Tag: Oakland A’s

Cardinals beat A’s again 6-2 to extend A’s losing streak to five games

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Oakland Athletics’ Lawrence Butler celebrates as he arrives home after hitting a two-run home run during the seventh inning against the St Louis Cardinals on Tue Aug 15, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s continued their losing ways as they lost for the fifth consecutive game in St. Louis. The A’s gave the start to 30-year-old Spenser Watkins. Watkins was pitching for his third team this year. Watkins started the season with the Baltimore Orioles.

The Orioles traded him to the Houston Astron on June twenty-third. Watkins’ stay with the Astros was short. The Astros designated him for assignment on August eighth, and the ‘s signed him a few days later. Watkins was filling in for Freddy Tarnok, who went on the IL a few days ago.

Unfortunately for Watkins, the Cardinals’ first three hitters put three runs on the board before Watkins retired a single Cardinal hitter. Watkins pitched better, but the A’s offense failed to support him. The Cardinals went on to beat the A’s 6-2.

The Cardinals’ leadoff hitter Lars Nootbar doubled to get things rolling for the Cardinals. The Redbirds’ big first baseman Paul Goldschmidt doubled to drive in Nootbar with the game’s first run. Third baseman Nolan Arenado sent a Watkins’ changeup into the left-field seats to give the Cardinals a 3-0 lead.

It was Arenado’s 25th home run of the season and the 324th of his storied career. Watkins retired the next two hitters. Rookie sensation Jordan Walker, the hero of Tuesday night’s game, blasted his 11th big fly of the 2023 campaign over the fence in right field. The Cardinals led 4-0 after one inning.

The Cardinals tacked on another run in the fourth. Watkins walked Jordan Walker leading off the inning. The Cardinals’ catcher Andrew Knizner, filling in for the injured Willson Conteras, doubled to left field. Walker scored to give St. Louis a 5-0 advantage.

The A’s plated two runs in the top of the seventh. The Cardinals’ starter Dakota Hudson had allowed the A’s just three hits in the game’s first six innings. With one out in the seventh, A’s catcher Tyler Soderstrom singled. Rookie centerfielder Lawrence Butler blasted his first Major League home run to make it a bit closer as they trailed the Cardinals 5-2 midway through the seventh. 

The Cardinals scored the game’s final run in the bottom of the eighth. Cardinal shortstop Tommy Edman homered to put the CArdinals in the driver’s seat. The A’s failed to score in the ninth. St. Louis wins 6-2.

Game Notes: With the loss, the A’s are now 33-87. The Cardinals improved to 54-66.

The line score for Oakland was two runs, six hits, and no errors. The line for St. Louis was six runs, 14 hits, and no errors.

Dakota Hudson was the winning pitcher. Spenser Watkins was the losing hurler.

The hitting stars for the Cardinals were Nolan Arenado, with a home run and three singles. Paul Goldschmidt had two doubles, and Andrew Knizner had a single and a double.

Lawrence Butler’s first Major League home run was the big hit for the A’s. 

The A’s end the six-game road trip Wednesday afternoon in St. Louis. The A’s Paul Blackburn (2-3 ERA 4.52) will be on the hill looking for his third win of the year. The Cardinals will send lefty Matthew Liberatore out to pitch. Liberatore is 2-4 and has an ERA of 5.72.

The game will start at 3:45 pm.

A’s beat themselves fall to Cardinals 7-5 Monday night at Busch

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St. Louis Cardinals’ Tyler O’Neill is safe at second for a stolen base as Oakland Athletics shortstop Nick Allen handles the throw during the fifth inning at Busch Stadium in St Louis on Mon Aug 14, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The A’s lost for the fourth time in a row and the sixth time in the last seven games. Oakland blew a 7-2 lead on Sunday as the Washington Nationals scored six times in the ninth to beat the A’s. A’s manager Mark Kotsay told his team to turn the page.

