Tag: Houston Astros

A’s are “double trouble” for Astros as they win 7-1 and tie Houston for first place

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
Davis-Melvin
Photo: @Athletics

By Charlie O. Mallonee

OAKLAND — The Oakland Athletics beat the Houston Astros 7-1 at the Oakland Coliseum on Saturday afternoon and are now tied for first place in the American League West. Fans were in disbelief that the A’s (74-49) were in contention for the Wild Card in the AL, but now, the Green and Gold are fighting to win their division. Virtually none of those fans thought that was a possibility before the season began.

Strong starting pitching and power hitting was the key to the A’s win on Saturday.

Trevor Cahill (5-2) started the game for Oakland. He has been pitching the lights out in the Coliseum with an ERA under one at home. Cahill continued his mastery of opponents in his home stadium as pitched seven innings of shutout baseball, allowing the Astros just one hit. The right-hander struck out seven batters and walked just one. Cahill threw 100 (62 strikes).

The A’s also went on another power surge on Saturday as they hit eight doubles which tied an Oakland single-game record, but you were not allowed to hit just one double – you had to hit two. All of the extra base hits were recorded by four A’s hitters. Khris Davis (24), Stephen Piscotty (33), Matt Olson (26) and Josh Phegley (6) hit all of the “two-baggers” for Oakland versus Houston. The A’s posted a total of 11 hits in the contest.

More A’s

  • The A’s were trailing the Astros by 12 games back on June 18. Today they are tied for first place.
  • Oakland’s 74-69 (.602) record is tied for third best in the majors. It is tied for fourth place in A’s history after 123 games.
  • Khris Davis’ double in the first inning snapped a 0-13 hitless streak.
  • Matt Olson’s two doubles extended his hitting streak to six games.
  • Matt Chapman’s 14 game hitting streak and 30 game on-base streak came to an end on Saturday when he went 0-for-4 in the game.
  • Add on Trevor Cahill: he retired 20 of the 22 batters he faced in the game. The A’s have won Cahill’s last seven starts.

Astros’ notes

  • The A’s scored two runs in the bottom of the first inning which means the Astros opponents have now outscored them 56-55 in the first inning.
  • Alex Bregman’s road on-base streak continues as he picked up a base-on-balls on Saturday. His streak currently stands at 38 games.
  • The ‘Stros recorded just two hits in their loss on Saturday. It was just the third time this season they posted two or fewer hits in a game.
  • Dallas Keuchel (9-10)–who was charged with the loss–saw his four-game road winning streak come to an end.

Up Next

The A’s and Astros wrap up the three game series on Sunday at 1:05 pm PDT on Sunday.

The Astros will send RHP Justin Verlander (11-8, 2.52) to the mound in an attempt to salvage one win in the series. The A’s will go with their ace LHP Sean Manaea (11-8, 3.44). Manaea won his last start on Monday in Oakland over the Mariners 7-6. He is 1-1 in three starts versus the Astros this season.

Olson’s First Walk-Off Homer Puts A’s One Game Back of Astros After 4-3 Win in 10 Innings

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

Photo credit: @MLB_News247

By: Matt Harrington

OAKLAND — The Oakland A’s now have a chance to exit the weekend series against the Houston Astros with a one-game lead in the American League West, and momentum is on their side. The A’s tied the game in the bottom of the ninth inning on a play at the plate, then Matt Olson launched his first career walk-off hit, a homer of Tony Sipp, in the bottom of the 10th for a 4-3 win over the division leaders at Oakland Coliseum on Friday night.

Olson pulled the A’s to within one game of the division lead after working a full count off Sipp. Sipp’s 3-2 pitch, a slider low in the zone just below the belt, found its way over the right field wall for Olson’s 23rd longball of the year and Sipp’s first loss of the campaign (1-2, 1.80 ERA). He almost didn’t get a chance for his heroics. The A’s trailed 3-2 heading into the bottom of the ninth inning. The leadoff man Mark Canha grounded out against reliever Hector Rondon to leave the A’s two outs away from defeat. Pinch hitter Chad Pinder walked, then was replaced by rookie Ramon Laureano, a pivotal substitution by A’s manager Bob Melvin.

The next batter, Nick Martini, laced a ball to right, with Laureano racing home from first. Josh Reddick’s throw home beat him to the plate and Astros catcher Martin Maldonado appeared to block off the plate perfectly to tag out Laureano as he dove headfirst across home. Home plate umpire Alfonso Marquez thought so, too, calling Laureano out.

The rookie, however, felt he had gained the plate legally, gesturing as soon as he rose from his slide. His manager challenged the play, and following a lengthy review, Laureano was deemed both correct and safe and Oakland was tied 3-3. Blake Treinen (6-2, 0.87 ERA) worked around a runner at second with two outs, while striking out three Stros to pick up his sixth win of the year.

