said he had that same confidence going into camp this season as it should be no surprise he’s a lock as the 49ers’ starting quarterback.

Dave will take a look at the two-game suspension of 49ers linebacker Reuben Foster and will his suspension be a distraction to the team going into those first two games?

David Zizmor does the 49ers podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast: A’s waste no time to jump on Texas; Cards’ Poncedeleon 5th pitcher in MLB to debut with no-hitter into the 7th inning; plus more

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photo from theintelligencer.com: Oakland Athletics’ Jonathan Lucroy is congratulated by third base coach Matt Williams (4) after hitting a grand slam against the Texas Rangers during the second inning of a baseball game Monday, July 23, 2018, in Arlington, Texas

On That’s Amaury podcast:

#1 The Oakland A’s wasted no time taking the first game of this current four-game series in Arlington with a 15-3 win on Monday night.

#2 A’s catcher Jonathan Lucroy belted a second inning grand slam to get the offense started. Lucroy gets his second home run of the season.

#3 The St. Louis Cardinals’ Daniel Poncedeleon threw no hit ball for seven innings and is MLB’s fifth pitcher to debut to go that far. Poncedeleon was lifted after the seventh due to the pitch count. He hit 116 pitches.

#4 The San Francisco Giants, who lost two three-game series to the Oakland A’s, will be in Seattle starting tonight. The Mariners are going red-hot second place in the AL West and have been tough customers in the first half of the season.

#5 He might not be able to pitch, but the Los Angeles Angels’ Shohei Ohtani went deep, hitting a 435-foot shot to center for his eighth home run on Monday night.

Amaury Pi-Gonzalez is the Oakland A’s Spanish play-by-play talent and does News and Commentary podcasts each Tuesdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Giants (51-50) need a hot streak: How hot? Extremely hot like the 2004 Astros

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By Morris Phillips

Still think the 51-50 Giants have what it takes to make a run to the postseason? Okay, you’re thinking big obviously, so I offer a big comparison. Unfortunately, comparing the Giants to the 2004 Astros may be too big, as in bigger than real life.

That season the veteran-laden Astros started fast only to stall mid-season. With a 44-44 record, ownership grew impatient, firing Jimy Williams and hiring Phil Garner. But an even bigger move loomed, with the Royals, Padres and A’s pulling off a three-team deal that would bring Carlos Beltran to Houston. The hopless Royals had no chance to retain the 27-year old, five-tool outfielder as a free agent after the season so they dealt him. Astros GM Gerry Hunsicker not only did well to craft a favorable deal that would cost him reliever Octavio Dotel, but he did so a month prior to the July trade deadline.

While the trade would eventually prove to be brilliant, the initial effect would see the first-place Cardinals increase their five-game lead in the NL Central while the Astros continued to be average, first reaching the 101-game mark 51-50, then slumping to 56-60.

The Cardinals wouldn’t look back, winning the division with 105 wins, the best regular season record in baseball that year. The Astros–at least, in the short run–appeared to be an epic failure, languishing below .500, despite a roster featuring Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, Beltran (future HOFs), Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte, Jeff Kent (considered for the HOF), along with Lance Berkman, Roy Oswalt and reliever Brad Lidge at the height of their powers.

But the light switch turned on, and the Astros blasted off, winning 36 of their final 46 games to capture the NL wild card with a 92-70 record. They would leapfrog four teams including the Giants, while taking full advantage of a schedule heavy on the downtrodden Reds, Brewers, Pirates and Rockies, an opponent in the season’s final week.

To recap, the Astros played that season’s first 116 games at a .483 clip, and in the final 46 games, their win percentage jumped to .783.

The 2018 Giants need to catch the division-leading Dodgers or one of either the Brewers or Braves, the current wild card leaders, to hypothetically qualify for the postseason. Without attempting to find a specific number of wins for each of the three clubs the Giants are chasing, we settle on 91 wins, as the projected win total for all three since that number is most likely for all three without trying to factor in the Dodgers’ acquisition of Manny Machado, the Brewers’ recent slide or the Braves’ relative inexperience.

Attempting to reach that number of wins, the Giants–currently winning at a .505 clip–would have to see their win percentage jump to .656 over this season’s final 61 games.

Needless to say that’s a difficult leap for any ballclub to make, and especially for a Giants’ ballclub that hasn’t won at that rate for an extended period of time in more than two years, since the first half of the 2016 season, the last time they strung together consecutive winning months.

So how did the Astros do it? Given the age of their stars that season, and their individual histories in regards to performance enhancers, that would be a good place to start.