Put the loss behind you and go out and figure out a way to get a win. It is good advice for a young team, but the A’s found a way to beat themselves as they lost to the host St.Louis Cardinals, 7-5 on Monday night.

The A’s sent left J.P. Sears to the hill Monday night. Sears has a record of two wins and nine losses. The A’s hoped to get five or more innings of work from the young lefty. Sears did not start well, as he walked three Cardinal hitters in the first inning.

He was lucky to get out of the inning unscathed. St.Louis plated a run in the second inning. With one out, CArdinal right-fielder Jordan Walker singled. Sears struck out Taylor Motter for the second out. The inning appeared to be over when Sears’ throw to first base got Walker in a rundown.

A’s first baseman, Tyler Soderstrom’s throw to second was slightly off the mark. Zack Gelof, standing behind the bag, applied the tag. The umpire called Walker out. The Cardinals challenged the call, and the replay showed Gelof failed to tag the runner. Walker was ruled safe. The next hitter, Tommy Edman, singled to drive in. Walker with the run. The Cards lead 1-0 after two.

The A’s took the lead in the top of the fifth. Cardinal starter Miles Mikolas hit Nick Allen with two out with a pitch. Esteury Ruiz, playing left field for the A’s, blasted his second home run of the year. The ball barely made it over the 375-foot marker in left field.

Mikolas, like Sears, is a leader in allowing gopher balls. For Mikolas, it was the 24th dinger allowed this season. The A’s led 2-1 midway through the fifth inning. The lead didn’t last long as the Cardinals put two on the board in their half of the fifth.

Edman singled, leading off the inning. The next hitter Paul Goldschmidt, a former National League MVP, hit a bomb that went 411 feet in the seats in left field. For Goldschmidt, it was his 19th of the year. For Sears, it was the 23rd homer allowed. Sears ranks third in home runs allowed. The Cards led 3-2 after five.

Oakland rallied to put three runs on the board in the seventh. With one out, rookie centerfield Lawrence Butler and shortstop Nick Allen singled. Ruiz lined out to the shortstop for the second out. Zack Gelof doubled down the left field line to drive in Butler with Oakland’s third run.

Gelof continues to impress. The young second baseman from Delaware has 18 extra-base hits in his first 26 games in the Major Leagues. Allen stopped at third. Set Brown singled to drive in Allen and Gelof. The A’s needed the bullpen to do its job and keep the Cardinals off the board.

The A’s brought Angel Felipe to pitch in the bottom of the seventh. It was not a night that Felipe would remember. He walked the leadoff hitter, Paul Goldschmidt. Felipe struck out Nolan Arenado for the first out. Felipe walked the next two hitters to load the bases.

Mark Kotsay had seen enough. Felipe was removed, and newly acquired lefty Francisco Perez was now pitching. Perez could not find the strike zone either. He walked Lard Nootbar to force in a run. The A’s still were leading, 5-4. Perez struck out Luken Baker for the second out.

The next hitter was the 21-year-old Jordan Walker. With three balls and two strikes, the three runners were running on the pitch. Walker boomed a line drive to right field. Seth Brown, attempting to make the catch, saw the ball bounce off his glove. The Cardinals scored three runs and took a 7-5 lead. They were able to plate four due to four walks and one hit. Baseball is a crazy game.

The A’s failed to score in the eighth or nine innings. Oakland’s bullpen failed to hold the lead for the second game in a row.

Game Notes- With the loss, the A’s are 33-86 for the year. The Cardinals are 52-66. The Cardinals are in last place in the NL Central Division. The Cardinals have had just one losing season since the year 2000.

The line score for Oakland was five runs, eight hits, and no errors.
The line for St. Louis was seven runs, eight hits, and two errors.

The winning pitcher was Jo Jo Romero. The losing pitcher was Angel Felipe.

The A’s have yet to announce a starter for Tuesday’s game. Freddy Tarnok was supposed to start but was placed on the IL on Monday. The Cardinals will send Dakota Hudson to the mound. Hudson is 3-0 and has a 4.31 ERA.