The A’s had to play catch-up three times. They trailed 2-0 heading into the bottom of the fifth after starter Edwin Jackson gave up solo homers Alex Bregman and Maldonado in the fourth and fifth innings, respectively. They loaded the bases against Houston starter Charlie Morton with no outs, but Jonathan Lucroy only plated one runner on a double-play grounder. Matt Chapman would plate another run in the inning, but the big damage was avoided with the A’s forced to settle for the 2-2 tie.

The tie would be short-lived, as Houston scored in the top of the sixth. Lou Trivino struck out Carlos Correa but walked Marwin Gonzalez and Evan Gattis to put himself in trouble. Reddick capitalized against his former team, singling in Gonzalez. Trivino wriggled out of the jam trailing 3-2 after getting first baseman Tyler White to bounce into a double play.

The A’s don’t need to do any scoreboard watching if they want to lead the division by the end of play Saturday. They just need Trevor Cahill to take the bump and stymie the Houston batters. Oh, and they also need to beat Dallas Keuchel, a former Cy Young award winner.

The A’s and Astros will square off for game two Saturday afternoon at 1:05 pm PDT.

Preview of the A’s upcoming 3-game series with the Astros

Published on by rxsluggerLeave a comment

Photo credit: youtube.com

By Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND — This is the time of the year that fans hunger for. Oakland A’s fans have not seen their team in a playoff race since 2014. The A’s made the playoffs as the second Wild Card team that year. They traveled to Kansas City, Mo. and were eliminated by the Kansas City Royals. Since then, the A’s have been in rebuild mode. The last three seasons found the A’s finishing last in the AL West. Attendance was significantly down as fans were tired of seeing the A’s trade their best players for subpar prospects. The team wants to build a new stadium, but plans to build one at Laney College were scuttled after the A’s thought they had a deal. All the experts picked the 2018 A’s team to finish as cellar-dwellers once again, but this year’s team has put eggs on all the faces of the pundits that picked them to finish last.

Last year, the A’s front office decided to bring up Matt Chapman and Matt Olson to play in first and third bases, respectively. Chapman is fantastic at third base, and his hitting has improved. Chapman may win a Gold Glove this year. Olson is a big power bat and he is also good defensively.

The A’s signed catcher Jonathan Lucroy before the season started. Lucroy is one of the best gunning down runners attempting to steal. He has picked off 20 so far and is tied for the MLB’s lead.

The A’s pitching rotation has been a work in progress. Sean Manaea is the current ace. The big lefty threw a no-hitter against the red-hot Boston Red Sox in April. The A’s also brought back two former players to pitch. Trevor Cahill has been good at home, but not so good on the road. The big righty still can pitch. The other pitcher is Brett Anderson. While the lefty is not a flamethrower, he knows how to pitch and has been a valuable asset in Oakland. In addition, the A’s acquired Edwin Jackson and Mike Fiers–both of whom are veterans who know what to do on the mound. Fiers won a ring with the Astros last year.

The A’s rebuilt their bullpen by sending two of their arguably best relievers, Sean Doolittle and Ryan Madson, to the Washington Nationals for Blake Treinen. Treinen has 32 saves and is a cool customer on the mound. They traded Ryon Healy to the Seattle Mariners for Emilio Pagan. They traded for Jeurys Familia. They signed Shawn Kelley. They acquired Fernando Rodney. They brought up rookie Lou Trivino from Triple-A Nashville. This year’s bullpen is loaded.

The A’s have surprised everyone in baseball this year. They are 38-13 since June 16th. They passed the M’s in the race for the second Wild Card slot, and they are now just two games behind the Astros for first place in the AL West.

The A’s players know that they can beat any team in the MLB. They are playing with a lot of confidence. They have one of the best managers in baseball, Bob Melvin. So, the baseball gods in their infinite wisdom, have scheduled the Astros to show up in Oakland this weekend. The Astros, who are defending World Series champions, own a 74-47 record. They are 9-4 against the A’s and have beaten them in all six games played here.

However, the worm has turned as the A’s took three out of four from the Astros in Houston in July. The Astros still have the third best record in the AL, but their express train to the AL West crown has gone slightly off the tracks due to several injuries. The Astros’ All-Star second baseman Jose Altuve has been sidelined with a knee injury and will not be available this weekend. The reigning AL MVP may be back before the end of the year, and he is missed by Astros fans. Shortstop Carlos Correa was activated last week, but he went 1-for-15 before he hit a three-run double Wednesday afternoon. George Springer will be activated off the DL Friday night. Relief pitcher Chris Devenski, catcher Brian McCann, and outfielder Jake Marisnick are still on the DL.

