Tag: Oakland A’s

Oakland Starling Marte gestures after hitting a two RBI double in the bottom of the seventh inning against the Houston Astros at the Oakland Ring Central Coliseum on Fri Sep 24, 2021 (AP News photo)

Houston 2 – 2 – 0

Oakland 14 – 14 – 1

By Lewis Rubman

Friday September 24, 2021

OAKLAND–Going into their penultimate series with Houston, with only the wan hope of retaining their sliver of a chance of winning the second wild card slot and everything to lose, it seemed as though the A’s might have caught a break when Houston’s Zack Greinke, tonight’s scheduled starter for the Astros, was placed on the club’s injured list with a sore neck and replaced on the mound by Brandon Bielak, a 24 year old with the grand total of 79 major league innings pitched under his belt and a record of 3-3, 4.21 in this, his second season in the show.

But the 37 year old Greinke is an old man by baseball standards and, at 11-6, 4.11, was sporting numbers only marginally better than those of Bielak, who had defeated the Athletics in relief at the Coliseum on April 4 with 4-2/3 innings of no hit, no run moundcraft.

He was up against Frankie Montás, who was exceptionally sharp in his last outing, five days ago in Anaheim, when he held the Angels to one hit in seven scoreless innings to bring his year’s record to 12-9, 3.57.

When the dust had settled and the crowd of 21,107 got ready to watch the fireworks that had enticed them into attendance,

The game started inauspiciously for the home. team. José Altuve smacked a sharp grounder to Matt Chapman at third, who airmailedthe throw way over Matt Olson’s head at first. Altuve kept motoring all the way to third, where Olson’s throw beat to the bag.

But Chapman couldn’t handle the throw, and Altuve was 90 feet from home on a three base error by Oakland’s Gold and Platinum Glove winning third sacker.

Alex Bregman, another slick fielding third baseman, put runners on the corners by getting hit by a 96 mph sinker. Yuri Gurriel’s sac fly to Seth Brown in right drove in Altuve with the first tally of evening. Montás, showing a great deal of poise, put a stop to the Astro’s attack by striking Yordán Alvarez and Carlos Correa out.

Oakland went on the offensive in their half of the first. Josh Harrison drive bounced past Bregman into left for a lead off single. Starling Marte followed with another single to left, and the A’s had runners on first and second and the powerful Matt Olson at bat with no outs.

The powerful Matt Olson took an 89 mph change up for a called third strike. With Mark Canha at the plate, Harrison broke for second. Houston catcher Martín Maldonado threw behind him to Altuve at second, whose throw to Bregman easily retired Harrison at third for the second out. Marte’s advancing to second on the play didn’t matter; Canha went down swinging.

Leading off in the third frame, Altuve continued to bedevil the A’s and their fans, who took special delight in booing him, by driving a 3-2 pitch over the State Farm advertisement in left center for his 30th round tripper of the year. It was Houston’s first hit of the game.

Oakland got two runners on base with one out in the third on walks to Andrus and Harrison. Marte came through with a single to center that scored Andrus and sent Harrison to third. Olson also came through in the same way, scoring Harrison and sending Marte to third.

Canha’s sac fly to McCormick in left center gave the A’s a 3-1 lead before Brown flew out, also to Mc Cormick, in straightaway left field to end the inning, leaving the Athletics up by a run.

Bielak didn’t come out for the fourth. He’d thrown 54 pitches, 31 for strikes, and the three rns he surrendered were earned. He allowed four hits and two walks, against three strike outs. Rookie Peter Solomon replaced him and put down the last four men in the Oakland batting order, allowing only a single to Gomes.

Bielak still was on the mound when Seth Brown became the second A to be thrown out attempting to steal. He had singled, sandwiched between strike outs of Canha and Chapman, and Maldonado’s throw to Correa was right on the button.

Montás began to waiver in the top of the seventh, After granting a lead off walk to Kyle Tucker, he allowed an opposite field single to McCormick. Jake Meyers sacrificed the runners up a base each.

With the infield drawn in, Montás snared Meyers´shot to the mound and threw him out at first, leaving runners still on second and third when Altuve came to bat, accompanied by his usual round of boos and catcalls. The diminutive second sacker sent a hard line drive … directly into the glove of Kemp in left for the third out.