Nationals edge A’s for three game sweep 8-7 at Nationals Park; Six run comeback in ninth gets Nats win

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The Washington Nationals celebrate after Jeter Downs hit a walk-off single during the ninth inning to defeat the Oakland A’s at Nationals Park in DC on Sun Aug 13, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

Sunday afternoon the Oakland A’s (33-85) finished off their three game series with the Washington Nationals (53-66) getting swept in three games 8-7 at Nationals Park in DC. Washington won the first two games of this series and the A’s couldn’t avoid the sweep. In Saturday’s game, Oakland had the lead going into the eighth inning but an ninth inning home run gave Washington a walk off win 3-2.

Sunday game recap: The A’s got going in the first inning taking a 3-0 lead. Oakland’s Zach Gelof hit a solo home run followed by a two run homer from Seth Brown.

The Nationals had one run in the first inning but the A’s continued to score runs. They scored four more runs, one in the third, one in the fifth and a couple in the seventh inning extending their lead to 7-2. Going into the ninth inning, the A’s had ten hits.

Zach Gelof had his second home run of the game in the fifth inning. He had three hits in the game and both Seth Brown and Aledmys Diaz had a couple of hits. The Oakland offense was clicking on all cylinders in this game.

The A’s had the bases loaded in the ninth inning with one out. They came away empty leaving three runners stranded. They were three outs away from the win in the bottom of the ninth.

A’s pitcher Trevor May would try to close out this game. He got into deep trouble loading the bases with one out. The Nationals scored twice in the inning. Washington brought two runners home with two outs and May was have a rough time finishing this game. He loaded the bases once again and he was finished.

Kirby Snead would relieve May and try to get that final out. With the bases loaded Snead walked Domenic Smith and Keibert Ruiz scored. The Nationals were within two runs of a tie 7-5. That tie came to be when Nick Allen couldn’t stop an Alex Call bullet and two runners scored.

This was a crazy turn of events for Oakland. In an unbelievable comeback the Nationals celebrated a six run ninth for a second walkoff in a row. The final out was the elusive out for Oakland, it never came. This was a disastrous loss for the Green and Gold.

The turning point in this game was of course the ninth inning. The A’s had the bases loaded in the ninth inning and came away empty and that was another huge factor in this loss. The failure on the mound was glaring and a lot of credit goes to the Washington offense as well.

Monday the A’s will travel to St. Louis for a three game series with the Cardinals. JP Sears will take the mound for Oakland with a 2-9 win/loss record and a 4.23 ERA. For St. Louis Miles Mikolas will get the nod with a 6-8 win/loss record and a 4.20 ERA. First pitch is scheduled for 4:45 PM.

MLB The Show podcast with Charlie O: SRS’s Amaury speaks out on A’s ownership; Orioles announcer Brown back after suspension; plus more

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Oakland A’s broadcaster Amaury Pi Gonzalez said in a recent interview that if Oakland A’s owner John Fisher sold the team there would be a parade in Oakland the following week (photo provided by Amaury Pi Gonzalez)

On the MLB The Show Podcast with Charlie O:

#1 One of the biggest quotes coming out of the San Francisco Chronicle interview with Oakland A’s broadcaster Amaury Pi Gonzalez on Thursday saying, if A’s owner John Fisher sold the team there would be a parade in Oakland next week, also saying that Fisher was not professional for the way he relocated the A’s and that he didn’t want the A’s to leave Oakland he wants them to stay. The interview has gone viral in the baseball community on social media.

#2 Baltimore Orioles broadcaster Kevin Brown’s suspension ended on Saturday in time for him to broadcast the Orioles and Seattle Mariners game. Brown was suspended five games for negative comments regarding the Orioles loosing records in previous seasons. The Orioles are in first place this season. Brown also said that the Orioles have had a losing record against the Tampa Bay Rays. The fans during the suspension chanted “Free Kevin Brown” and owner John Angelos received lots and lot of emails regarding the Brown suspension that became a national story.

