Tag: Oakland A’s

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast: 2018 MLB All-Star Game in Washington DC–Crawford, Lowrie, Treinen worked hard to get to this point

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Photo credit: @NBCSGiants

On That’s Amaury’s podcast:

#1 Amaury, let’s talk about the Oakland A’s reliever Blake Treinen, who made 24 saves for the first half of the season, which helped the A’s be the winningest team in baseball. Also, it helped Treinen get selected for the All-Star Game.

#2 How important is it for Treinen to have had the first half that he had? Does that give confidence to the ball club going into the second half?

#3 The A’s Jed Lowrie hit .285 with 103 hits, 16 HRs, and 62 RBIs. He had a great first half. Amaury talks about how important his role was to the club.

#4 Three San Francisco Giants had three players in the running for the All-Star game, including a last minute push to stuff the ballot box for Giants first baseman Brandon Belt, who fell short in the voting; Buster Posey, who was elected chose to sit out the All-Star game get a cortisone shot for his hip and rest during the break, and Brandon Crawford, who will be in the National League lineup tonight at second base.

#5 Tonight’s the big night American League All-Stars versus National League All-Stars. Who do you like in this game?

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Oakland A’s Spanish play-by-play talent, the vice president of the MLB Hispanic Heritage Museum Hall of Fame and  does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

MLB 2018 All-Star Game podcast with Morris Phillips: Crawford to represent Giants; Lowrie and Treinen to represent A’s

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Photo credit: hashsports.com

On the 2018 MLB All-Star Game podcast with Morris:

The San Francisco Giants had three players who were favorites to make this year’s MLB All-Star game: Brandon Crawford, Buster Posey, and Brandon Belt. Posey and Belt didn’t make it this year, Belt lacked the votes, Posey is resting a sore hip and got a cortisone shot on Sunday. Crawford will be the lone Giants representative.

Crawford has 94 hits, 39 RBIs, 10 home runs, .289 and a Gold Glove kind of first half. Crawford is looking forward to an exciting second half, but first, Morris talks about what kind of an All-Star game Crawford will be looking forward to having.

For the Oakland A’s, they’ll be represented by second baseman Jed Lowrie, who has 103 hits, 62 RBIs, 16 home runs, and a .263 average for the first half. For reliever and closer Blake Treinen, 5-2, 0.96 ERA, and 24 saves.

Morris has covered his fair share of MLB All-Star games and will take a look where this year’s mid summer classic in Washington D.C. rates with the ones in the past.

Morris Phillips does the Giants podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

A’s rout Giants 6-2 in laugher, thanks to Manaea

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Photo credit: @Athletics

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — This was not the way that the San Francisco Giants wanted to go into the All-Star break with back-to-back losses against a team that will face when they return from the break, the Oakland A’s.

Andrew Suarez gave up four runs in five innings of work, as the A’s took the finale of the Bay Bridge with a 6-2 victory over the Giants before a sellout crowd of 42,098 at AT&T Park on Sunday afternoon.

Asides from the four runs that he allowed, Suarez also gave up four hits, walked two and struck out five in his final start prior to the All-Star break.

This was the first series loss for the Giants at home since dropping two out of three against the Arizona Diamondbacks from April 9-11, as they went 10-0-2 in that span. The two series that the Giants split were with the Colorado Rockies from May 17-20, and the St. Louis Cardinals from July 5-8.

The A’s got to Suarez in the top of the fourth inning, as five straight batters reached and four of those five scored to give the A’s the only runs that they would need on the afternoon.

American League All-Star second baseman Jed Lowrie got the inning started, as he walked to lead off the inning and then scored on a Stephen Piscotty single to tie up the game for the A’s. Matt Olson then gave the A’s the lead for good, as he drove in Mark Canha with a single of his own.

Matt Chapman then made it three hits in a row, as he singled to score Piscotty with the A’s third run of the frame. Jonathan Lucroy drove in the fourth run of the inning, as he hit a sacrifice fly to score Olson from third base.

The four-run inning made a winner of Sean Manaea, who pitched six innings, allowing two runs on five hits, walking and striking out one, as his record improved to 9-6 on the season.

The Giants took an early lead 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning, as Gorkys Hernandez doubled with one out and then scored on a Gorkys Hernandez single.

Piscotty extended the A’s up to 5-1 in the top of the sixth inning, as he took a Reyes Moronta pitch and put it into the left-field bleachers. It was the 12thhome run of the season for Piscotty.