The A’s will still have to deal with a very good Astros’ team. Astros’ catcher Evan Gattis, who probably will DH, gets fired up when he comes to Oakland. He loves to hit here, and he has killed A’s pitching in the past. The A’s shut him down the last time they were in Houston, and they hope to do it again. Astros’ third baseman Alex Bregman has blossomed into a terrific player. He can hit for average and power. First baseman Yuli Gurriel is solid. The Astros will likely use Tyler White or Tony Kemp at second base in place of Altuve. White hit two homers on Wednesday in the Astros’ 12-1 rout. The Astros’ outfield of Marwin Gonzalez, George Springer, and Josh Reddick is solid. All three can hit the ball out of the park.

The A’s will counter with Matt Chapman, Matt Olson, Marcus Semien, and Jed Lowrie. Lowrie started the season on a high note, but he fell off a bit due to an injury, yet he has returned to be the same hitter he was earlier this season. Nick Martini has been doing a solid job as the leadoff hitter and has played well in left field. Mark Canha has been playing in center, but Melvin will move him to left if a lefty is pitching.  Ramon Laureano is a terrific defensive player who will see playing time this weekend. Stephen Piscotty has been solid all year. DH Khris Davis is third in the AL with 34 bombs and is second in the MLB with 93 RBIs.

The Astros have penciled in Charlie Morton to pitch Friday night. Morton is 12-3 and has a 2.88 ERA. Morton has thrown at least six innings in each of his last four starts. He is 4-1 with a 2.73 ERA in 10 road starts this season.

The A’s will counter with Edwin Jackson. Jackson has performed well since being reclaimed from life in the minor leagues. Jackson is 3-0 in his last three starts and has allowed no earned runs in that span. He went 7 1/3 innings against the Angels last Saturday for his longest start of the year.

Astros’ lefty Dallas Keuchel will pitch on Saturday. Keuchel, a former Cy Young award winner, got off to a slow start this year. However, he has evened his record at 9-9 and has a respectable 3.43 ERA. He has been Houston’s best starter the last two months as he went 6-1 and had a 2.19 ERA.

Trevor Cahill will pitch for the A’s. Cahill did not have a good outing last week against the Angels. He allowed four runs and seven hits in just 4 2/3 innings of work. Cahill is 4-2 with a 3.39 ERA.

On Sunday, former MVP and CY Young winner Justin Verlander will be on the mound for the Astros. Verlander has been struggling lately. His record is 11-8, but he is 2-6 with a 3.94 ERA in his last 11 starts. He started the season with a 9-2 record and a 1.61 ERA in his first 15 starts. His next win will be the 200th of his career.

The A’s Sean Manaea will be seeking his 12th win. Manaea went 7 2/3 innings against the M’s Monday night as he picked up his 11th win of the year. Manaea has not allowed more than three runs in any of his starts since May.

This is what baseball is all about. The defending champs going up against the up-and-coming A’s. One team is expected to repeat as the AL representative in the World Series and one team is hoping to dethrone the defending champs. The underdog is going to face the Goliath. The series should be fun. Be there!

Headline Sports with London Marq: What else will happen if Bonds gets elected to Hall of Fame?; How big was Terrell Owens’ mistake?; Braves’ Acuna accomplishes a great feat; plus more

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Photo credit: @Deadspin

On Headline Sports with London:

#1 Barry Bonds, who had his number retired by the San Francisco Giants last week, unofficially launches the campaign to have the former outfielder bid for the Hall of Fame. After all, that has been reported regarding steroid use by Bonds and his admitting to using the cream and the clear undetectable steroids unknowingly in grand jury testimony. If Bonds were elected to the Hall, will this also open the door to players like Jose Canseco, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Roger Clemens, Rafael Palmeriro and others to be voted into the Hall too?

#2 The A’s won their 21st one-run game of the season against the Seattle Mariners. They are now just one game back of the Houston Astros for first place in the AL West. The game was close and the M’s are trying to chase the A’s in the AL West for second, but the A’s now have taken two of the three game series from the Mariners.

#3 In football, people are still talking about how Terrell Owens broke with protocol and held his own Hall of Fame ceremony at his alma mater and not in Canton, Ohio at the Pro Football Hall of Fame. How big of a mistake was that move?

#4 The Atlanta Braves’ Ronald Acuna “Matata” Jr. is just having himself a time at the plate, homering in five consecutive games, three of those homers as a lead off hitter, accomplishing the feat that no other player has accomplished.

#5 The Oakland Raiders play game two of the preseason in LA against the Rams. The Raiders, who defeated the Detroit Lions 16-10 last Friday, face the Rams this Saturday. Talk about some of the things that head coach Jon Gruden will be looking for in this game and what does he expect out of his quarterback Derek Carr?