#3 San Francisco Giants pitcher Ross Stripling showed catcher Blake Sabol an article on his phone when they were in Anaheim to play the Angels last week showing that Sabol would be part of a package to get Angels two way player Shohei Ohtani. Stripling said to Sabol, ” Sabes, I love you but we would have to do this” Sabol said “Yeah I get it.” Ohtani would fetch up to $600-800 million after this season on the free agent market. The Dodgers and Angels are the front runners in the Ohtani sweepstakes.

#4 The Giants who nearly signed Carolos Correa for $350 million for 13 years as the Giants nearly introduced Correa to the media before finding out that he failed a physical. Then failing another physical with the Mets eventually signing $200 million with the Minnesota Twins. Correa in 109 games with the Twins has hit .230, 15 home runs, and has 54 RBIs. Has Correa underperformed the Twins expectations?

#5 The Los Angeles Dodgers long awaited ceremony for pitcher Fernando Valenzulea arrived on Friday night when the Dodgers retired his number. Fernando Fever arrived in the Southland in 1980 when Valenzuela arrived pitching for the Dodgers until 1990 and playing for Angels, Orioles, Padres, before retiring with the Cardinals in 1997. Fernando in case many of you don’t know is a class act, he acts like a regular guy and not this legendary figure, the honor the Dodgers gave him was well deserved.

Join Charlie O for the MLB The Show podcasts each Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

A’s Give Up Lead In the Ninth-Fall to the Nationals 3-2; Fourth loss in five games for Oakland

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Oakland Athletics right fielder Lawrence Butler (22) warms up before the game against the Washington Nationals, Saturday, Aug. 12, 2023, in DC (AP News photo)

A’s Give Up Lead In the Ninth-Fall to the Nationals 3-2

By Barbara Mason

The Oakland A’s (33-84) couldn’t hold onto a ninth inning lead and once again fell to the Washington Nationals (52-66) 3-2 at Nationals Park in DC on Saturday.

The Nationals got the first run of the game in the second inning, a fielders choice to third allowing Ildemaro Vargas to score giving Washington the early 1-0 lead.

Oakland took the lead with a home run in the third and sixth innings. JJ Bleday homered to center a 432 feet shot for the 1-1 tie. In the sixth inning Brent Rooker gave Oakland the lead 2-1 hitting s home run to right center field. The A’s had an opportunity to extend their lead in the seventh inning with two runners on base but left them both stranded.

A’s starting pitcher Luis Medina went 4.0 innings allowing four hits but limiting the damage to one run.

Oakland held onto the lead into the eighth when it began to unravel. With no outs the Nationals loaded the bases. The A’s relief pitcher Angel Felipe walked two runners and Jake All bunted. Washington tied up the game 2-2 when Lane Thomas singled and Stone Garrett scored. Washington left two runners stranded to end the eighth inning.

It was a three up three out ninth inning for the A’s and the Nationals were looking for the walkoff. It was a very brief ninth inning. Keibert Ruiz knocked the ball out of the park, a 391 feet shot to right giving the Nationals the come from behind win.

It was a tough loss for Oakland who came so close but could not hang onto the lead. It all came apart in the eighth inning and the A’s weren’t able to produce badly needed defense in the eighth inning.

A’s post game notes: Friday night the Oakland A’s began a three -game series with the Washington Nationals. The game started out well for Oakland leading 2-0 going into the second inning. It all fell apart for the remainder of the game for the A’s. The Nationals tied up the game 2-2 in the second inning. They went on to score in four of the next six innings winning the game 8-2.

Sunday the A’s will be looking to avoid a sweep in game three. Ken Waldichuk will take the mound for Oakland with a 2-7 win/loss record, ERA 6.30. Trevor Williams (5-7 ERA 5.00) will get the nod for Washington. First pitch is scheduled for 10:35 AM.

Oakland A’s podcast with Daniel Dullum: Did A’s truly censor A’s fans protest last Sunday at Coliseum?