It was the first hit allowed by Moronta since he gave up a single to Matt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers on June 16 at Dodger Stadium. The last run allowed prior to Piscotty’s home run came on June 13 against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park, and it was the just the second home run he allowed this season. (April 19 at Arizona).

Chase d’Arnaud cut the A’s lead down to 5-2 in the bottom of the sixth inning, as he took a Manaea offering and put it into the Garden beyond the center-field fence. It was the second home run of the season for d’Arnaud.

Lucroy put the finishing touches on the scoring in the top of the ninth inning, as he singled to centerfield off of Will Smith to score Chapman, who doubled with one out in the inning.

NOTES: Dereck Rodriguez will open the second half for the Giants, as they head across the Bay Bridge to face the A’s at the Oakland Coliseum beginning on Friday night.

Following Rodriguez out of the All-Star break will be Madison Bumgarner, Johnny Cueto and then Suarez will start the series opener against the Seattle Mariners on July 24 at Safeco Field.

Steven Duggar’s major league career is only a week old and he is setting team records already. Duggar is the first Giants in the live-ball era (since 1920) to have five or more doubles in his first five games, this according to STATS, LLC.

When the Giants went to the break last season, they were 34-56, their worst record at the break since 2008, when they were 40-55. This season at the All-Star Break, the Giants are 50-48.

UP NEXT: The Giants and A’s will battle it out in round two of the Bay Bridge Series at O.co Coliseum on Friday night at 6:35 pm PDT.

A’s Head to All-Star Break With Win Over Giants, Take First Round of Bay Bridge Series 6-2

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Photo credit: @Athletics

By Matthew Harrington

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — The Oakland Athletics took round one of the Bay Bridge Series, winning the rubber game over the San Francisco Giants 6-2 at AT&T Park Sunday afternoon. Oakland rallied for four runs in the fourth inning off Giants’ starter Andrew Suárez and Sean Manaea (9-6, 3.42 ERA) fired six innings, scattering five hits for a pair of runs to pick up the victory. Oakland (55-42) heads into the All Star break, having won seven of its last 10 contests.

For the Green and Gold, the interruption might be unwanted after a torrid stretch of play. Oakland hasn’t lost a series in over a month since dropping a June 12-14 sweep at the hands of the defending World Champion Houston Astros. Since then, the A’s have gone 21-6, but still find themselves three games behind Seattle for the second Wild Card spot in the American League.

Stephen Piscotty, Matt Olson and Matt Chapman singled in runs in the fourth and catcher Jonathan Lucroy lofted a sacrifice fly for the Green and Gold. Piscotty also hit his 12th homer of the season in the top of the sixth inning to collect a pair of RBIs on the day. Leadoff man Chase D’Arnaud hit a solo homer for San Francisco and center fielder Gorky Hernández plated a run for the home team.

The rookie Suárez was staked to a 1-0 lead after Brandon Crawford doubled with one out in the bottom of the second, then crossed the plate on a single Hernández. He shut down the A’s in the top of the next frame 1-2-3, but struggled after getting the first out in the fourth.

All-Star Jed Lowrie, making his first start since exiting Friday’s game after suffering a contusion following a collision with Stephen Piscotty, worked the one-out walk. Saturday’s hero Mark Canha singled to put runners on the corners. Piscotty, Olson and Chapman then hit consecutive run-scoring singles for a 3-1 lead. Lucroy would fly out to knock in the fourth run of the inning, his first of two RBIs on the day. Suárez finished the frame with a groundout from his counterpart Manaea.

The A’s would chase the eventual loser Suárez (3-6, 3.94) after five innings, bringing reliever Reyes Moronta, the magician who helped the Giants win Friday’s game by coaxing three outs with the bases loaded with A’s in the seventh inning. He didn’t pitch a clean inning Sunday though, with Pleasanton native Piscotty crushing an 82 mile-per-hour slider over the wall in left field for a 5-1 Oakland lead. Jonathan Lucroy singled in an insurance run in the top of the ninth off Will Smith for a six-pack of runs.

Manaea cruised after the A’s took the substantial lead, giving up just two hits over his next three innings of work. The only rough patch came when the Giants third baseman D’Arnaud took a 1-0 offering over the wall in center field for his second homer and second RBI on the season. Manaea finished out the inning with a trio of groundouts, hitting the showers staked to a 5-2 lead after allowing just five hits with a single walk and punch-out each. He threw just 73 pitches in the outing heading into the break.

