Tag: Oakland A’s

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.

Texas Rangers starter Max Scherzer pitches into the bottom of the sixth inning at the Oakland Coliseum against the Oakland A’s on Tue Aug 8, 2023 (AP News photo)

Texas (68-46). 010 030 110 – 6. 13. 0

Oakland (32-82). 000 100 000 – 1. 3. 0

Time: 2:33

Attendance: 5,419

Tuesday, August 8, 2023

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND–We all knew it was coming, but now it’s a mathematical certainty; the A’s will not finish this season over .500. Tuesday night’s 6-1 loss to the division leading Texas Rangers was the hapless, homeless team’ 82nd of the 162 game 2023 season

After Dan Jiménez’s dismal eighth inning in yesterday evening’s loss to Texas, the A’s optioned him to their PCL farm team and recalled Adrián Martínez from the Aviators. Neither pitcher has performed up to his potential this year, in The Town or in Sin City.

The Mexicali native saw action today, entering the game in the top of the fifth and overstaying his welcome until there were two out in the top of the ninth.

Oakland’s starting pitcher, JP Sears was 0-3, 5.54 in his first seven starts of the season. He went 2-5, 3.42 over the remaining 15, to bring his record to 2-8, 4.07 at game time.

Sears performance this evening was underwhelming. He allowed four runs, all earned, in four innings, in which he threw 86 pitches, 59 of which weren’t balls. He gave up nine hit and a walk, striking out six. He took the loss and ended the day at 2-9, 4.23.

The Athletics’ 27 year old lefty’s opponent was the likely Hall of Fame candidate, the 39 year old right hander Max Scherzer, now on the downhill side of his career, although you’d hardly thought so when he signed his three year, $43,333,333 contract with the Mets this past off season.

Scherzer was traded to the Rangers 10 days ago and promptly exercised his option to become a free agent once 2023 is in the rear view mirror. He’d been 9-4, 4.01 for the Mets and 10-4, 4.04, combined with his two teams.

Tuesday, though, he was excellent, holding Oakland one run, earned on three hits, one of the a home run, and two walks, while striking out six. He threw 89 pitches, 58 for strikes, and earned his second win for Texas, and now is 11-4, 3.88 overall.

Robbie Grossma’s one out double to left, followed by Ezeequiel Durán’s single to center, put Texas on the board in the top of the second.

The Rangers had to settle for that one run, thanks in great part, to a beautiful play by Nick Alllen on short that turned what would have been an RBI single to left by Marcus Semien into an infield single that loaded the bases with two outs before Sears fanned Corey Seager to end the threat.

Grossman doubled again in the fourth, and Huff drove him in with a two bagger of his own. So much for The Curse of the Leadoff Double. After Leody Tavares went down swinging, Allen made another beautiful play on Semien’s grounder, but the Rangers’ second sacker beat the throw to first, and Huff came all the way around to score.

Semien then came home on Seager’s double off the xfinity ad just to the left of the 388 foot marker in left center. The one run Texas lead had blossomed into a 4-0 gap before Adolis García, the eighth batter of the frame, went down swinging to end the inning.

JJ Bleday got one of those runs back for the A;s with his leadoff home run in the bottom of the frame, his ninth four bagger of the season. It travelled 420 feet into center field and left Bledauy’s bat at 108.7 mph and came off a 92.6 mph four seamer.

Adrián Martínez celebrated his return to the show by striking out the three batters he faced in the fifth, to the accompaniment of the now traditional “Sell the Team” chants of that frame. He set the Rangers down to a conga beat in the sixth as well.

But Martinez’ patch of perfection ended abruptly with Seager’s leadoff home run over the right center field State Farm advertisement in the seventh, making it 5-1 Lowe followed with a double to right center but was eliminated on an inning ending unassisted double play on a liner by Mitch Garver to Gelof at second. Martínez, who has a history as a starter, stayed on for the eighth.

’twas the night before Christmas in the Athletics’ bullpen; not a creature was stirring, when Grossman walked to start the inning. Travis Jankowski pinch ran for him and scored two outs later on Huff’s triple to left center. That gave Brock Burke a 6-1 lead to work with when he replaced Scherzer to start the eighth. He preserved that six run margin.

Zach Neal finally began to warm up in the pen with Lowe’s one out double in the ninth. He continued until two walks and a fly out loaded the bases with two down. Then he replaced Martínez and got a pinch hitting Josh Smith to fly out to right on three pitches.

The loss dropped Oakland to 31-82, .274.

Kansas City improved its record to 37-78, .322 with their 9-3 defeat of the Red Sox at Fenway earlier this evening.