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Oakland A’s fans with Sell shirts at a Apr 28, 2023 game vs. the Cincinnati Reds in the Oakland Coliseum bleachers. The chant “Sell the team” has also caught on in other MLB parks as the A’s relocation to Las Vegas is proving to be not popular with the fans (AP News file photo)

On the Oakland A’s podcast with Daniel Dullum:

#1 Daniel last Sunday in the suite bleacher area of the Oakland Coliseum fans were escorted out of a suite by order of a female employee who was wearing A’s employee credentials and ushered the group of fans wearing “Sell” shirts to the elevator and out of the area.

#2 A fan told Sam Warren of the San Francisco Chronicle that the “Sell” shirts were not permitted on the suite level and those fans wearing them had to leave. The A’s stated on Wednesday before the game with the Rangers that “We have no policy against prohibiting ‘SELL’ t-shirts in any area in the ballpark.” said an A’s spokesperson.

#3 The A’s fans had organized a second “reverse boycott” in a game against the San Francisco Giants last Sunday. The A’s and Giants fans were wearing “Sell” shirts in protest of the A’s moving to Las Vegas and wanting A’s owner John Fisher to sell the team to someone who will keep the team in Oakland. Does it strike you that it’s a little suspicious that on Sunday fans are not allowed to wear the “Sell” shirts in the bleacher suites but on Wednesday the fans were welcomed to wear them in the bleacher suites. Do you think all the publicity about this probably changed the narrative?

#4 When the A’s rebroadcasted their Sunday game against the Giants for television it was also reported that the top of the fifth inning where the fans started to chant “Sell the team” was cut off. The broadcast had indicated that there was technical difficulties and the A’s spokesperson said, “We encourage fans to express their fandom.”

#5 Taking these circumstances into account and the A’s say they deny they are not banning any fans with “Sell” shirts on to be prohibited from the bleacher suite level or anywhere else in the park fans have questioned why these fans were escorted out of the suite for the shirts now the A’s say the fans wearing the Sell shirts are welcome to go anywhere in the park with the Sell shirts.

Join Daniel Dullum for the Oakland A’s podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Oakland A’s podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: Can A’s surprise Nationals and Cardinals on this 6 game road trip

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Oakland Athletics’ Esteury Ruiz hits a single against the Texas Rangers during the third inning at the Oakland Coliseum on Wed Aug 9, 2023 (AP News photo)

On the Oakland A’s podcast with Jeremiah:

#1 The Oakland A’s (33-82), fresh off winning their first (3-2) homestand of the year, are in Washington, DC, to play three games against the Nationals this weekend. 

#2 The Nationals are in last place in the NL East Divison with a record of 50-65. The A’s hope to take two out of three from the Nats this weekend.

#3 The A’s won three out of the last five home games. A’s centerfielder Esteury Ruiz and second baseman Zack Gelof have emerged as future stars for the A’s. Ruiz is second in baseball with 46 steals. Gelof has homered six times in 22 games.

#4 Mark Kotsay continues to have his players ready. Even though they have the worst record in baseball, Kotsay has them working to improve and has his guys wanting to grind out every at-bat to get a win.

#5  Paul Blackburn (2-2 ERA 4.35) will pitch Friday night 4:05PM PT the Nationals have not announced a starter for Friday. Two teams neither will be in the post season but if you ignore that can the A’s get some road wins against the Nats?

Join Jeremiah for the A’s podcasts Fridays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Oakland A’s Preview: A’s open three game set with Washington Nationals in DC Friday

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Oakland Athletics pitcher Paul Blackburn works against the San Francisco Giants during the first inning at the Oakland Coliseum Sat Aug 5, 2023. Blackburn will be the A’s starting pitcher this Fri Aug 11, 2023 at Nationals Park in DC (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s (33-82), fresh off winning their first (3-2) homestand of the year, are in Washington, DC, to play three games against the Nationals this weekend. The Nationals are in last place in the NL East Divison with a record of 50-65. The A’s hope to take two out of three from the Nats this weekend.