The A’s bullpen triumverate of Ryan Buchter, Lou Trivino and Blake Treinen held the Giants (50-48) scoreless over an inning each to pick up the win and put the A’s 13 games over .500 at the midseason point.

The Bay Bridge series resumes on the other side of the Midsummer Classic, with first-time All-Stars Jed Lowrie, Blake Treinen, and the A’s welcoming the Giants to the East Bay for a Friday through Sunday series. Oakland can win the outright inaugural trophy made from the original Bay Bridge by winning the series. San Francisco would need a sweep to win it outright. If Oakland drops two of three, they’d tie at three games apiece. Starting pitchers have yet to be announced.

They may be down, but they’re never out! A’s beat the Giants 4-3

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
Celebration
A’s celebrate after beating the Giants Photo: @Athletics

By Charlie O. Mallonee

SAN FRANCISCO — The Oakland Athletics (54-42) really do not know when to quit. In the major leagues, teams that are trailing as they head into the late innings (the seventh inning and beyond) are pretty much doomed to failure the majority of the time. The goal for every big league team is to score early and often because later is usually too late.

The 2018 A’s are breaking all of those rules. The A’s are tied for second in runs scored in the seventh inning or later (173). They did it again on Saturday night against the San Francisco Giants (50-47).

The A’s were trailing the Giants 3-2 as they came to bat in the top of the seventh inning. Tony Watson was the new pitcher for San Francisco. Josh Phegley led off the inning with a single to right. The pitcher’s spot was due up (National League park), so manager Bob Melvin put in Mark Canha as a pinch hitter. Canha hit a 3-2 pitch halfway up into the bleachers in left field for his 12th home run of the season and his 38th and 39th RBIs of the year.

The A’s took a 4-3 lead and never looked back. Lou Trivino worked 2.0 innings of scoreless relief for his team. All-star Blake Treinen then came on in the bottom of the ninth. Treinen struggled a bit as he walked two Giants, but he worked his way out of trouble to earn his 24th save of the season.

The win went to Yusmeiro Petit (4-2) who was pitcher of record in the top of the seventh inning. The loss goes to Tony Watson who also receives a blown save for his record.

Neither starter had a great night. Brett Anderson worked just 3.1 innings for Oakland giving up three runs (all earned) on eight hits. Jeff Samardzija made the start for the Giants and he lasted just 4.0 innings. He allowed two runs (both earned) off three hits. He walked two and struck out one batter.

Steven Duggar had another good game for the Giants, going 2-for-4 at the plate while scoring two runs and adding an RBI. Buster Posey had a 2-for-4 night hitting as well.

Samardzija Swan Song?

To say that the Giants have been disappointed with the performance of Jeff Samardzija this season — may be one of the great understatements of 2018. His performance on Saturday did nothing to help his standing with the team. His 10th start lasted just 4.0 innings and saw “the Shark” give up two runs (both earned) on three hits. He walked two and struck out just one Oakland batter. The real concern was his velocity or lack of it. Samardzija had trouble breaking into the 90’s with his pitches. The Giants would love to open his spot for a younger pitcher, but they have to figure out what to do with the 33-year old veteran who will make $18-million per season through 2020.

A little bullpen irony 

In the seventh inning, the Giants’ lifted reliever Tony Watson and gave the ball to Ray Black with one out and two runners on base. The A’s had Lou Trivino warming up in their bullpen and would ultimately pitch the seventh inning for Oakland. The irony is that Trivino credits Black for his success as a pitcher. The A’s RHP said he was watching Black pitch at Class-A San Jose when he was with the Stockton Ports and he liked the way Black pitched. Trivino incorporated some of Black’s technique into his own style and now both are facing off in the major leagues.

So long Santiago and other transactions

Relief pitcher Santiago Casilla was designated for assignment (DFA) by the A’s. Casilla appeared in 26 games pitching 31.1 innings while posting a 3.16 ERA. He struck out 22 and walked 20 which lead to a WHIP of 1.213. Casilla had a poor outing on Friday night in San Francisco. If no team claims Casilla off waivers, he will have to decide if he will accept an assignment to the minors.

Ryan Dull received an airline ticket back to Nashville. Dull had a rough outing for the A’s on Friday night and has struggled to find any consistency on the mound this season. He had worked 18 innings for Oakland giving up 21 hits (3 HRs) while striking out 17 and walking five. Dull was carrying an ERA of 6.00, which will not keep you in the Major Leagues.