London Marq does the Headline Sports each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Giants experience another close finish in 2-1 loss to Astros

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Photo credit: @SFGiants

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — It seems that the San Francisco Giants starters have been snake bitten over the past two games versus the Houston Astros at AT&T Park.

Giants’ closer Will Smith was unable to hold on to a 1-0 lead on Monday night, and then Ray Black did the same in the series finale.

Black gave up his first hit since July 8 to Monday’s hero Marwin Gonzalez and then after striking out Yuli Gurriel, Tyler White hit a Black pitch into the left field seats and the Astros came back for the second straight day to defeat the Giants 2-1 before a sellout crowd of 41,613 at AT&T Park on Tuesday.

The win by the Astros gave them the season sweep four games to zero, as they also swept the Giants in May at Minute Maid Park.

This was the seventh loss in the last eight home games for the Giants, who are now 32-24 at AT&T Park this season.

One pitch prior to the White home run, Black threw a 96-mph high and tight, but then White hit the next pitch clocked at 99-mph into the seats.

Madison Bumgarner went seven innings, allowing zero runs on five hits, while walking three and striking out seven.

Chase d’Arnaud supplied the only offense that Bumgarner would get, as he lashed an opposite field single to right field to score Brandon Crawford from second base in the bottom of the second inning. Crawford led off the inning with a long double, and was able to score the early run, as he made a great headfirst slide around Astros catcher Max Stassi.

The day did not end well for d’Arnaud, as he was forced to leave the game in the bottom of the fourth inning, as he took a foul ball off the knee. d’Arnaud attempted to stay in the game, but the pain in his left leg was too painful, and Alen Hanson came to bat for d’Arnaud and struck out; however, the at-bat was charged to d’Arnaud instead of Hanson.

d’Arnaud suffered a left knee contusion on the foul ball, and Hanson eventually replaced d’Arnaud at second base.

Dallas Keuchel went six innings, allowing just one run on three hits, walked two and struck out five, as he did not fare in the decision.

The defensive plays of the game came in the top of the sixth inning, as White tripled to lead off the inning, but then on a ground ball hit by Josh Reddick down to Buster Posey at first base, Posey threw home to get White at the plate for the first out of the inning.

With Max Stassi at the plate, Reddick went to second on a Bumgarner wild pitch and then stole third base and then the bigger play than the force out at home came when Bumgarner’s pitch got away from Nick Hundley, but he was able to regroup and throw to Bumgarner, who tagged Reddick for the third out of the inning.

NOTES: Despite the fact that the Giants are one game under the .500 mark, they have spent 67 days either one game below .500, even at .500, or one game over .500, the most by any team in the major leagues this season. This is the third most days by the team since they moved to San Francisco in 1958, this according to STATS, LLC., and it is the most by the team since they spent 81 days hovering around that mark in 2006.

White’s home run was the 106th allowed by Giants’ pitchers, the second fewest of any team this season, with 44 coming at AT&T Park. The Cardinals’ pitching staff have allowed the fewest with 102 home runs.

The Giants’ first-round pick in the 2018 Amateur Draft, Joey Bart was named the Northwest League Player of the Month for July, as he hit .333 and led the NWL with nine home runs and 24 RBIs. Bart also picked up 18 extra base hits, 65 total bases, a slugging percentage of .747, an on-base percentage of 1.126 and also added a 10-game hitting streak from July 8-19.

This was the first time that the Giants lost consecutive games to the Astros since May 14 and 15, 2008.

Bumgarner allowed two triples for the first time in his career. Josh Reddick was the first left-handed batter to get a triple off of Bumgarner since Ender Inciarte of the Atlanta Braves on August 28, 2016.

UP NEXT: After a much-needed day off on Wednesday, the Giants begin a four-game series with the Pittsburgh Pirates, as Giants’ Andrew Suarez will take the mound in the opener and the Pirates will send Ivan Nova to the hill. Game one is set for Thursday at 7:15 pm PDT.

A’s rally in the 8th to beat the Astros again, 6-4

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Photo credit: @Athletics

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s did it again as they rallied to score three runs in the top of the eighth to beat the World Champion Houston Astros 6-4 at Minute Maid Park on Thursday. With the win, Oakland took three out of four in Houston.

The A’s are continuing to show everyone that they are for real. They are playing with a lot of confidence as they have now scored 69 runs in the eighth inning. They lead all of baseball in that department. The A’s have won eight games when trailing after seven innings. That, too, leads the Major Leagues. They are 35-0 when leading after seven innings and 44-0 when leading after eight. No one else in baseball is undefeated.

“When you do it so many times, you have confidence doing it,” manager Bob Melvin said. “And it was different guys today, too. At this point, it’s a true team effort, and that’s powerful when you have 25 guys contributing.”