The A’s have announced their starters for the series. Paul Blackburn (2-2 ERA 4.35) will pitch Friday night 4:05PM PT, Luis Medina (3-8 ERA 5.47) goes Saturday 4:05PM PT, and lefty Ken Waldichuk (2-7 ERA 6.30) pitches on Sunday 10:35PM PT. A’s skipper Marl Kotsay hopes to see improvement from Medina and Waldichuk. Both performed well in the last couple of outings.

The Nationals, playing the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday, have yet to announce their starters. Josiah Gray, MacKenzie Gore, Patrick Corbin, Trevor William, and Jake Irvin are in the Nationals’ rotation. Nats’ manager Dave Martinez will announce which pitchers will perform after Thursday’s game.

As mentioned earlier, the A’s won three out of the last five home games. A’s centerfielder Esteury Ruiz and second baseman Zack Gelof have emerged as future stars for the A’s. Ruiz is second in baseball with 46 steals. Gelof has homered six times in 22 games.

No player in A’s history has ever achieved that feat. On the IL list, Ryan Noda looks like he will be a regular at first base. The A’s pitching is another story. The A’s starting rotation’s combined ERAs are the worst in baseball. The same goes for the bullpen. There has been some improvement lately, but not enough to get the A’s out of the bottom of the barrel.

The Nationals are in rebuild mode, too. The Nats have gone from the penthouse( World Series champs in 2019) to the outhouse, last place in the NL East. Max Scherzer is gone, and Stephen Strasburg has yet to throw a pitch this year. Both pitchers were instrumental in helping Washington win the World Series.

This weekend, Key players to watch are the Nationals’ right-fielder Lane Thomas, DH Joey Meneses, catcher Kelbert Ruiz, and shortstop C.J. Abrams. Thomas is hitting.284 with 20 home runs and 67 RBIs. Meneses’ numbers are .279, 11 homers, and 63 RBIs. Ruiz is batting .244 with 12 dingers and 42 knocked in. Abrams comes in at .258, with 11 bombs and 44 RBIs.

The Nats’ close Kyle Finnegan has recorded 18 saves this year.

After the series with the Nationals, the A’s play three games with the St. Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals have the same record as Washington, 50-65. St. Louis, normally a contender for the NL Central Division crown, finds themselves in last place. The Cardinals were sellers at the trading deadline. St. Louis sent lefty Jordan Montgomery to the Texas Rangers and Jack Flaherty to the Baltimore Orioles.

Mark Kotsay continues to have his players ready. Even though they have the worst record in baseball, Kotsay has them working to improve and has his guys wanting to grind out every at-bat to get a win. The A’s do not want to break the 1962 New York Mets’ record of 120 losses.

Oakland A’s podcast with Jerry Feitelberg: Oakland avoids getting swept at Coliseum shuts out Rangers; Oakland opens series with Washington Friday

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Esterury Ruiz slugs a single in the bottom of the third inning for the Oakland A’s against the Texas Rangers at the Oakland Coliseum on Wed Aug 9, 2023 (AP News photo)

On the A’s podcast with Jerry F:

#1 The Oakland A’s Freddy Tarnok went four innings without giving up a run against the mighty Texas Rangers with the help of five other A’s pitchers to shutout one of baseball’s best 2-0 at the Oakland Coliseum.

#2 For Tarnok he records his first MLB career win which was part of a four hitter against one of the toughest line ups in baseball.

#3 The 2-0 loss for the Rangers snaps their eight game win streak, the Rangers took the first two games from Oakland on Monday and Tuesday nights and were in danger of getting swept.

#4 The A’s got some offense from Zack Gelof who slugged his sixth homer of the season and rookie Esteurey Ruiz got a base hit, stole two bases, scored a run and Ruiz’ stolen bases gives him 46 for the season.