Franklin Barreto continues to rack up the frequent flier miles as he has returned from Nashville. His return is related to the leg contusion suffered by Jed Lowrie on Friday night. Lowrie did not play on Saturday and do not expect to see him on Sunday. Lowrie’s status for the All-Star game has not been addressed.

Good news for the starting pitching rotation

Daniel Mengden has been brought off the disabled list by the A’s. Mengden was put on the 10-day DL due to a foot sprain. The RHP is 6-6 this season in 16 starts with a 4.47 ERA in 90.2 innings pitched. He has struck out 55 and walked just 19 batters. Mengden could well see action in the Bay Bridge Series Part 2 in Oakland next weekend.

 

Canha’s pinch-hit lifts A’s past Giants 4-3

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Photo credit: @NBCSAthletics

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — Mark Canha changed the outcome of game two of the Bay Bridge Series with one swing of the bat.

Canha smashed a two-run pinch hit home run off of Tony Watson in the top of the seventh inning, as the Oakland A’s came back to defeat the San Francisco Giants 5-4 before a sellout crowd of 41,970 at AT&T Park on Saturday night. It was the first pinch hit home run for Canha in his Major League career.

It was a tough game for Watson, who was usually lights out for the Giants, as he gave up a leadoff single to Josh Phegley, and then Canha put a Watson offering half way up the left field bleachers to give the A’s the lead for good.

Buster Posey continues his well against the A’s, as he picked up two hits in his first two at-bats on the night. This is the 11th time in his last 16 games against the A’s that has had multi-hit games against the A’s, during the stretch, Posey is 29-for-67 with a batting average of .433.

Chase d’Arnaud picked up two more hits for the Giants, and is batting .294 since being called up from Sacramento.

Giants starter Jeff Samardzija went just four innings, allowing two runs on three hits, walking two and striking out one, as he did not fare in the decision.

It was a tough night for A’s starter Brett Anderson, as he did not make out of the fourth inning, as he went 3.1 innings, allowing three runs on six hits, not walking a batter and striking out one.

Anderson picked up his eighth career hit in the top of the second inning, and first since April 24, 2017, while a member of the Chicago Cubs against the Pittsburgh Pirates in a 14-3 victory for the Cubs at PNC Park.

The A’s took an early 1-0 lead on Samardzija in the top of the second inning, as Matt Chapman walked and then scored on a Phegley sacrifice fly.

That would be the score for a half inning, as Steven Duggar led off the inning with a double, then scored on a Alen Hanson.

Khris Davis then gave the A’s their second lead of the night, as he hit a sacrifice fly that scored Stephen Piscotty, who led off the inning with a double off of Samardzija.

Duggar continued his hot hitting, as he double in the bottom of the fourth inning to score Hernandez, who doubled just before Duggar.

Over his last two games, Duggar has four doubles against A’s pitching and is hitting .320 since being recalled from Triple-A Sacramento.

Two batters later, Austin Slater gave the Giants the lead once again, as he singled in Duggar from second base.

“d’Arnaud and Duggar had great games tonight,” said manager Bruce Bochy.

Derek Holland came on to replace Samardzija, and he did an outstanding job, as he struck out the first five batters he faced, but then gave up a long single to Chad Pinder off of Levi’s Landing in right field. Holland then regrouped to get Dustin Fowler to ground into a force play to end the threat.

Holland is the eighth National League pitcher this season to strikeout five or more in two innings.

Watson lasted just 0.1 innings, allowing two runs on three hits, walking one and striking out one, as he lost for the third time this season against two wins.

Rookie Ray Black came on to replace Watson, and he responded by striking out Davis and Chapman to end the inning.

Brandon Belt was ejected from the game in the between the fifth and sixth innings by third base umpire Greg Gibson for arguing a third strike call. Belt was ejected after he struck out in the bottom of the fifth inning on a check swing.

“I have not looked at it to be honest,” said Bochy.

The Giants put the winning run on first base, as Andrew McCutchen and Posey each walked with two outs off of A’s closer Blake Treinen, but Treinen was able to strikeout Crawford to end the game.

Crawford was intentionally walked in the bottom of the seventh inning by A’s reliever Leo Trivino, and it was the 11thintentional walk of the season for Crawford, a new career high and the second most in the National League.