Trevor Cahill started for the As. Cahill was activated off the 10-day DL. He struggled. Cahill went just 3 2/3 innings and allowed three runs and three hits.

Below is the game summary:

In the third inning, the Astros roughed up Cahill for two runs. With one out, Cahill issued walks to Tony Kemp and George Springer. Both advanced a base when Cahill uncorked a wild pitch. Astros’ third baseman Alex Bregman slammed a double to left to drive in Kemp and Springer.

The Astros made it 4-0 in the bottom of the fourth. Cahill retired the first two hitters: Evan Gattis and Marwin Gonzalez. Former A’s player, Max Stassi, singled. Melvin had seen enough, and he brought in Chris Hatcher to pitch to Kemp. However, that strategy failed as Kemp homered.

The A’s took it in stride as they mounted their comeback in the top of the fifth. Chad Pinder and Mark Canha singled to start the rally. Astros’ starter Charlie Morton to load the bases with no out. Nick Martini doubled to drive in Pinder and Canha. Lucroy went to third. Morton retired Semien for the first out. The next hitter, Stephen Piscotty, reached on an infield single. Lucroy scored on the play. The Astros made a pitching change. Morton was out, and Collin McHugh was in. McHugh retired the next two A’s hitters. The A’s trailed 4-3.

There was no more scoring in the game until the top of the eighth. Astros’ manager A.J. Hinch brought in Chris Devenski to pitch. The A’s Khris Davis and Matt Olson singled to get things going. The other Matt, third baseman Matt Chapman, doubled to left field to drive in Davis. Olson stopped at third. Devensiki retired Chad Pinder for the first out. Mark Canha followed with a single to deep left field to drive in Olson and Chapman. The A’s were now ahead 6-4, and they needed the bullpen to finish off the Astros.

Bob Melvin selected lefty Ryan Buchter to pitch the eighth. Buchter did his job as retired the Astros in order. Melvin went to the bullpen again, and this time he brought in Lou Trivino to close out the game. Trivino, a rookie sensation, came through once again as he, too, set the Astros down to secure the 6-4 win for the A’s.

Game Notes: The A’s are now 53-41 for the season and are a season-high 12 games over .500. Melvin used five pitchers, and Yusmeiro Petit was the winning pitcher. Trivino earned his fourth save. Chris Devenski took the loss for the Astros.

Up Next: The A’s conclude the three-city, 10-game road trip with three games against the San Francisco Giants. Edwin Jackson will pitch for Oakland, and he will be opposed by San Francisco lefty Madison Bumgarner. The first game of the Battle of the Bay Series will be on Friday at 7:15 pm PDT.

A’s rebound to beat Astros 8-3

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Photo credit: @Athletics

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s, who felt they should have beaten the Astros Tuesday night, rebounded from that ignominious loss and sent a message to the Houston-based team.

Their message? We are not the same guys that you beat eight times in the first nine games. We are a different team now, and we know that we can play with the big boys.  Just ask the Red Sox!

The A’s won the season series 4-2 and the Red Sox have the best record in baseball. The A’s have been playing well on the road, and their confidence has been building. They know that they are never out of any game, no matter what the score. They scored four runs in the ninth to tie Tuesday night’s game and took the lead in the 11th only to lose on a once-in-a-lifetime play.

Since the days when Tony LaRussa was the A’s skipper, the players have been to turn the page. Tony would tell them, “You can’t do anything about what happened yesterday. Forget what happened as today’s game is a new canvas.”

The young A’s did just that as they defeated Lance McCullers and the Astros by a score of 8-3. McCullers was making his fourth start of the year against the A’s. He owned a record of 3-0 and had a 1.89 ERA against the A’s. The A’s made a statement early in the game as they pounced on McCullers for three runs in the first and three more in the fourth. The hitting heroes for the A’s were Chad Pinder with a home run and Khris Davis with three RBIs.

With one out in the first inning, McCullers issued consecutive walks to Marcus Semien and Jed Lowrie. A’s DH, Khris Davis, extended his hitting streak to 13 with a double to drive Semien and Lowrie. Stephen Piscotty singled to send Davis to third, and Davis scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Matt Chapman to take a 3-0 lead.

The A’s tacked on three more runs in the top of the fourth. The rally started when McCullers hit Matt Chapman with a pitch. McCullers then walked Mark Canha. The next hitter, Chad Pinder, sent a McCullers pitch into the seat in left field to put the A’s ahead 6-0.

The Astros retaliated by scoring two in the bottom of the fourth. Alex Bregman continued his hot hitting with a single. AL MVP Jose Altuve followed with a single that sent Bregman to third. Altuve then stole second. Yuli Guriel drove in both runners with a single to right to make it a 6-2 game.

