Luis Medina pitched five strong innings to lead the Oakland A’s to a victory in Milwaukee against the NL Central-leading Brewers. It was Medina’s first major league victory. Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports. Photo from athleticsnation.com.
By Mary Anne
After a much-needed day off, the Oakland Athletics took on the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field on Friday night. The A’s looked to string three wins together, while the Brewers wanted to win their third straight series against the A’s. But the A’s prevailed and defeated the Brewers 5-2 in the series opener. Oakland improved to 15-50, and Milwaukee dropped to 34-30.
The A’s starting lineup in Milwaukee featured Esteury Ruiz, Ryan Noda, Seth Brown, Ramón Laureano, Jace Peterson, Jonah Bride, JJ Bleday, Shea Langaliers, Kevin Smith, and Sam Moll. Moll pitched just one inning and gave up one hit and three strikeouts for a 4.37 ERA.
The A’s overcame adversity in the top of the first inning. Ramón Laureano tripled on a fly ball to Blake Perkins, and Esteury Ruiz and Ryan Noda scored for a 2-0 lead. The Brewers challenged the A’s triple for a tag play, but the umpire upheld the call on the field. Jonah Bride singled on a ground ball to Christian Yelich, and Laureano scored for a 3-0 lead.
The A’s extended their lead in the top of the second inning. Esteury Ruiz singled on a ground ball to Christian Yelich, and Shea Langaliers scored for a 4-0 lead.
The Brewers got on the board in the bottom of the second inning. Blake Perkins doubled on a fly ball to JJ Bleday, and Joey Wiemers scored to cut the A’s lead to 4-1. Luis Urias doubled on a fly ball to Ramón Laureano, and Perkins scored to cut the A’s lead in half 4-2 after a call on the field was upheld after the umpire reviewed a double from a home run.
The A’s added to their lead in the top of the fifth inning. Jonah Bride was out on a sacrifice fly that went to Joey Wiemer, and Seth Brown scored for a 5-2 lead as Ramón Laureano went to third base with one out.
The A’s and Brewers will square off in a middle game on Saturday, June 10, at 1:10 pm Pacific.