NOTES: With the Giants and A’s playing in six straight games prior to and after the All-Star break, this is the first time since July 3-6, 1969 against the Atlanta Braves that the Giants have played the same opponent in six straight games. Both July 4 and July 6 were doubleheaders against the Braves, this according to Stats, LLC.

On this day in 2005, the Giants defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 4-3, and the Giants became the first team in major league history to win 10,000 games. The Giants, who were founded as the Gothams in 1883 were 10,000-8511 after their win over their longtime rivals.

UP NEXT: The Giants and A’s will battle it out in Sunday afternoon’s rubber game at 1:05 pm PDT.

Giants rookie Andrew Suarez will close out the first half, as he looks for his fourth win of the season. The A’s will send eight-game winner Sean Manaea to the mound.

Giants strike with 5-run 7th inning to take Bay Bridge opener with 7-1 rout of A’s

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Photo credit: @SFGiants

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — Madison Bumgarner looked like his old self with the exception of one bad pitch, but it was the relief pitching of Reyes Moronta and Sam Dyson that was huge.

Moronta relieved Bumgarner with the bases loaded and nobody out in the top of the seventh inning, and he was able to get out of the jam and the San Francisco Giants took game one of the Bay Bridge Series with a 7-1 victory over the Oakland A’s before a sellout crowd of 41,751 at AT&T Park on Friday night.

“Bum threw a great game,” said manager Bruce Bochy.

The two other remaining members of the Giants’ run when they won three World Championships in five years also came up huge when the team needed it the most, as Buster Posey came through the hit of the night and Pablo Sandoval came up with the defensive play of the night.

Posey gave the Giants the lead for good in the bottom of the sixth inning, as he singled off of Edwin Jackson to score Steven Duggar, who led off the inning with a walk off of Jackson.

“Moronta, Pablo and Craw won the game for us,” said Bumgarner.

Duggar broke up Jackson’s no-hit bid, as he doubled to lead-off the bottom of the fourth inning and scored when Jackson balked with Brandon Crawford at the plate.

The rookie ended up going 2-for-4 at the plate with two doubles, a walk and two runs scored on the evening.

Posey also picked up two hits for the Giants, who reached the 50 win on July 13, last season, the Giants did not win their 50th game until August 18.

Bumgarner gave up a lead-off base hit to Marcus Semien in the top of the first inning, and then proceeded to retire the 14 A’s in a row until Chad Pinder tied up the game with his 10th home run of the season with two outs in the top of the fifth inning.

Pinder’s home run off of Bumgarner was the team’s major league leading 83rd home run on the road this season.

The play of the game came in the top of the seventh inning, as with one out and the bases loaded, Jonathan Lucroy hit a liner heading down the left field line; however, Sandoval made a great grab for the second out of the inning.

Bumgarner got into trouble in the top of the seventh inning, as he gave up a single to Stephen Piscotty, and then issued walks to Matt Olson and Matt Chapman and that was the end of the line for Bumgarner on the evening, as Bochy called on Moronta to get the Giants out of the bases loaded, nobody out jam.

Moronta got Pinder to strikeout for the first out of the inning, then Lucroy lined out to Sandoval, who just missed getting Piscotty at third base and Moronta ended the inning, as he got pinch-hitter Nick Martini to ground out to Crawford to end the inning and the threat.

In all, Bumgarner went six innings, allowing just one run on just three hits, walking three and striking out five. Bumgarner evened up his record at 3-3 on the season after his six-inning performance.

The win gave Bumgarner back-to-back wins at home for the first time since August 18, 2016 versus the New York Mets and 10 days later on August 28 against the Atlanta Braves.

On the other side of things, Jackson also went six innings, allowing two runs, scattering four hits, walking three, striking out one and that balk that gave the Giants their first run of the game in the bottom of the fourth inning. With the loss, Jackson lost for the first time as a member of the A’s and is now 1-1 on the season.

Ryan Dull came on to replace Jackson, but after singles to Alen Hanson and Gorkys Hernandez, Chase d’Arnaud walked to load the bases and that was the end of the night for Dull.

Jeremy Bleich then replaced Dull, as he made his Major League debut and Duggar greeted him by smashing a two-run double to the right field wall that scored both Hanson and Hernandez. Bleich then hit Brandon Belt, and his MLB debut was a short one, as he was replaced by former Giants reliever Santiago Casilla.

