Tag: mlb

Sandoval’s infield hit gets the job done in Giants’ 4-3 win over Mariners

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @SFGiants

By Jeremy Kahn

After two tough losses to the Oakland A’s over the weekend, the San Francisco Giants wanted to get back in the win column in a hurry in their current series against the Seattle Mariners.

Pablo Sandoval hit an infield single in the top of the ninth inning that Dee Gordon was unable to handle, as his throw went away from Ryon Healy and the Giants defeated the Mariners 4-3 at Safeco Field Monday night.

Steven Duggar scored the winning run, as he was on second base after he advanced an additional 90 feet on a Alen Hanson groundout.

Sandoval was hitting for Chase d’Arnaud, who drove in the first Giants run of the evening in the top of the third inning, as he hit an infield single that scored Kelby Tomlinson, who tripled just prior to the d’Arnaud infield hit.

Guillermo Heredia tied up the game in the bottom of the third inning, as he took an Andrew Suarez offering over the center-field wall.

Tomlinson gave the Giants the lead once again in the top of the fourth inning, as he singled to score Brandon Crawford.

Unfortunately, the lead was short-lived, as former Giants centerfielder Denard Span hit a sacrifice fly to Nelson Cruz from third base.

The Giants took the lead for the third time on the night, as Hunter Pence hit his first home run of the season in the top of the sixth inning, a home run that was measured at 445 feet and went off of the facade of the upper deck in left field.

Suarez got into trouble in the bottom of the sixth inning, as he gave up a leadoff single to Kyle Seager; however, Healy then grounded into a double play and it looked like Suarez might get out of the jam, but it was that man Span again. Span walked, and that was the end of the night for Suarez.

Reyes Moronta came into the game, and the usually solid Moronta then walked Mike Zunino and then pinch-hitter Ben Gamel singled off of Moronta to score Span with the tying run; therefore, within two batters, Suarez went from the win to not getting a decision.

Suarez went 5.2 innings, allowing three runs on eight hits, walking two and striking out one on the night.

Despite the walk and the single allowed by Moronta, the bullpen was outstanding, as Moronta, Sam Dyson, Tony Watson and Will Smith combined for 3.1 innings, allowing just one hit, one walk and a strikeout.

Dyson struck out two in his only inning of work, before giving way to Watson and the left-hander, shut down the Mariners in order and then Smith struck out two of the three batters he faced to pick-up his fourth save of the season.

Austin Slater came up with the defensive play of the night, as he threw out Seager at the plate on a Zunino single in the bottom of the fourth inning.

James Paxton, who threw a no-hitter earlier in the season was supposed to start the series opener for the Mariners; however, his back flared up over the weekend and he was unable to go.

Roenis Elias got the start for the Mariners, and he went just 3.2 innings, allowing two runs and threw a season-high 75 pitches on the night.

NOTES: The game will be on Facebook only with Rich Waltz, former Giants pitcher Shawn Estes and Ryan Rowland-Smith on the call.

Evan Longoria’s rehab stint will continue with the Sacramento Rivercats for a few more days, as Longoria was hit by a pitch and suffered a triceps contusion on Sunday. Joe Panik will begin his rehab assignment on Thursday, as he recovers from a groin strain he suffered on July 7 against the St. Louis Cardinals.

UP NEXT: The Giants and Mariners will conclude their series Wednesday afternoon at 1:10 pm PDT.

Derek Holland will start the finale for the Giants, as Jeff Samardzija is on the disabled list for the third time this season with a sore right shoulder.

Mariners manager Scott Servais will send former Giants pitcher Mike Leake to the hill, as he looks to improve to 9-6 on the season.

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

Published on by rxsluggerLeave a comment

Photo credit: mlb.com

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

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

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

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

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @Orioles

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.

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

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

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

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

Published on by rxsluggerLeave a comment

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

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: mercurynews.com

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

 

 

Bay Bridge Series: A’s and Giants–Two Teams Going in Different Directions

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: twitter.com

By: Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

OAKLAND, Calif. — The Oakland A’s took four out the six games from the San Francisco Giants these past two weekends and the A’s won the first ever Bay Bridge Series trophy. The A’s won two out of three at AT&T Park and did the same at the Oakland Coliseum. The two Bay Area teams crossed path like two ships in the open sea with one full steam ahead and the other one just trying to stay afloat.

The A’s acquired Mets closer Jeurys Familia, and on his first day with the A’s on Sunday, the Dominican native saw action as he pitched two effective innings in relief and won the game. Now, Familia is 5-4 and comes from the Mets–a team going nowhere with perhaps a seize of taking the cellar-dweller status away from the Marlins–with 17 saves in 21 opportunities. The A’s are contenders and still looking to land a starter.