When the ´stros took the field in the home half of the seventh, Yimi García was on the mound for them, facing the bottom of the order. Kemp and Gomes singled to center, putting men on the corners for Andrus. He flew out to right, bringing Harrison to the plate.

After a 13 pitch battle, he walked to clog the basepaths. On the very next pitch, Marte rifled a double down the left field line, sending Kemp and Gomes home, Harrison to third, García to the showers, and southpaw hurler Brooks Raley to the hill.

Olson drew a full count before striking out swinging, which left clean up hitter Mark Canha the job of further padding the Oakland lead. The count on him also went to 3-2. Then Canha went to first on a base on balls that reloaded the bases.

Chad Pender pinch hit for Brown and unloaded them. His grand slam cleared the left filed wall with plenty to spare, landing 425 feet from home and giving the A’s a 9-2 lead. It was his fourth home run of the year and second gland slam of his career. Chapman’s strike out was anticlimatic.

Yusmeiro Petit came in for the Houston eighth and set the Astros down in order. Montás had gone seven innngs and allowed two runs, one earned, on two hits, three walks, and three hit batters. His pitch count reached 106, 65 of them strikes.

Seth Martínez opened the eighth for the visitors. Oakland promptly loaded the bases on him with singles by Kemp and Andrus, interspersed by a walk to Gomes. Skye Bolt, who replaced Harrison, who had battered himself with foul balls in his last at bat, walked to make the score 10-2.

Meyers made a diving attempt to capture Marte’s fly to left center but failed, and everyone moved up a base. The bases once again were loaded, and Olson was at bat. He slammed the second pitch he saw off the center field fence for his 34th double of the season, driving in the three men in front of him and upping the A’s margin, which by now was a chasm, to 14-2. Chapman struck out for the fifth time, ending the inning, the second in a row in which Oakland had sent nine men to the plate.

The Athletics entrusted the fairly easy task of holding a 12 run lead for one inning and the more difficult one of maintaining his concentration to Domingo Acevedo. He walked three of the six batters he faced, He struck out the other three.

Montás, with the win, is 13-9, 3.48. The loss went to. Bielak, now 3-4, 4.50.

Marte led the Oakland hit parade with four, followed by Olson, Kemp, and Gomes with two. Harrison, Brown, Pinder, and Andrus also added to their hit totals.

After the three hour 41 minute game had ended, the distance between the division leading Astros and the third place Athletics had been reduced to seven games. They are four games behind the Yankees in the second wild card sweepstakes

It will be Sean Manaea (10-10, 4.o5) against. Framber Valdez (11-5, 3.07) in a battle of left handers starting Saturday afternoon at 1:07.

Oakland A’s starter Chris Bassitt makes his first start for Oakland since his injury Aug 17th. Bassitt is pitching here against the Seattle Mariners who swept the A’s in four games on Thu Sep 23, 2021 at the Oakland Coliseum (AP News photo)

Seattle` 6 – 7 – 1

Oakland 5 – 6 – 0

By Lewis Rubman

Thursday September 23, 2021

OAKLAND–When the A’s reinstated Chris Bassitt from the injured list this morning, their press release noted that he “will be making his first start since Aug. 17 at Chicago (AL) when he was hit in the face by a Brian Goodwin line drive in the second inning. He was placed on the IL Aug. 18 with a right facial fracture and had surgery on Aug. 24.”

The Athletics went into that game at 68-51. They entered today’s game at 82-70. That means they lost two-thirds of the 35 they played during Bassitt’s absence. It would be impossible to measure how much the latter was a cause of the former, but an entire lack of causality would be highly unlikely.

In any case, the righty’s return to the roster—and to the pitching rubber—today would be good news regardless of how well he performed. It turned out that he performed exdtremely well, giving up a single and a walk to the first two batters he faced and retiring the nine others that remained before being relieved after having thrown 48 pitches, 38 for strikes, in three innings.

Basically, he was an opener for James Karpielian, who took over in the fourth. That didn’t do the A’s much good. They blew a three run lead and went down to a 6-5 defeat that wasn’t as close as thee final score indicated.