Andrew McCutchen drove in the fourth run of the inning, as he hit a sacrifice fly to centerfield that scored Duggar easily from third base.

Casilla then uncorked a wild pitch that allowed Belt to go to second base, and Belt then went to third on a Crawford groundout for the second out of the inning. Unfortunately, Casilla was unable to get out of the inning, as Posey picked up his second hit in as many at-bats, as he lined a double down the left field line to score Belt.

Sam Dyson worked the eighth and ninth innings, as he struck out two and the Giants won for the fifth time in their last seven games. They are now 5-3 on this 10-game home stand that will end on Sunday.

NOTES: Jeff Samardzija looks for his second win of the season on Saturday night, as he takes the mounds against his former team. Brett Anderson will head to the mound for the A’s, as he also looks for his second win of the season.

A’s second baseman Jed Lowrie left the game with a left leg contusion after he collided with Piscotty in the bottom of the third inning. Pinder replaced Lowrie at second base, and Khris Davis came into the game in left field. Davis ended up going 0-for-2, and his 14-game hitting streak came to a halt.

UP NEXT: The Giants and A’s will return to the field on Saturday night at 7:05 pm PDT.

A’s Unlucky in Bay Bridge Opener, Fall to Giants 7-1

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

Photo credit: @957thegame

By Matthew Harrington

Friday the 13th is an unlucky day by superstition, something the Oakland Athletics can now vouch for after falling to the San Francisco Giants 7-1 at AT&T Park Friday night. After seeing the team MVP exit the game, the bad went to worse. The A’s must have had a black cat or two cross trans-Bay charter on the way to the park after mirroring situations saw the A’s score zero runs and the Giants five.

The A’s loaded the bases with no outs off starter Madison Bumgarner trailing 2-1, but failed to push across a single run after reliever Reyes Moronta punched out Chad Pinder, coaxed an infield lineout from Jonathan Lucroy and pinished off pinch hitter Nick Martini with a bouncer to the sure-handed Brandon Crawford to stymie the threat.

With starter Edwin Jackson lifted for reliever Ryan Dull in the bottom of the innings, the Giants also worked the bases loaded. Reliever Jeremy Bleich enterted the game, making his major league debut after 10 years in the minors. Steven Duggar welcomed him to the bigs with a double down the line in right that scored a pair, then pegged Brandon Belt to reload the bases with Oakland now trailing 4-1.

Former Giant closer Sanitago Casilla replaced Bleich and his infinite ERA, getting Andrew McCutchen out on a sacrifice fly. His wild pitch allowed Duggar to score for 6-1 lead. Buster Posey doubled in a run to add on to the lead.

Oakland starter Edwin Jackson finished his fourth start in as many outings with the A’s by allowing two runs or fewer. He departed the game after six innings with Oakland down 2-1 after he stumbled off the mound in the fourth inning for a run-scoring balk then gave up a Posey RBI single in the bottom of the sixth. He was bolstered briefly by a Chad Pinder solo homer in the top of the fifth of Giants starter Madison Bumgarner, the only run the A’s would score on the night.

Jackson scattered just four hits, while walking three and striking out the one Giant. He was out-dueled ever so slightly by Bumgarner, who allowed three hits, one run and struck out five with his trio of walks. The difference was the pen where Moronta provided the shutdown inning and Sam Dyson pitched two scoreless for San Francisco while Dull, Bleich and Casilla combined for five runs.

Jed Lowrie came out of the game for Oakland, getting pinch hit for by Khris Davis in the sixth inning. He was in a collision with right fielder Stephen Piscotty in the bottom of the third inning. Per the A’s, he exited the game with a leg contusion. It remains to be seen if he’ll appear in Saturday or Sunday’s Bay Bridge series contests.

The A’s will now need to win four of the remaining five contests between the two teams sandwiched around the All-Star break if they want to win the inaugural Bay Bridge series trophy made out of a reclaimed beam from the original Bay Bridge span. Brett Anderson will face Jeff Samardzija, a current trade target of the A’s, in Saturday’s contest. There’s still no word yet on any parade plans for the trophy’s eventual winner.

Commentary: Both A’s and Giants looking for “The Bridge” trophy

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Photo credit: nbcsports.com

By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Friday, July 13, 2018

SAN FRANCISCO – The Swingin’ A’s of Oakland enter this weekend’s interleague series as one of the hottest teams in baseball. The host San Francisco Giants, not so much, making for an interesting dynamic as both teams look for something besides bragging rights in the Bay Area series.