On Saturday, a new attendance record was set at the Oakland Coliseum since 1968–a record-setting 56,318 in attendance as Mount Davis was opened to the public for the first time in 13 years. On Friday, 45,606 followed by Sunday’s 44,379. A grand total of 146,303 attended for part two of the Bay Bridge Series.

It is good to see this great rivalry. Also, the Bay Area Champion Trophy was a great idea. At the Coliseum this weekend, a lot of families were in attendance–many of whom had different loyalties. So it was not rare to see,some A’s fans and some Giants fans in the same family. As I walked around for an hour before game time, I noticed nothing but joy among the fans during this great series, the first in Oakland since the All-Star Break, with good weather.

Right now, the Giants have a much different look. Right now, the A’s are young, aggressive and exciting as they’re hitting home runs in bunches, while the Giants are pretty much a veteran ball club trying to hold on and return to the form of their most recent odd-year dynasty.

The Giants have a superb fan base and likely do not want to mention the word “rebuild” and they are hoping against hope that their team have enough to make a comeback. They’re playing in a division, where it looks like the Dodgers (now with Manny Machado) are the favorites to win for a six straight time and maybe earn themselves another trip to another World Series. Duggar, Slater, Moronta and Suárez are some of the young blood on the Giants’ roster trying to make an impression compared to the veterans. Only time will tell, but if the Giants continue to hover around the .500 mark, the powers-to-be might have to star selling players before July 31. In a way, they are very lucky to be playing in the NL West, where nobody has gotten really hot, taken first place and opened a big lead.

But I notice that these two teams are going in different directions. The A’s are playing four games starting tomorrow at Arlington, Texas, against the last-place Texas Rangers, three at Denver against the contending Colorado Rockies, and then return home on July 30 for a eight-game homestand over 10 days–three versus the Toronto Blue Jays, three versus the Detroit Tigers, and finally, a two-game set versus the Dodgers.

The Giants head to Seattle for a couple of games at Safeco Field against the Mariners next Tuesday and Wednesday, travel back to San Francisco to host the contending Milwaukee Brewers for four games and then fly to San Diego to close out July against the Padres for a brief two-game series.

Will the Giants ‘back up the truck’ if by then? If they have not made a run? Only the shadow knows. Stay tuned.

Obviously, the Giants want to continue with this cast and hope that Joe Panik and Evan Longoria get back to play and roll the dice! It’s interesting enough that the Giants’ No. 1 pitcher Madison Bumgarner and No. 2 pitcher Johnny Cueto have not fared that well after coming out of the DL. This Sunday, Cueto gave up four home runs–two to Khris Davis and two to Matt Olson. When Cueto was pitching this week, he doesn’t give the long-ball with that frequency, but the A’s continue to hit home runs with the best of teams in baseball this season.

The Giants have a lot of big contracts locked to players like Cueto, Samardzija and Melancon, while they will have to make a decision with Bumgarner…to extend his contract or even trade him in the current market where everybody is looking for pitchers. We will also find out if other guys like veteran outfielder Andrew McCutchen will say ‘adios’ to San Francisco.

Amaury Pi-González is on his 41st season of broadcasting the MLB. He’s currently broadcasting for the A’s (his first team in 1977) and has also broadcasted the Giants, Angels and Mariners. In 2010, the Cuban-born broadcaster was inducted into the Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame (BARHOD) alongside Jon Miller and Gary Radnich. As far as baseball in Spanish, Pi-Gonzalez is only the second broadcaster in the country as the longtime Spanish voice of the Dodgers, trailing Jaime Jarrin, who has been broadcasting for over 50 years.

Chapman’s walk-off single wins it for the A’s 6-5 over the Giants in extras

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @Athletics

By Jeremy Kahn

OAKLAND — Matt Chapman ended the weekend with one swing of the bat, and gave the Bay Bridge Series to the Oakland A’s.

Chapman hit a single off of Brandon Crawford’s foot and bounced into the outfield, to give the A’s a thrilling 6-5 victory over the San Francisco Giants in 10 innings before a sellout crowd of 44,374 at the Coliseum on Sunday.

Marcus Semien led off the bottom of the 10th with a walk off of eventual losing pitcher Ty Blach, Semien stole second with Stephen Piscotty at the plate. Piscotty then flew out for the first out and then Blach intentionally walked Khris Davis to get to Matt Olson, who flew out for the second out and then Chapman ended it with his single.

With the loss, the Giants are now just one game over .500 at 51-50, and are now five games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West.