The Athletics skipped out to an early lead against Seattle starter Yusei Kikuchi in the second on a walk to Matt Chapman and Sean Murphy’s single to right that sent Chapmanto third. He scored on Elvis Andrus’s rising line drive to center that Jarred Kelenic had to jump a bit before he could haul it down. They added to their lead in the third on a walk to Olson, who scored on Yan Gomes’s double that hit the center field fence, just to the right of the 400 foot marker, on one hop.

Kaprielian allowed the M’s to get on the board by plunking Kyle Seager to open the frame and then allowing a two out RBI double to Abraham Toro.

Kikuchi, like Bassit, was removed after three innings, but for a different reason. In his short stint, the lefty had thrown 72 pitches (40 were strikes) and allowed three runs, all earned, on three hits, four walks, and a hit batter. He struck out three Athletics.

His replacement, Yohan Ramírez lasted a mere third of an inning, in which he surrendeered a lead off first pitch round tripper to Sean Murphy and walked Andrus and Marte. Anthony Misiewcz relileved Ramírez and slammed the door on the. A’s by fanning Olson and Gomes. In the meantime, Oakland had restored their three run margin, leading 4-1.

That situation situation didn’t last long. All it took was Dylan Moore’s first pitch lead off single to right and Cal Raleigh’s second homer of ‘21, also to right, to narrow the gap to 4-3.

Right handed sidewinder Joe Smth entered the game to start the Oakland half of the fourth, hoping to keep Seattle within striking distance of the A’s. He pitched the first clean inning of the game for the Mariners.

Jake Diekman went to the hill to start the top of the sixth for the A’s, still hanging on to their fragile 4-3 lead. Seven pitches later, he was trying to keep the game tied. Mitch Haniger’s 35th homer of the season just barely cleared the glove of the leaping Pinder, 375 feet into reight field. Even that tie didn’t last long, Diekman walked Kelenic, struck out Abraham Toro, and then gave up pinch hitting Luis Torrens’ 15th round triper of the year, a 366 foot liner to left. Just anothe aternoon in the Oakland bullpen…

For the final three frames, the A’s bullpen functioned as it was designed to.Deolis Guerra, a flicker of llight in the dark night of the Athletics’ relief corps coughed up a double to Raleigh, but that was sandwhiched between Ks of Moore and Crawford. Guerra pitched until Andrew Chafin relived him with a perfect eighth. Trivino duplicated Chafin’s feat in the ninth

Casey Sadler’s task, on coming to the mound in the sixth was to protect the M’s 6-4 lead. It took him all of five pitches to do that. He encountered a spot of bother in Jed Lowrie’s pinch hit double down the right field line in the seventh, but Lowrie didn’t go any further, and Diego Castilo inherited the 6-4 lead in the eighth Right away, he was saved by a sparkling diving catch of Chapman’s sinking liner to left by Jake Bauers, who had entered the game in the seventh.

One more, Paul Sewald was called on to close things out for the visitors. He struck out Harrison and Marte and slipped a fast ball by Olson for strike one. But then Olson unloaded on another fast ball, and his 38 homer sailed over the right field fence. Lowrie now represented the potential tying run. He ended up being the final out.

The win went to Smith, who’s now 3-4 and sports an ERA of 5.12. Diekman, the losing pitcher, is now 5-3 and has blown seven saves. The save, his 10th, went to Sewald.

Friday evening at 6:40, Frankie Montás (12-9, 3.57) will face the Astros, who haven’t announced who will start for them. There will be fireworks after the game.

Oakland A’s manager Bob Melvin’s frustrations boil over in the sixth inning as he is ejected by plate umpire Greg Gibson (53) at the Oakland Coliseum while playing the Seattle Mariners on Wed Sep 22, 2021 (AP News photo)

Seattle 4 – 9 – 0

Oakland 1 – 4 – 0

By Lewis Rubman

Wednesday September 22, 2021

OAKLAND–To hear the A’s tell it, the mood in their club house is one of realistic optimism. But that’s an oxymoron; no realist—other than someone who’s bet on the Astros, Red Sox, Yankees, or Blue Jays—would be optimistic about Oakland’s chances of playing any time between October 3 and the first pitch of the 2022 Cactus League season. Still, there are many ways in which baseball is a beautiful game; the excitement of the pennant race is just one of them.

The daily conflict between the two teams, the drama that unfolds on the field, the esthetic delight, both geometric and kinetic, of a well executed defensive play, the mental complexities of the myriad of interlocking strategic and tactical decisions made by the coaching staffs or, instantaneously, by the players, all these are just some of the joys watching what once was the national pastime affords us.