Astros’ first baseman Tyler White hit his first home run of the season in the fifth to inch his team a bit closer. The A’s got the run back in the top of the sixth. Former A’s pitcher Brad Peacock gave up a double to Marcus Semien. After retiring Jed Lowrie, Peacock could not get by Khris Davis. Davis hit a triple to deep center field to drive in Semien. Josh Phegley singled to right field in the top of the ninth to drive in the A’s eighth run of the game.

The A’s bullpen held the Astros scoreless after the fifth inning. Emilio Pagan allowed just one hit in two scoreless innings of work. Ryan Dull worked an inning, and Ryan Buchter pitched the ninth for Oakland. Oakland wins 8-3.

Game Notes: Chris Bassitt earned his second win of the year. He is now 2-3 and has a 3.38 ERA. He has won his last two starts. He pitched five innings and allowed three runs and five hits.

McCullers record dropped to 10-4. He worked just four innings and gave up six runs on four hits.

The A’s are now 4-2 on the road trip and are back to games over the .500 mark with a record of 52-41.

A’s right fielder Stephen Piscotty left the game in the fifth inning after he was hit by a pitch. The team confirmed that it was just a bruise.

Up Next: The A’s will conclude their road series against the Astros Thursday at 11:10 am PDT on the MLB Network.

Trevor Cahill will come off the 10-day DL and pitch for Oakland on Thursday. His record so far this season is 1-2 with a 2.77 ERA.

Cahill’s opponent will be Charlie Morton, who is 11-2 with a 2.77 ERA. Morton has won four of his last five starts.

A’s lose to Astros 6-5 on a bizarre play

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Photo credit: chron.com

By Jerry Feitelberg

There is an adage in baseball that goes something like this, “You never know what you are going to see in the game tonight.”

Was that ever true Tuesday night as the A’s lost on a play that will be remembered for a long, long time? The A’s came from behind to tie the game in the ninth. They took the lead, 5-4, on Stephen Piscotty’s home run in the 11th, but were not able to hold on as the Astros scored twice to win the game, 6-5, at Minute Maid Park on Tuesday night.

The Astros scored twice in the bottom of the 11th. The A’s All-Star closer Blake Treinen walked Josh Reddick. That proved to be Treinen’s undoing. Kyle Tucker singled to send Reddick to third. With the infield drawn in, Tony Kemp hit a ground ball to Marcus Semien. Semien’s throw home appeared to be in time to nail Reddick, but Jonathan Lucroy was not able to come upwith the throw and Reddick scored the tying run. Tucker went to second and Kemp was safe at first on a fielder’s choice. Treinen retired George Springer for the first out.

The next hitter was Alex Bregman. Bregman had homered twice in the game and Treinen was not about to give him anything that he could hit. Bregman hit a tapper that bounced off the plate and into fair territory. Bregman thought it was a foul, but when Lucroy tried to tag him out, Bregman jumped back. The ball squirted out of Lucroy’s hand and bounced off the home plate umpire. Lucroy picked up the ball but his  throw to first glanced off Bregman’s batting helmet and went down the first base line. Tucker scored the winning run. Bench coach Ryan Christenson who took over as manager when Bob Melvin was thrown out earlier in the game. He had to convince the umps to review the play. They finally did but the call was upheld and the game was over.

The A’s were held scoreless by Justin Verlander and two Houston relievers until the ninth inning. In the meantime, the Astros built a 4-0 lead. The Astros took an early 1-0 lead in the first when Alex Bregman clobbered his 18th big fly. The ‘Stros tacked on one in the second, one in the fourth and one in the seventh when Bregman homered again.

The A’s, as they have done so many times this season, plated four runs in the top of the ninth as they rocked Houston’s closer Ken Giles. Mark Canha and Jed Lowrie singled to start the rally. Khris Davis followed with a single to drive in Canha with Oakland’s first run. Matt Olson singled to drive in Lowrie. Gile struck out Piscotty and Matt Chapman, but he could not get by Marcus Semien, Semien, who had tripled and doubled earlier, doubled again to drive in Davis and Olson. The Astros failed to score in the bottom of the ninth and the game went into extra innings.

The A’s took the lead in the top of the eleventh when Stephen Piscotty did it again. He homered off Collin McHugh to put the A’s ahead 5-4. It was Piscotty’s 11th homer of the year and his fourth home in his last four game. The Astros rallied to score twice and they beat the A’s 6-5.

Game Notes: With the win, Houston improved to 612-32. The A’s fell to 51-41.

Blake Treinen blew the save and took the loss. His is record in now 5-2. McHugh was the winning pitcher for Houston.

Sean Manaea was not at his best Tuesday night. He went four-plus innings and allowed seven hits and three runs. He was not charged with the loss as the A’s got him off the hook with the four-run rally in the ninth.