#5 The A’s start a six game road trip starting Friday night in Washington DC against the Nationals. A’s starter Paul Blackburn (2-2 ERA 4.35) the Nats have not announced a starter as of Wednesday night.

Jerry Feitelberg does the A’s podcasts Thursdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

A’s behind outstanding pitching, down Rangers 2-0; Oakland uses six pitchers to shutout Texas

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The Oakland A’s shortstop Nick Allen (2) is seen here throwing out the Texas Rangers Leody Taveras at first base in the top of the sixth inning at the Oakland Coliseum on Wed Aug 9, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

My, oh, my. On a beautiful afternoon in Oakland on Wednesday, the A’s much-maligned pitching staff stopped the powerful Texas Rangers offense. The Rangers have scored the most runs of any team in the American League.

The Rangers have guys up and down the lineup that can hit the ball out of the park. Yet, A’s manager Mark Kotsay’s decision to go with an opener paid dividends. Austin Pruitt started for the Green and Gold and walked just one batter in his two innings.

Freddy Tarnook took over in the third, giving the A four scoreless innings and allowing just two hits. Angel Felipe and Kirby Snead pitched in the seventh and eighth. Neither pitcher allowed a hit. A’s closer Trevor May recorded his 12th save of the year to preserve the ‘s 2-0 win.

The Rangers sent lefty Jordan Montgomery to the mound to face the A’s. Montgomery, acquired by Texas from the St.Louis Cardinals at the trade deadline, was hoping to notch his second win as a member of the Rangers. Montgomery gave the Rangers a quality start.

He went six innings, allowing two runs, seven hits, and one home run. Montgomery struck out five and walked one. Texas Rangers’ manager Bruce Bochy had to be pleased with Montgomery’s performance rather than the game’s outcome.

Here’s how the A’s scored their runs. With one out in the bottom of the third inning, A’s centerfielder Esteury Ruiz singled. Ruiz, second in baseball with 44 steals before Wednesday’s game, promptly stole second and third.

It was his 45th and 46th stolen bases of the season. Third baseman Jonah Bride’s sacrifice fly drove in Ruiz with the game’s first run.

The A’s put their second run of the game on the board in the bottom of the sixth. Rookie second baseman Zack Gelof led off the frame with his sixth home run to make it 2-0. Gelof’s sixth home run in 22 games made A’s history. Gelof became the first player in franchise history to accomplish that feat. 

The Rangers threatened to score in the top of the ninth. Trevor May was brought in from the bullpen to close out the game. May retired two good Ranger hitters, Aroldis Garcia, and Leody Taveras. Singles by catcher Sam Huff and Robbie Grossman put the tying runners on base.

Ranger third baseman Josh Smith came to the plate as the potential go-ahead run. May got Smith to line out to A’s shortstop Nick Allen. The A’s win 2-0.

Game Notes: With the win, the A’s are now 33-82, still the worst record in baseball. The Rangers are 68-47. Texas is in first place in the AL West Division and leads the second-place Houston Astros by 2 and 1/2 games.

Zack Gelof and Estuery Ruiz were the entire A’s offense on Wednesday. Gelof’s home run and Ruiz’s baserunning were the ingredients that gave the A’s the win. The A’s pitching was outstanding. The A’s held the Rangers to just two hits for the first eight innings. The Rangers had two singles in the ninth but failed to score.

Freddy Tarnok received credit for his first win of the year. May recorded his 12th save.

The line score for Oakland was two runs, seven hits, and no errors.

The Rangers’ line was no runs, four hits, and no errors.

The A’s are off on Thursday. Starting Friday night, they will play a three-game series with the Washington Nationals in the Nation’s Capitol. The A’s then travel to St Louis to play the Cardinals. Both teams are having a down year. The A’s will be hoping to capitalize on both teams’ problems.

Friday’s starters: For Oakland Paul Blackburn (2-2 ERA 4.35) Washington has not announced a starter first pitch 4:05pm PT at Nationals Park.