This game went back and forth in the later innings, as Andrew McCutchen hit a solo home run in the top of the eighth inning that gave the Giants a 5-4 lead. However, that lead was short-lived, as Davis hit his second home run of the afternoon in the bottom half of the inning to tie up the game.

Sean Manaea was outstanding for the A’s, as he did not allow a base runner until Nick Hundley singled with one out in the top of the fifth inning and then two batters later, Austin Slater broke up the shutout for Manaea, as he doubled off the right-center field wall.

Manaea went 6.2 innings, allowing just two run, while scattering four hits, not walking a batter and striking out five, but he did not fare in the decision.

Johnny Cueto went seven innings, allowing four runs, on six hits, walking two and striking out three, but did not fare in the decision.

Cueto struggled to get to seven innings pitched, as he gave up three home runs, before giving way to Melancon in the bottom of the eighth inning.

Davis hit a home run, a two-run blast and that was the first of three home runs allowed by Cueto on the afternoon, as he gave up two home runs to Matt Olson in the bottom of the fourth and sixth innings, respectively.

Nick Martini got the A’s first inning going, as he legged out an infield single and then three batters later, Davis hit the first pitch he saw from Cueto into the left field seats to give the A’s an early 2-0 lead.

Olson extended the lead up to 3-0 in the bottom of the fourth inning, as he took a Cueto offering and put it into the right field seats for his 20th home run of the season.

After the Slater double that scored Hundley in the top of the fifth inning, Olson launched his second home run of the game and 21st of the season in the bottom of the sixth inning.

It was the second two-homer game of the season for Olson, and the fourth of his career.

The Giants put together a rally in the top of the seventh inning, as Hundley picked up his second hit of the afternoon, and then two batters later, Slater followed up his second hit of the afternoon.

After Brandon Crawford made the second out of the inning, Manaea was replaced by Emilio, who immediately gave up a single to Slater and that was all for Pagan, as Leo Trivino came on to face pinch hitter Pablo Sandoval, who then cut the A’s lead down to 4-3, as he doubled off the right-center field wall.

The Giants were not done, as pinch-hitter Alen Hanson then singled to score pinch runner Steven Duggar to tie up the game.

NOTES: This is the second meeting of the season between the two teams, as they split a two-game series at AT&T Park on April 3 and 4.

UP NEXT: After an off day on Monday, the Giants continue to play the American League West on the road, as they travel to Seattle and open a brief two-game series against the Mariners on Tuesday night at 7:10 pm PDT. Andrew Suarez will take the ball in the opener, while the Mariners will send James Paxton to the mound.

Lucroy’s walk-off single lifts A’s past Giants 4-3 in extras

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @Athletics

By Jeremy Kahn

OAKLAND — Jonathan Lucroy ended the game with one swing of the bat when the Oakland A’s needed it the most.

Lucroy hit a walk-off single in the bottom of the 11th inning, helping the A’s to a 4-3 victory over the San Francisco Giants before a sellout crowd of 56,310 at the Coliseum on Saturday night.

“Hard fought game,” said manager Bruce Bochy.

It was the second walk-off of the season for Lucroy, with his first coming on June 17 against the Los Angeles Angels and it was the seventh game-ending RBI of Lucroy’s career.

Things looked bleak for the Giants in the top of the ninth inning, as A’s closer Blake Treinen came to close it out; however, a funny thing happened on the way to the game ending.

Treinen was able to retire Buster Posey and Pablo Sandoval, but then Alen Hanson reached on a wild pitch after he struck out with the game on the line.

Hunter Pence then tied up the game with a double down the right field line that easily scored the speedy Hanson from first base.

A’s manager Bob Melvin came out to argue that the Pence ball was interfered with in the bullpen area; however, after a 1:18 review, the play stood and the game was tied.

“It is a ground-rule, and Hanson scored easily,” said Bochy.

The A’s loaded the bases in the bottom of the ninth inning, as Tony Watson gave up back-to-back singles to Matt Olson and Matt Chapman and then Reyes Moronta came on to replace Watson.

Moronta then got Chad Pinder to sacrifice Olson and Chapman to second and third, and then after an intentional walk to pinch hitter Nick Martini, Moronta then got Marcus Semien to ground into an inning-ending double play.

Andrew McCutchen drew walk against Treinen in the top of the 10th inning with one out, but Treinen struck out both Brandon Crawford and Buster Posey to end the inning.

Madison Bumgarner gave up four walks and a base hit in the bottom of the fifth inning that gave the A’s a 3-1 lead on the Giants.

Olson led off the fifth with a single, then Chapman, Chad Pinder, Josh Phegley and Marcus Siemen all walked against Bumgarner and that was the end of the night for the left-hander.