Houston’s Justin Verlander pitched well as he went six innings and allowed no runs and just three hits. Verlander didn’t walk anyone and had six strikeouts. He threw 108 pitches and Houston manager A.J.Hinch removed him from the game.

The A’s announced that second baseman Jed Lowrie was selected to the AL All-Star team. Lowrie will be playing in the Midsummer classic for the first time and will be joining Blake Treinen representing the Green and Gold.

The A’s also made a roster move. They recalled Ryan Dull from Nashville and sent Frankie Montas down. The move initially appeared to be surprising as Montas pitched very well Monday night and was the winning pitcher. However, with the All-Star break starting next Monday and no action for four days, the A’s felt that it would be better for Montas to go to Nashville as he would not miss any playing time and he would be recalled when his turn would come up in the rotation.

Up Next: The A’s will send Chris Bassitt to the hill Wednesday night and the Astros will counter with Lance McCullers. Trevor Cahill pitches Thursday and Charlie Morton will work for the Astros. Game time is set for 5:10 pm PDT.

Astros complete sweep over the A’s with 7-3 rout

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Photo credit: @Athletics

By Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND — The Houston Astros pounded the A’s 7-3 at the O.co Coliseum on Thursday afternoon to complete a three-game sweep.

The Astros were in complete control for the entire three games and showed everyone why they are one of the best teams in all of baseball. They have the best starting rotation in baseball, and their everyday lineup is loaded with hitters loaded with confidence. They won a World Championship last year, and they are intent on going back to the playoffs and trying to win the big prize for the second year in a row.

Justin Verlander started for Houston and the big righty cruised to his ninth win of the year. Oakland starter Frankie Montas was no match for the powerful Astros’ offense, and he absorbed his first loss of the season.

With two out in the first inning, the Astros put two runs on the board. Carlos Correa singled and scored on Yuli Guriel’s double off the wall in left field. Josh Reddick singled to drive in Guriel with the second run of the inning. Reddick was thrown out trying to go to second on the throw home.

In the bottom of the second, A’s designated hitter, Khris Davis, homered to make it a 2-1 game. For Davis, it was his 20th big fly of the year and his third–all solo jobs–in the last two games. Verlander settled down ,and retired the next three A’s hitters in order.

The Astros plated their run of the game in the third inning. With one out, Montas walked Jose Altuve. Atuve advanced to second on a wild pitch and scored on Carlos Correa’s second single of the game to put the ‘Stros up 3-1.

The Astros’ offense continued the onslaught in the fourth. Montas retired the notorious A’s killer, Evan Gattis, for the first out. He then walked Marwin Gonzalez. Astros’ catcher Brian McCann slammed his fifth home run of the year into the seats in right field. The Astros lead 5-1 in the middle of the fourth.

In the top of the sixth, A’s third baseman Matt Chapman, who is a terrific fielder, had an inning that he would like to remove from his memory. Astros’ catcher Brian McCann hit a high pop up that Chappie lost in Oakland’s famous “high sky.” He couldn’t find the ball and when he did it bounced off his chest for an error. Tony Kemp followed with a smash that Chapman smothered but couldn’t make the play at first. The official scorer ruled it a hit. Alex Bregman hit a ground ball to Chapman Chapman stepped on third for the force out but his throw home sailed over Matt Olson’s glove. Kemp scored on the play and Bregman went to second. Chapman was charged with his second error of the inning. Jose Altuve doubled to drive in Bregman. A’s manager Bob Melvin walked to the mound and took the ball from Montas. Santiago Casilla retired the two Astros’ hitters necessary to end the inning. The score was 7-1 in favor of Houston.

Khris Davis led off the seventh with a high pop up that Astros’ first baseman Yuli Guriel could not find in the high sky. The ball dropped safely and Davis wound up on second base with a double. Matt Olson then took a Justin Verlander fastball into the right field bleacher for his 14th tater of the year and now trail the Astros 7-3.

The Astros’ manager A.J.Hinch used Chris Devenski in the 8th and Hector Rondon in the ninth as they shut down the A’s in order in each of the last two innings. Houston won 7-3.

Game Notes: With the win, the Astros improve to 45-25. The A’s are now one game under .500 with a mark of 34-35. Justin Verlander won his ninth game of the season while A’s starter Frankie Montas lost his first. Verlander went seven complete and allowed three runs and five hits. Montas pitched five and 1.3rd innings and was tagged for seven runs. Five were earned and two were unearned. Verlander is 9-2 and Montas is 3-1.

The Astros’ line score was seven runs on 13 hits and no errors. Brian McCann hit the Astros’ only home run.