That “something” is “The Bridge,” a trophy created from steel salvaged from the original East Span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.

In his pregame comments Friday, Giants manager Bruce Bochy seemed less concerned about The Bridge, as he was about an Oakland team that has won 19 of its last 24 games.

“It’s not so much about the trophy, but the fact you have two teams that are trying to get to the postseason,” Bochy said. “There’s nobody playing better than Oakland right now. They’re playing great, throwing the ball well. They’ve made some great comebacks, scoring runs, winning games late, their bullpen, in general, has really done a great job.”

“You get on a run like they are, that means you’re playing really good baseball. Since they’ve been on their run, I’m sure they feel really good about where they’re at, trying to get to the postseason, and that’s what we’re trying to do – two teams trying to accomplish the same thing.

A couple more things about The Bridge: A list of frequently asked questions was issued. We learned that the idea was the brainchild of NBC Sports reporter Brodie Brazil when he heard White Sox announcers Ken Harrelson and Steve Stone discussing Chicago’s Crosstown Cup. And, if the six-game regular-season series finishes tied, the winner of the last game is awarded the trophy.

The San Francisco skipper said it didn’t make a difference to him if the Giants and Athletics met before or after the All-Star break.

“It doesn’t matter to me when we play them,” Bochy said. “If anything, it keeps both teams at home around the break, so I suppose that’s a good thing.”

The A’s still manage to surprise many observers by hanging around the American League Wild Card race, while the Giants continue their quest to try keeping its key players healthy while trying to a) salvage their season and b) decide on being buyers or sellers at the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.

Oakland is faced with the same trade deadline decision. In recent years, the A’s have predictably been sellers. This year, speculation increases by the day that the Athletics may take the plunge and be buyers. Don’t bet on it, but the thought is intriguing.

The starting pitchers for Friday’s game couldn’t be more contrasting. Madison Bumgarner, despite the injuries that have plagued him the last couple of seasons, is still the ace of the Giants’ staff. Oakland counters with well-traveled Edwin Jackson, recently rescued from baseball’s scrap heap to not only play for his record-tying 13th team–he’s 1-0 with a 2.45 ERA.

A pitching duel ensued over the first three innings before San Francisco manufactured a run in the fourth, aided by a balk committed by Jackson. The A’s answered with a two-out solo home run by Chad Pinder to tie the game at 1-1.

As Bumgarner continued to mow down the A’s, San Francisco surged ahead 2-1 in the sixth on Buster Posey’s run-scoring single. But the Athletics weren’t quite finished.

Oakland loaded the bases and chased Bumgarner in the seventh. But Giants reliever Reyes Moranta retired Chad Pinder, Jonathan Lucroy and pinch-hitter Nick Martini in order to snuff out the rally. A defensive gem by Pablo Sandoval at third helped prevent further damage, when he snared Jonathan Lucroy’s sharp line drive.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Giants loaded the bases against the Oakland bullpen and capitalized with a two-RBI double by Steven Duggar to break the game open. When the dust settled, San Francisco batted around and took a 7-1 lead, which wound up as the final.

Fun stuff. And there’s five more of these. The winner gets a trophy.

Oakland A’s podcast with Joey Friedman: A’s are coming off a near sweep of Astros, can they win series against Giants?

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mercurynews.com file photo: Oakland A’s Jed Lowrie takes congratulations in the A’s dugout which he has more than several times this season as he makes his first All Star appearance of his career

On the Oakland A’s podcast with Joey:

The A’s scored six unanswered runs on Thursday to come back from a 4-0 deficit to win 6-4 and get a near sweep in Houston, taking three out of four games. The A’s got key hitting in the contest with Matt Chapman, who hit a game-tying double and Mark Canha with a two-run single for extra runs.

The A’s Khris Davis has a 14-game hitting streak going into the series with the San Francisco Giants. Davis got another hit on Thursday against Astros pitcher Chris Devenski to keep it going.

The A’s second baseman Jed Lowrie will be replacing Gleyber Torres the Yankees rookie it’s Lowrie’s first All-Star appearance in his career. Lowrie has 103 hits, 62 RBIs, 16 home runs, while hitting .290.

The A’s, the hottest team in baseball, have won 19 of their last 24 games and are coming of that three out four game series win in Houston. Joey takes a look how these two teams match up for the Bay Bridge series.

Joey Friedman does the Oakland A’s podcast each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com