“First four innings, I was cruising and then in the fifth, I could not find the corner,” said Bumgarner.

Phegley’s walk tied up the game, then Semien’s walk gave the A’s lead for the first time and after Bumgarner was lifted for Sam Dyson, Mark Canha grounded into a double play that scored Pinder with the final run of the inning.

“Dyson kept it close for us,” said Bochy, as the reliever went two innings, and allowed a walk and a strikeout before being replaced by Ray Black in the top of the seventh inning.

The combined five walks in the fifth inning are the most in an inning for the Giants since they walked five in the bottom of the fourth inning against the Cincinnati Reds on July 3, 2007 at Great American Ballpark. Barry Zito allowed the five walks in that fourth inning, a game that the Giants would lose 7-3 to the Reds.

Bumgarner went just four innings, allowing three runs on two hits, walking six and striking out and he did not fare in the decision. The streak of 89 consecutive starts that Bumgarner went at least five innings came to an end, the 89 consecutive starts were a major league high.

The six walks by Bumgarner were a career-high, as he gave up five walks four times in his career, with the last time coming against the Milwaukee Brewers on April 4, 2016 at Miller Park.

Brandon Belt returned from the paternity list after the birth of his son August (Augie), and hit his 14th home run of the season in the top of the fourth inning to give the Giants a 1-0 lead.

The Belt home run was the first hit that the Giants got off of Trevor Cahill on the evening, and was just the second runner that Cahill allowed to reach prior to the sixth inning, which was the end of the line for Cahill.

In all, Cahill went 5.2 innings, allowing just one run on two hits, but he did not fare in the decision.

Cahill got into a jam in the top of the sixth inning, as he gave up a leadoff single to Hunter Pence, then Cahill regrouped to strikeout both Gorkys Hernandez and Steven Duggar consecutively. Unfortunately, Cahill then walked to load the bases and Cahill’s night was done and Ryan Buchter came on to replace Cahill.

Buchter then was able to get Crawford to strikeout to end the inning and the threat for the Giants.

Crawford made the defensive play of the game in the bottom of the sixth inning, as he ran from his position at shortstop to make a running catch off of foul ball from Olson. Pablo Sandoval was in the shift, and nowhere near third base and Crawford reached out to make the running catch in the Coliseum’s very deep foul territory.

In the bottom of the 11thinning, Crawford made another great defensive play, as he slid to catch an Olson fly ball that would have easily fallen in for an easy double for Olson with one out.

As fate would have it, Will Smith then gave up back-to-back singles to Chapman and Pinder and then Lucroy ended it with a single.

Pence got the Giants within one in the top of the seventh inning, as he singled up the middle to score Posey easily from third base.

The Pence single came off of Leo Trivino, after he replaced Buchter with one out in the inning after Hanson hit a single that sent Posey to third base.

All in all, Pence went 3-for-5 at the plate, including that double in the top of the ninth inning that tied up the game.

“Nice game by Hunter,” said Bochy.

Trivino was able to get out of the jam, as he struck out Hernandez and then was able to get Duggar to ground out to Jed Lowrie at second base to end the inning.

Treinen came on in the top of the ninth inning, and was unable to pick-up his 25thsave in 28 opportunities. In all, Treinen threw 44 pitches, the most by the reliever since April 18 against the Chicago White Sox and it was the sixth time in his career that he threw 40 or more pitches in a game in his career that spans 254 games.

NOTES: Ryder Jones was optioned back to Sacramento after Belt was activated from the Paternity List to the game.

Belt’s newborn’s full name is August “Augie” Kyle Belt, and he joins older brother Grayson, who will be four years old in August.

The baby is named after Belt’s former head coach at the University of Texas, the late Augie Garrido, whom Belt played for in 2008 and 2009.

Garrido, who passed away in March of 2018 was the winningest coach in NCAA Baseball history until current Florida State Head Coach Mike Martin passed him. The veteran coach led both Cal State Fullerton and Texas to the College World Series 15 times, winning five of them for the Titans and Longhorns.

The 56,310 in attendance broke the record of 55,989 that packed the Coliseum on June 26, 2004, when the A’s’ defeated the Giants 8-7 in 10 innings, when Marco Scutaro singled in Bobby Kielty. Octavio Dotel picked the win for the A’s, while Jim Brower took the loss for the Giants. This was also the largest crowd in the Major Leagues during the 2018 season.

UP NEXT: The Giants and A’s will meet again Sunday afternoon at 1:05 pm PDT.

Johnny Cueto looks for his fourth win on Sunday afternoon, as he takes the mound for the Giants in the last regular season meeting against the A’s this year. Sean Manaea will go for the A’s, as he looks for his 10th win of the season.