We don’t need to place tonight’s lackluster performance of Oakland in their 4-1 loss to the Mariners in the context of the hunt for a green October to get that special pleasure that baseball provides, even in its langeurs and disappointments.

What occurred tonight in front of an intimate gathering of 4,149 fans at the Coliseum was like “the turkey that you know will fold” that Irving Berlin wrote about; “you wouldn’t trade it for a sack of gold.” (Well, I wouldn’t go that far. Maybe the lines I should have quoted from “There’s No Business Like Show Business” are “You’re broken hearted / But You Go On.”)

Oakland starter Cole Irvin pitched himself out of minor difficulties but didn’t allow the Mariners to score over the first two frames, while Seattle’s starter, Chris Flexen, kept the first four Athletic hitters off the basepaths.

But then Mark Canha lined a single to right and tried to stretch it into a double. Second base umpire Rob Drake thought he was safe. The video replay on the jumbo scoreboards showed he was safe.

The crew of video review umpires in New York thought differently, and so the the A’s went from a runner on second with one down to bases empty and two outs. It was no surprise that the inning ended with the game still a scoreless tie.

That’s how it remained until Kyle Seager unloaded on an 89 mph four seamer for his 35th home run of the year. The blast came with the bases empty and no outs in the top of the fourth. It travelled 406 feet and landed just over the xfinity sign in center field.

One out later, Abraham Toro singled to center and advanced to second on a wild pitch while Jarred Kelenic, who eventually struck out, was at bat. Tom Murphy singled the Mariner shortstop home to put the M’s ahead 2-0.

Ty France’s 17th round tripper of the season extended that advantage to 3-0. It came on a 1-2 slider with one out in fifth and was followed by a walk to Haniger and Seager’s two bagger to right center that sent Haniger around to third.

Irvin struck Torrens out swinging and retired Toro on a pop up that Olson’s speed and the Coliseum’s spacious foul territory allowed the A’s first sacker to corral. It was Irvin’s 89th pitch, but not a creature was stirring in the Athletics’ bull pen.

It was Matt Chapman who broke the ice for the home team. He led off the fifth by taking a 3-2 fast ball 414 feet deep to center for his 27th four bagger of the year. Although Sean Murphy singled and went to second on a ground out to the mound by Andrus, the Athleltics’ receiver was stranded at second with the score 3-1 in favor of the visitors.

Deolis Guerra was warming up in the the Oakland pen when Irvin took the mound in the sixth. Four pitches later, Irvin had walked Kelenic, and Guerra was on the mound. Irvin had given up seven hits, unleashed one wild pitch, and surrendered three bases on balls, the last of which brought his pitch count up to 93, 58 of which were strikes.

Kelenic stole second on a disputed play, in which Sean Murphy either caught Moore’s foul tip for a third strike or couldn’t handle Guerra’s pitch for the first ball.

This led to a vigorous dispute between crew chief and home plate umpire Greg Gibson and the ever contentious manager Bob Melvin, which led to the former ejecting the latter, along with bench coach Ryan Christianson, from the premises. Mark Kotsay assumed to role of acting manager.Guerra completed the inning without incident, and Irvin’s run allowed total remained at three, all earned.

Guerra hit France with a pitch to open the top of the seventh and then got Haniger on a pop up to Andrus in shallow center field before being replaced by Andres Chafin, who faced the unenviable task of pitching to Seager.

The Mariners’ third baseman lined a single past Olson that advanced France to third. The run he scored on Torrens’ sacrifice fly to deep center was charged to Guerra’s account. Chafin then closed the door on the M’s, who now enjoyed a 4-1 advantage

Michael Feliz, whom the A’s had claimed off waivers from the Red Sox yesterday, made his Oakland debut when he relieved Chafin to start the Seattle eighth. He lasted three batters. A fly to left by Kelenic, a sharp single to left by Tom Murphy, and a walk to Moore brought Yusmeiero Petit into the game. He restored order, retiring Crawford on a fly to Marte and France on a short to second force out.