Roger Clemens, the surefure Hall of Famer were it not for his close association with PED’s, was 41 years old that season. Clemens started 5-0, and finished 18-4 with a 2.98 ERA. His win percentage that year was tops in baseball and he won his seventh and final Cy Young award.

Again, he was 41.

Jeff Bagwell would extend his streak of hitting at least 20 home runs in a season that year to 12. He also would surpass 400 home runs and 200 stolen bases in his career. Bagwell was 36 in 2004.

Craig Biggio was 38, Jeff Kent was 36, Jose Vizcaino, who played in 138 games in 2004, was 36.

Andy Pettitte was 32. Dan Miceli was 33 that season in which he pitched in 72 games prior to his faltering in the NLCS against St. Louis.

Some of these players–not all–at some point in their careers were associated to PEDs. Needless to say, a 41-year-old winning the Cy Young may never happen again.

And the Giants might not have the juice for such a torrid, frantic finish.

A’s hitters torch Rangers’ pitchers in 15-3 laugher in Arlington

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Photo credit: @Athletics

By Jerry Feitelberg

It was a very warm night at Globe Life Park in Arlington, Texas, on Monday night as the Oakland A’s started a seven-game road trip against the Texas Rangers. The temperature at the start of the game was over 100 degrees, but that did not faze the A’s hitters one bit.

The Rangers had their best pitcher, Cole Hamels, on the mound. Hamels, a four-time All-Star and 2008 World Champion (with the Philadelphia Phillies), is having an off year so far this season. The 34-year old lefty was 5-8 for the year, but his home record was 1-6 at home.

The A’s countered with their lefty, Brett Anderson, who started the game with a record of 1-2 and has spent a lot of time on the DL. A’s manager Bob Melvin was hoping to get some innings from Anderson to not use his bullpen. Anderson did his job as he went six innings and allowed just two runs and six hits. That, baseball fans, is a quality start.

The A’s torched Hamels for five runs in the top of the second inning. Hamels walked Matt Olson to start the inning. Chapman reached on an infield single. Rougned Odor made a gallant effort trying to stop Chapman’s grounder from going into centerfield. Odor flipped the ball to shortstop Elvis Andrus. Andrus stretched to grab the ball for the out, but he did not control of the ball as Olson’s slid in safely. Mark Canha singled sharply to right field to load the bases with no out.

Jonathan Lucroy was the next hitter. Lucroy was traded to the Rangers in 2016 and was with them until the trade deadline last year when the Rangers sent him to the Colorado Rockies. Lucroy had been with Hamels, who had a winning record when Lucroy was his catcher. Lucroy had hit only one home run so far the year but his second of the season was a grand salami. The ball was hit to deep center-field and barely made it over the fence. Statcast said the ball went 408 feet. The A’s were on the board, and it was just the beginning of the fireworks. The A’s plated another run to make it 5-0. Semien walked. Chad Pinder, who was 8-for-9 with three home runs in his career against Hamels, singled. Hamels retired Jed Lowrie, but was touched for a double by Khris Davis.

The Rangers scored two in the bottom of the third. Odor doubled and scored when Elvis Andrus homered. The A’s lead 5-2 after three. The A’s got the two runs back in the top of the fifth to take a 7-2 lead. With one out, Matt Olson singled. Stephen Piscotty homered for the thirteenth time this year to give the A’s a five-run lead. Hamels was done for the night. He went five innings and allowed seven runs on nine hits. He walked two, struck out five, and gave up two dingers.

Rangers’ manager Jeff Banister brought in another lefty, Matt Moore (former San Francisco Giant), to pitch the sixth inning. Moore set the A’s down in order. Banister should have given him the night off after that. Moore’s second inning of work was a disaster. The A’s scored six times on five hits. The big hit of the inning was a three-run blast off the bat of Matt Chapman. Moore gave up doubles to Lucroy and Semien to make it a 12-2 game. Banister brought in another lefty, Alex Claudio, who did not fare any better as Chad Pinder doubled on Claudio’s first pitch to drive in the sixth run of the game.

The A’s scored two more in the eighth, while the Rangers tallied just one. The A’s took game one by a lopsided score of 15-3.

Game Notes: The A’s continue to play well. They are now 24-7 in their last 31 games and are now 2 1/2 games behind the idle Seattle Mariners for the second Wild Card slot.

The line score for Oakland was 15 runs, 18 hits including four home runs, and no errors.

The line for Texas was three runs, eight hits, and no errors.

The A’s are now 58-43, and Texas falls to 42-59.

Khris Davis hit his 24th home run of the run and his third in the last two games.