All the A’s runs were the result of a home run. Khris Davis hit a solo job in the second and Matt Olson clobbered a two-run dinger in the seventh. The A’s scored three runs on five hits and they committed two errors on defense.

Thursday’s game with the Astros took two hours and 45 minutes.

13.009 fans were in attendance.

Up Next: The A’s finish the 10-game homestand with three games against the Los Angeles Angels.

The A’s Chris Bassitt (0-1, 1.29 ERA) will handle the pitching chores and he will be opposed by lefty Tyler Skaggs (5-4, 3.08 ERA).

Friday night’s game will start at 6:35 pm PDT.

There will be a fireworks show immediately after the game.

A’s call up Jake Smolinski, but Astros win in yet another laugher 13-5

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Photo credit: @Athletics

By Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND — The Houston Astros continued their dominance over the Oakland A’s once again as they won in a laugher 13-5 at O.co Coliseum on Wednesday night.

The Astros are now 7-1 against the A’s this season and have won 26 of the last 34 games played between the two teams. Houston has won all five games played here in Oakland, and they must just salivate when they get on the plane to face the A’s.

The Astros changed the words of the late mayor of Boston, James Curley, who once said, “Vote often and early” to score often and early. They plated three runs in the first and seven in the second. Their designated hitter, Evan Gattis, homered twice and drove in five runs as he waged war on the A’s pitchers. Gattis has three homers and 10 RBIs in two games played thus far. The A’s are likely hoping that Gattis will be too tired to play on Thursday.

The Astros continued their onslaught on the A’s pitching staff in the very first inning of the game. George Springer and Jose Altuve singled to get Houston going. Blackburn walked Carlos Correa to load the bases with no out. The cleanup hitter, Yuli Guriel, who leads the league in batting average (.444) with RISP (Runners in Scoring Position) singled to put two runs on the board for the Astros. Correa went to third on the play and scored on an Evan Gattis sacrifice fly. The Astros led 3-0 with the A’s coming to bat. The A’s didn’t score in their half.

The Astros sent 10 men to the plate in the top of the second. They had six hits and scored seven runs. A’s manager Bob Melvin had to go to the bullpen as the Astros had their attack in full gear. The Astros scored three times and had two men on with one out when Melvin brought in Emilio Pagan to face Evan Gattis. Gattis, who drove in five runs on Tuesday, slammed his 12th bomb of the year to put the Astros ahead 9-0. Marwin Gonzalez, playing third base, followed with his fifth homer to put the Astros in the lead 10-0 in the middle of the second inning.

In the bottom of the fourth, Oakland put three on the board. Khris Davis started the frame with a single. Gerrit Cole retired the next two hitters before walking Marcus Semien. A’s right fielder Stephen Piscotty took Cole deep for his fourth home run of the year to make it a 10-3 game.

The A’s continued to chip away at the lead as Khris Davis led off the bottom of the sixth with his 18th tater of the season. Cole escaped with no further damage. The A’s still have a long way to go to get back into the game as they trail 10-4 after six complete.

Gattis continued to punish Oakland pitching. He hit his second home run of the night on the first pitch from lefty Daniel Coulombe to make it 11-4. Gattis has faced Coulombe three times and has homered twice.

Melvin brought in outfielder Jake Smolinski to pitch the ninth. Smolinski was making his  Major League debut as a pitcher. Things did not go well for him as he gave up a double to Max Stassi and Jake Marisnick homered to give Houston the lead 13-5. Smolinski retired the next three hitters. The A’s went down in order in the ninth to end the game. The Astros won 13-5.

Game Notes and Info: With the win, the Astros improve to 44-25 and remain just 1/2 game behind the Seattle Mariners in the race for first place in the AL West. The Mariners beat the LA Angels earlier in the day.

Gerrit Cole was the winning pitcher. Cole is 8-1 for Houston this season. He went six innings and gave up six hits and four runs.

Two of the A’s hits were home runs by Stephen Piscotty and Khris Davis.

A’s starter Paul Blackburn had a very rough outing. He lasted just 1 1/3 innings. He gave up eight hits and was charged with eight runs. Emilio Pagan relieved him in the second inning, and Pagan gave up back-to-back home runs to Evan Gattis and Marwin Gonzalez. The hitting stars for Oakland were Khris Davis with two homers and Stephen Piscotty with a three-run blast. Blackburn’s record is now 1-1, and his ERA rocketed from 1.50 to 11.05.

There were just 9,164 fans in the park watching, and the game took three hours and five minutes to play.

Up Next: The two teams conclude the three-game series Thursday afternoon at 12:30 pm PDT.

Oakland will send Frankie Montas to the Hill. Montas has won all three of his starts since being recalled from Nashville, and he has a 1.25 ERA.

Justin Verlander (8-2, 1.45 ERA) will pitch for Houston.