Seven innings was enough for Flexen. He allowed a single run, on Olson’s home run, and a total of three hts and two walks. He struck out eight.65 of his hundred pitches were strikes. Diego Castillo took over for him and set the A’s down 1,2,3 in the eighth, aided by a lovely diving catch of Harrison’s dying quail to center by Kelenic for the third out.

Domingo Acevedo came in to pitch the top of the ninth for Oakland and put the Mariners down in order.

The A’s had one last shot at drawing even. Facing Drew Stekenrider in the bottom of the ninth, Marte led off with a line drive double to right. But the A’s fell victim to the curse of the lead off double as Olson, Lowrie, Canha left him stranded.

The win went to Flexen. His record stands at 13-6, 3.56. Steckenrider earned his 1th save and lowered his ERA to 2.17. Irvin. was charged with the loss, dropping his record to 10-14 upping his ERA to 3.99.

Perhaps the biggest Athletics story of the day didn’t even occur on the field of play. It was the anticipation generated by the naming of Chris Bassit (12-4, 3.22) to open Thursday afternoon’s game, just four and a half weeks after the horrific facial injury the staff ace suffered in Chicago. His counterpart for Seattle will be Yusei Kikuchi (7-9, 4,32). Game time will be 12:;370.

One last reminder: the A’s still haven’t been mathematically eliminated. Hope springs eternal.

Down the rabbit hole the Oakland A’s third baseman Matt Chapman gives chase for gloving a foul ball but can’t reach it over the tarp near the stands hit by the Seattle Mariners Jake Bauers in the top of the fourth inning at the Oakland Ring Central Coliseum on Tue Sep 21, 2021 (AP News photo)

Seattle 5 – 9 – 0

Oakland 2 – 6 – 1

By Lewis Rubman

Tuesday September 21, 2021

OAKLAND–Today is the last day of the summer of ‘21, and, with their 5-2 loss to the Seattle Mariners, the A’s look ready to say good bye to both the season and their chances of playing in the post season.

The game started well for the home team. With two down in the first, Matt Olson blasted a slow hanging curve from Marco González 416 feet from home plate and over the right field fence for his 37th home run of the year, giving the A’s an early 1-0 lead.

Big ball giveth, but small ball taketh away. After striking Jarred Kelenic out to open the second, the Athletics´starter, Paul Blackburn, hit Jake Bauers with a pitch. Blackburn then gave up a hit ‘em where they ain’t single to right by Tom Murphy, against whom the A’s employed a quasi shift, with Josh Harrison stationed just to the right of second base.

Jake Fraley hit a sharp bouncer to Olson at first, whose throw to Elvis Andrus forced Kelenic at second. AAndrus’s relay was late, so Fraley was safe at first. Meanwhile, Bauers advanced to third. Dylan Moor struck out to end the inning, but not before Blackburn threw a pick off attempt past Olson, which allowed Bauers to race home with the tying tally.

Kelenic opened the Mariners’ fourth with a triple to right center. Umpire Ryan Wills called him out at third, but a video review showed that he was well and truly safe. Blackburn fought back, striking out Bauers and Murphy before walking Fraley on a 3-2 pitch in a plate appearan;ce that had many of the earmarks of a semi-intentional walk.

After all, Moore, who was up next, came into the game with a .182 batting average and had struck out in his only other at bat. He whalloped a triple that a leaping Canha couldn’t pull down in front of the 7-Up sign. A single to center by JP Crawford, and the A’s were down 4-1. Blackburn finally retired the M’s with a pop fly to second by Ty France.

Blackburn had, by then, delivered 83 pitches in four innings, which was all was to throw tonight. He had been touched for four runs, three earned, on six hits, a walk, and a hit batter. He struck out five. 48 of his pitches were strikes.

Starling Marte brought the A’s a bit closer when, leading off in the fourth, he snuck a high fly over the center field fence at the 400 foot marker. It was his 15th dinger of the year and his fifth for Oakland, González quickly disposed of the two Matts, Olson and Chapman, but Gomes and Pinder singled, putting the potential tying runs on base. Canha hit a hard shot that staggered Crawford, but the Seattle shortstop recovered fast enough to throw the hustling Canha out at first.

Sam Moll, who had pitched a scoreless eighth against the M´s on Monday night, relieved the departed Blackburn when the A’s took the field in the fifth. He retired the side on three strike outs and a hit batter. He gave up a single too Fraley in the sixth but caught the Seattle left fielder trying to steal, 1-3-6, and didn’t let anyone else reach base.