Matt Olson had two hits. Steven Piscotty had two hits, three RBIs, and a home run. Matt Chapman had three hits, four RBIs, and a three-run homer. Lucroy hit a grand slam to go along with a double.

Up Next: The A’s and Rangers will meet again on Tuesday at 5:05 pm PDT.

Texas will send left Mike Minor (6-6) to the hill, and Oakland will counter with Frankie Montas (5-2).

San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris Phillips: A’s Chapman the hero in taking two out three from the Giants again

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On the SF Giants podcast with Morris:

The Oakland A’s Matt Chapman helped getting the gamer in extra innings Sunday at the Oakland Coliseum in the bottom of the 10th inning to give the A’s a one-run win, 6-5, over the San Francisco Giants. Chapman hit a ball that went off Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford’s foot and allowed the game-winning run to score.

With the loss to the A’s, the Giants are now five games back behind the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers. How much of a setback is it for the Giants to lose two series to the A’s in two weeks in the month of July?

A’s starter Sean Manaea had a quality start–not allowing a base runner until the Giants’ Nick Hundley singled with two outs in the top of the fifth inning. Giants starter Johnny Cueto threw for seven innings, four runs, six hits, walked two and struck out three.

A’s Khris Davis continues to rake hitting a two-run home run that was the first of three homers of Cueto.

Morris Phillips does the Giants podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

Red hot, know-it-alls: Giants pose questions, A’s provide answers in second, straight, extra-inning win, 6-5

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By Morris Phillips

OAKLAND — If the next 60 games are like the last 30, the A’s are marching into the postseason, dragging naysayers and whatever left by the side of the road supporters along with them. Not only have the A’s won 23 of 30, they’ve developed an unmistakable swagger and belief.

Late game deficit? Just hold on. Late game deficit along with a slumbering offense? No problem. World class opponent like the Astros–or Indians, Giants and faltering Padres for that matter? The A’s elevate their game accordingly.

The Giants got their rough introduction to the transformation over the weekend in a pair of bitter, extra-inning defeats capped by Sunday’s 6-5 nail biter that swung on the unpredictable path of a high chopper on the infield. When the otherwise out of this world shortstop Brandon Crawford failed to come up with the ball, Marcus Semien (aboard on a leadoff walk issued by reliever Ty Blach) just happened to be in the right place, flying around third base and bearing down on home plate.

“The more we do this–since we’ve been on this run–the more confidence we gain,” said manager Bob Melvin. “And I think it’s important too that we lost the first game of the series both ends of this. And end up coming back and winning both. It kept the momentum as far as that preserverance trait goes.  And they expect to win.”

Expect to win? More like they forgot how to lose.

The A’s have won 10 times in this streak by scoring the winning run in the eighth inning or later. They’re 39-0 when leading after seven innings, and 47-0 when leading after eight. Neither of those last two numbers got a bump Sunday because the Giants staged a spirited rally with three runs in the seventh to tie, and another run in the eighth to take a short-lived lead.

But the first number on the list did get a bump, and it did so with the slimmest of advantages in the form of Matt Chapman’s game-winning, infield single.

Sunday, the A’s melded together eight hits in 10 innings and somehow, that added up to six runs. Hits with runners in scoring position? Just one in eight opportunities. On Saturday, it was six base hits and a double in 11 innings, along with nine walks issued by Giants’ pitchers, and the support of 56,310 partially supportive fans to etch together a win.

The A’s should open a new-age sewing factory: provide the materials, and the A’s will stitch together a win.

“It just shows the character of our team,” said Chapman. “We’re able to keep fighting until the last pitch, no matter whether we’re down or not. We always feel like we’re one swing away.”

GAME NOTES: Reliever Jeurys Familia, acquired from the Mets in a deal for two minor league prospects and cash considerations, made his A’s debut Sunday, throwing two scoreless innings which matched the longest outing of the pitcher’s season to date. Melvin gushed after the game at the A’s bullpen depth that allowed the manager to extend closer Blake Treinen on Saturday, while knowing a well-rested Familia would be available for an extended run on Sunday.

Familia was 4-4 with a 2.88 ERA and 17 saves in 40 appearances with New York. The 28 year-old, right-hander piled up 43 strikeouts while walking 14.

A’s starter Sean Manaea retired the first 14 batters he faced on Sunday, and limited his adversity to one run allowed in the fifth. Manaea struck out five batters, the first time he’s struck out more than four batters in a start since June 22 when he struck out seven in a start at the White Sox.

UP NEXT: The A’s will open a four-game series against the Texas Rangers on Monday at 5:05 pm PDT.