Tag: Oakland A’s

Oakland A’s manager Mark Kotsay expresses his displeasure in front of second base umpire Laz Diaz in the bottom of the eighth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at the Oakland Coliseum Wed Aug 21, 2024 (AP News photo)

Tampa Bay (64-62) 000 020 200 4 7 1

Athletics (54-73) 100 001 000 2 5 0

Time:2:32

Attendance: 10,339

Wednesday, August 21, 2024

Oakland, CA

By Lewis Rubman

Serial A’s killer José Siri, right handed pitcher Ryan Pepiot, and minor league call up umpire Brock Ballou combined to give the team from the western end of the Tamiami Trail a 4-2 triumph over the Erewhon A’s in this Wednesday night’s third game of their four game series.

A night earlier, the Athletics had battled the Rays to a scoreless tie until there were two out in the top of the eighth before succumbing 1-0. Wednesday night, JJ Bleday’s first inning home run, a 373 foot dinger to right, his 17th round trip shot of the year, was too late and, as it turned out, too little to overcome the dashing and resourceful Floridians, who lead the majors in steals since the All-Star break.

Bleday also figured in the Rays’ tying the score in the top of the fifth. He made a diving attempt to catch Siri’s dying quail in center field only to have the ball bounce off the heel of his upturned glove, allowing José Caballero to race to third and then score on Jonny DeLuca’s grounder that forced Siri out at second. Yandy Díaz then drove DeLuca home with the go ahead tally.

In the bottom of the sixth, Lawrence Butler raised the utopian hope that the Athletics might somehow pull off a win, doubling to left and scoring the tying run on Brent Rooker’s single to center. I call the hope utopian because utopia is Latin for nowhere, hence my reference to the Erewhon A’s in the first paragraph. In 1872, the British writer Samuel Butler wrote a once well known novel he called Erewhon. Pedantry and word play can take the sting out of the double loss of a tight game and a tightwad team owner.

Mitch Spence didn’t quite perform up to the standards of Joe Boyle on Monday or Joey Estes on Tuesday, but, even though he made a few mistakes (and what pitcher doesn’t?), he had little to be ashamed of. He struck out ten Rays in seven innings on the mound, allowing four runs on seven hits, one of them a serious four bagger from Tampa Bays’ interstate dwelling center fielder, who, even after three straight scorching games, still is looking up at the Mendoza line.

Nonetheless, the one time Yankee farm hand threw only 30 balls out of 105 total pitches, only to be charged with his ninth loss against seven wins and see his ERA creep up to 4.67. JT Ginn, promoted from the AAA Las Vegas Aviators on Tuesday, made an impressive big league debut, giving up one walk and striking out three opposing batters while shutting out the Rays in the two final frames.

Tampa Bay’s Ryan Pepiot celebrated his 27th birthday by earning a win that improved his record to 7-5, 3.65. His performance was a notch above Spence’s. The Athletics got to him for two runs, both earned, on five hits, one of them Bleday’s homer in the first.

He gave up one walk and hit one batter while striking out five of the 23 he faced. Half of his 105 offerings were balls. Drew Rassmussen, Garrett Clevinger, and Manuel Rodríguez held the A’s scoreless in the one inning that each of them spent on the bump. Rodríguez earned the save, his first.

Wednesday night’s game had the distinction of featuring the ejection of both teams’ managers. In the seventh, the Rays’ Kevin Cash was tossed by plate umpire Brock Ballou, whose atrocious work behind the plate was non-partisan, and A’s skipper Mark Kotsay got the heave-ho from first base arbiter Erich Bacchus in the eighth.

The A’s will try to even the series Thursday, at 12:37 in the afternoon. The Athletics will send righty Osvaldo Bido (4-3, 3.40), who gave up two walks and an infield single in his last start, beating the Giants on August 17th. The Rays will counter with southpaw Jeffrey Springs (1-1,3.86).

Tampa Bay Rays starter Shane Baz heads to the dugout in the bottom of the fifth inning against the Oakland A’s at the Oakland Coliseum on Tue Aug 20, 2024 (AP News photo)

Tampa Bay (63-62). 000 000 010. 1 3 0

Athletics (54-72). 000 000 000. 0 3 0

Time: 1:54

Attendance: 4,377

Tuesday, August 20, 2024

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND–We’ve become accustomed to well pitched, tight games at the site of the doomed pleasure palace off the Nimitz freeway, and this Tuesday night’s contest between the flirting with .500 Floridians from Tampa Bay and the too late surging Oakland Athletics (54-72) about to desert the bay for Sacramento and the desert was no exception. The Tampa Bay Rays (63-62) wound up on top, 1-0, in a game that could have gone either way.

The Athletics’ starting pitcher Joey Estes, hadn’t been part of the team’s recent renaissance that had given them a 24-15 record since July 1, the fourth best in the majors and earned them sole possession in the AL West, but he sure did pitch masterfully Tuesday night.