Yusmeiro Petit took over mound duties for the green and gold in the top of the seventh. Crawford greeted him with a double that bounced off the left center field wall between the 7-Up and Rickey Henderson Field signs. He stayed on second when Andrus made a beautiful play on France’s hard bounder that looked like it was going to go into left, but he advanced to third on Seager’s grounder to Olson. Chapman made a nice. plaly on Haniger’s grounder to save Petit’s bacon.

González left the game after finishing his sixth frame. He threw 99 pitches, 62 for strikes, and allowed two runs, both earned, on four hits, half of which were solo home runs, and a walk. Casey Sadler, his replacement, set the A’s down 1, 2, 3 in the home seventh.

Jake Diekman pitched the eighth for Oakland. He walked Murphy but struck out Kelenic, Bauers, and Fraley.

Paul Seward, who earned his ninth save of the season with a shutout ninth inning against the A’s, pitched the eighth for Seattle tonight. He gave up a two out double to the no longer slumping Marte before conceeding a walk to Olson, whoich put the tying runs on base for Chapman. He left them there, fanning on a 1-2 93 mph fast ball.

Sergio Romo came in to try to keep the A’s in. the game but gave up a home run on a hanging slilder that Parker parked in the right field seats.

A pinch hitting Jed Lowrie greeted close Drew Steckendrider with a leg double through the shift to right. Kemp lined out to center, but when Canha, the human dart board reached first after being hit by a pitch, Oakland again had the potential tying runs on base, this time with one out and Seth Brown at the plate, He hit into a 4-6 force out, leaving it up to Andrus, hitless so far after a six game hitting streak. He popped out.

González, who got the win, is now 9-5, 4.01. The save went to Streckenrider, his 10th. Blackburn, 1-3, 5.17, took the loss.

The teams are now tied for second place in the AL West at 81-69. They will do battle Wednesday at 6:40. Cole Irvin (10-13,3.94) and Chris Flexen (12-6, 3.66) will be the probable starters.

Oakland A’s reliever Sergio Romo has struggled in his last few outings and blew a save on Sun Sep 19, 2021 in Anaheim will he return for 2022? (file photo Fox Sports)

On That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast:

#1 The Oakland A’s are just two games back in the loss column behind two very tough customers the Boston Red Sox and the Toronto Blue Jays in the AL Wild Card race with 13 games left for Oakland to go.

#2 The bullpen has been a subject of much discussion and A’s reliever Sergio Romo has struggled as of late and had a blown save against the Angels on Sunday despite the A’s winning. Romo had a line of 1/3, three hits, two runs, one earned and threw ten pitches.

#3 Amaury, Romo is a Bay Area favorite is 1-1 ERA 4.42 and he’s had some trouble closing the door in games but with a strong finish to the regular season do you think he may have a shot at returning for 2022?

#4 In recognition of Hispanic Heritage month Sep 15-Oct 15 Romo appeared on NBC Bay Area regarding his Mexican Heritage saying his big moment in his pride of being of being of Mexican decent came in 2013 when he wore the Mexico uniform in the 2013 World Classic saying, “Seeing your name, your last name — my parent’s last name — my family’s last name, just understanding where, you know, where my family’s come from and to see it ‘there.’ ”

#5 Amaury, It’s game two of this four game series tonight at the Coliseum as the Mariners will start Marco Gonzalez (8-5 ERA 4.05) and the A’s will start Paul Blackburn (1-2 ERA 4.94) a 6:40 pm PDT

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the lead announcer for the Oakland A’s Spanish radio flagship station 1010 KIQI Le Grande San Francisco and does News and Commentary Tuesdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Seattle Mariners Kyle Seager belts a two run double in the third inning against Oakland A’s starter Sean Manaea at T Mobile Field in Seattle on Mon Sep 20, 2021 in the first of a four game series (AP News photo)

Seattle 4 – 10 – 0

Oakland 2 – 7 – 0

By Lewis Rubman

Monday September 20, 2021

OAKLAND–Tonight, the A’s opened their current, final home stand of the 202 1 season, a skein of seven games against Seattle and Houston, knowing full well that each contest will be vital to their chances of surviving to play in the post season.

Fangraphs gives them a razor thin chance of 1.5% of seizing the division crown out of the faltering hands of the Atros. Their chances of winning the wild card game go up to 8.5%. (Houston’s chances are rated at 0.5, but that’s because the folks at Fangraphs don’t think that they’ll have to participate in that particular crap shoot). They’ve got a 10% shot at making the playoffs.

Oakland’s out of division rivals, the Red Sox, Blue Jays, and Yankees all have better chances than Oakland of getting past the wild card stage, ranging from 28.9% for the Bronx Bombers to 88.8% for the Box, with Toronto at 70.6%. Seattle, going into the fray two games behind the green and gold, may well finish higher than the home town when all is said and done, but Fangraphs still gives them only a 0.8% shot at a necessary but not sufficient wild card win.

Tonight’s results, a. 4-2 win for the M´s, featured a masterly pitching performance by journey man starter Tyler Anderson and bought his team to within one game of A’s in the battle for second place in the AL West.

The Mariners opened the scoring in the top of the third. Tom Murphy hit Manaea’s first offering on the frame to the center field wall, where Starling Marte corralled it in front of the 400 foot marker for the first out. Dylan Moore, JP Crawford, and Ty France followed with sharply hit singles that brought Moore, the number nine batter, around to record the game’s first tally.

A 3-2 walk to Mitch Haniger clogged the basepaths with clean-up hitter Kyle Seager at the plate. He blasted a double to the Rickey Henderson Field sign in left center, driving in Crawford and France while Haniger advanced to third. Drawing strength from adversity, Manaea struck out Luis Torres and got Abraham Toro out on a fly to Canha in left. But the A’s southpaw had seen his pitch count jump from 23 at the end of the second inning to 57 when the Athletics returned to the dugout facing a three run deficit.

Oakland responded to the challenge in their half of the third with back to back doubles by Chad Pinder and Khris Davis, cutting Seattle’s lead to 3-1. Elvis Andrus’s sacrifice bunt to the mound moved Davis over to third, where he was stranded when Marte grounded out to short, making the A’s center fielder 0 for his last 17.

Haniger banged a 92 mph sinker off the Kaiser Permanente sign in right center with one down in the fifth for his second two bagger of the night. Seager’s line drive single to right center brought Haniger with the fourth Mariner run, but Pinder’s throw to Andrus caught the Seattle third sacker trying to stretch his hit into a double. Manaea then made a nice play, going to his right to snatch Luis Torrens’ bouncer and throw the DH out a first, but he didn’t come out to pitch the sixth. That task fell to Domingo Acvedo.

In his five innings of work, the A’s starter surrendered four runs, all earned, on eight hits and a walk. He struck out one Mariner and threw 86 pitches, 58 for strikes.

Acevedo pitched two scoreless innings, allowing a one out double to Crawford in the seventh but nothing else. Sam Moll, recalled yesterday from Las Vegas, replaced him for the eighth.

After throwing seven innings of one run, four hit ball, Anderson was replaced by Diego. Castillo. Seattle’s starter struck out seven and walked one. 66 of his 91 pitches were strikes. The single tally he allowed was earned.

Castillo got Jed Lowrie, hitting for Davis, out on a fly to center, Andrus and Harrison delivered back to back singles to right, and Marte, breaking an 0 for 18 slump, singled the former home while the latter stopped at second. That ended Castillo’s brief outing and brought Paul Sewald into the game to pitch to Olson.

Home plate umpire Rob Drake called him out on an 0-2 slider, much to the displeasure of many of the 4,068 fans in attendance. He then got Chapman out, swinging and missing on an 0-2 93 mph four seamer.

Deolis Guerra came on for the ninth, hoping to keep the score at 4-2 and give Oakland a reasonable chance of a ninth inning comeback. He set the M’s down in order.

Sewald stayed in the game to face Tony Kemp, pinch hitfor Gomes. He flew out to right. Next in line was Canha, who popped out to first. Seth Brown batted for Pinder who took a called third strike over the outside corner.

Anderson got the well earned win, bringing his record to 7-9, 4.01. Manaea took the loss and now stands at 10-10, 4.05. Sewald earned his ninth save of the year.

The A’s will try to resume their winning ways Tuesday at 6:40, with Paul Blackburn (1-2,4.94) taking the mound against Marco González (8-5,4,95).