The 22 year old right hander pitched deep into the game, 7-2/3 innings, before Estes surrendered his third, and final hit. Unfortunately, it was a home run to José Siri, a 415 foot blast that went over the Sports California sign in center field, his 15th round tripper and 39th RBI of the year.

It brought his batting average up to .195. Aside from that one bad pitch, a 92 mph four seamer, you couldn’t have asked Estes for a better performance. A double by Yandy Díaz in the sixth was the only other extra base hit he allowed.

Estes faced 19 batters, throwing them 94 pitches, only 27 of them balls, issuing but one free pass. But he took the loss, leaving him with a record of 5-6, 4.44. Michel Otáñez got Yandy Díaz to ground out to short for the third out and then put the Rays down in order in the ninth.

Tampa Bay’s Shane Baz was just a smidgen better than Estes. He, too, lasted 7-2/3 frames and surrendered three hits . He walked three and struck out four. All of the hits against him were singles. 31 of his 92 deliveries were balls.

The win improved his season’s record to 1-2, 3.48). Edwin Uceda relieved Daz after Darell Hernaíz got the A’s third and final hit. He pitched a perfect ninth to earn his first save.

Miguel Andj́ar, Sean Langeliers, and Darell Hernaíz were the only A’s not held hitless. Langeliers’ safety was on a high bouncing ball to third. Tampa Bay’s Díaz was the only batter on either team logged a multi-hit game.

The match up for the third encounter of this four game series will start Wednesday, evening at 6:40pm PT and feature right handers Mitch Spence (7-8 , 4.54) for the Athletics and Ryan Pepiot (6-5, 3.69). If it’s anything like the first two games of this series, it’ll be great fun to watch.

Oakland A’s starter Joe Boyle delivers against the Tampa Bay Rays in the top of the first inning at the Oakland Coliseum on Mon Aug 19, 2024 (AP News photo)

Tampa Bay (62-62) 000 000 000 0 2 1

Athletics (54-70) 200 010 00x 3 6 1

Time: 2:22

Attendance: 3,938

Monday, August 19, 2024

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND–This comfortable August evening, the incipient I’m a Stranger Here Myself Athletics, fresh from splitting and coming within a hare’s breath of sweeping the Bay Bridge Series, opened a four game series Monday night against the team representing the region spanned by another Bay Bridge, the one that connects Tampa and St. Petersburg.

The resultant 3-0 Athletic triumph brought the team’s record to 54-71, playing well above .500 since July 1st, the fourth best in the majors since that date. The Rays fell to 62-62.The attendance was a little over 10% of Saturday evening’s afternoon crowd for the Giants game and less than 10% of the number of mourners at Sunday afternoon’s wake.

The unhoused occupants of the homeless encampment known as the Coliseum got six full and shut out innings out of southpaw Joy Boyle, who dispatched the 24 Rays he faced on two hits, a walk, and a wild pitch.

His brilliant performance earned him his third win against five losses while reducing his ERA to 6.21. Grant Holman and TJ McFarland, held the Rays off the board in the seventh and eighth frames, respectively. The former allowed a base on balls; each of them notched a strikeout. Mason Miller came through with his 19th save, allowing only a 3-2, two out walk to José Siri.

The A’s opened the scoring early and never looked back. Lawrence Butler drew a leadoff walk against Rays starter Taj Bradley, who did a pretty good job on the mound himself. Indeed, he followed Butler’s free pass by whiffing Brett Rooker.

JJ Bleday, however, had Bradley’s number. Bleday’s were 16 (his HR total for the season), 388 (the feet it travelled into the left field seats), 102.6 (the blast’s exit velocity), and 91.2 (the speed of Bradley’s 1-1 four seamer). The green and gold scored only once more, but with the pitching they got, even that was superfluous.

Zack Gelof defied The Curse of the Leadoff Double. Max Schuermann sacrificed him over to third, and Butler’s 362 foot sac fly to right brought him home for the final tally of the game.

Bradley was charged with the loss, which left him with a record of 6-8, 3.55. Like Boyle, Tampa Bay’s starter had toiled six frames before his exit. He gave up five hits, and the three runs scored against him were earned. He struck out three and walked two.

53 of his 89 deliveries counted as strikes. Richard Loveland allowed a single to Abraham Toro, struck out Gelof and Butler, and uncorked a wild pitch while shutting out the A’s in the seventh. Joel Kuhnel, recalled earlier in the day from the Durham Bulls, struck out a couple of Athletics in a perfect eighth.

The Athletics benefited from a replay review in the bottom of the fourth. Seth Brown originally was called safe at first on what would have been a 6-4-3 double play. Tampa Bay challenged the decision, which was overruled, and Brown was out on a 6-4-3 double play.

Another intimate gathering is expected Tuesday, evening at 6:40. Right handers Shane Baz (0-2, 4.21) of the Rays and Joey Estes (5-5, 4.72) for the As will entertain the guests.