On August 8, 1899 the worst team in major league history, the Cleveland Spiders, were clobbered by the Boston Beaneater in the hub, 18-8 and fell to 18-71, .202. On August 9, 1962, the worst team of the modern era, the New York Mets, were in San Francisco, where Roger Craig beat the Giants, 5-2, at the brand new ball park at Candlestick Point. That raised the Mets’ record to 30-82, .268.

On August 9, 2023, the A’s will send Freddy Tarnok (0-1, 6.75) against the Rangers and Jordan Montgomery (7-9, 3.40). Game time is 12:37.

Texas Rangers’ Travis Jankowski, right, is congratulated after scoring against the Oakland Athletics during the seventh inning at the Oakland Coliseum on Mon Aug 7, 2023 (AP News photo)

Texas (67-46). 000 200 120. – 5. 7. 0

Oakland (32-81). 003 000 000 – 3. 6 1

Time: 2:42

Attendance: 4,013

Monday, August 7, 2023

By Lewis Rubman

OAKLAND–It was fun seeing and hearing large and loud crowds at the old Oakland Coliseum over the weekend. Even fighting for a parking spot brought a touch of nostalgic pleasure, an awareness that this was an experience we’d had in the past but could not hope to enjoy again.

Monday brought a return to reality. The paid attendance was 4,013, and the A’s, instead of winning, as they unexpectedly had done Saturday and Sunday, blew a lead and lost 5-3 to the division leading Texas Rangers.

Southpaw Ken Waldichuk has been versatile, if not particularly successful, this season. He brought a 2-7, 6.52 record with him when he toed the rubber at 6:42. It was his 26th game. He was what is now called the traditional starter in a dozen of the previous 25, as he was tonight.

In two others, he was the opener, and he relieved in the remaining ten. Waldichuk did an adequate job against the Rangers tonight. He threw 92 pitches, including 30 balls, over six innings, limiting the Rangers to a pair of runs, both earned, on six hits. He had to settle for a no decision that left him at 3-7 2-7, 6.30.

It was the Rangers’ Dane Dunning’s first start against the Athletics and 17th overall for 2023. He came to work with a 9-4, 3.14 record, which is the fourth best among the American League hurlers who qualify for the rankings. He pitched well in his last start, striking out 11 White Sox in 7-2/3 frames while allowing only one run, which was earned.

Monday night, he, too, got a no decision. The lefty went six frames and allowed three runs, all earned, on five hits and three walks while striking out six. He threw 94 pitches, 55 for strikes and went back to the hotel at 9-4, 3.21.

Oakland took a 3-0 lead in the home third. Tony Kemp drew a one out walk and scored on a double by the surging Nick Allen, who reached the Mendoza line with the two bagger.

He had a little bit of luck on his side; Robbie Grossman slipped trying to field his hit, which probably would have been a single, at most, under other circumstances After Dunning fanned Cody Thomas, JJ Bleday walked, and both runners scored on rookie Zack Gelof’s double to right.

The Rangers came charging back in the top of the fourth. A leadoff single by Corey Seager and back to back doubles by Adolis Garcia and Mitch Garver made it a 3-2 game. The second time through the lineup strikes again!

Texas put runners in scoring position in the fifth and sixth, and Oakand’s Gelof fell victim to the Curse of the Leadoff Double in the sixth, but the score remained 3-2 in favor of the A’s through the six innings of Waldichuk’s mound tenure.

His replacement, Lucas Erceg, faced three batters and walked two of them, getting his sole out on a fly to left. Kirby Snead almost saved his bacon, retiring Seager on a grounder to short, but he dropped Tyler Soderstrom’s throw while covering first on Nathaniel Lowe’s grounder. The error allowed Travis Janowski, who had hit for Sam Huff, to score the tying run, charged to Erceg.

Josh Sborz relieved Dunning for the bottom of the seventh, and Dany Jiménez took. over for Snead to start the eighth for Oakland. It was not a fortunate move for the A’s. Mitch Garver lled off with a single to right. Jonathan Ornelas pinch ran for him. Robbie Grossman drew a base on balls. Ezequiel Durán sacrificed both men up 90 feet.

Travis Jankowski, who had pinch hit for DH Huff in the seventh, hit a grounder to second that Gelof unwisely threw home. Ornelas beat the offline throw to break the tie, and the next batter, Leody Tavares, hit a sacrifice fly to center that made it 5-3, Texas.

The legendary Aroldis Chapman came in for the Rangers to face the A’s in their half of the eighth. He overwhelmed the four Athletics he faced, allowing only a walk to Aledmys Díaz, batting for Brown.

Sam Long was tasked with keeping the A’s in striking distance in the top of the ninth, which he did with two Ks and a pop up (with a walk on the side).

Will Smith went for his 21st save in the ninth. He got it.

The win went to Sborz, now 5-4, 4.01, and the loss was charged to Jiménez, whose record now stands at 0-1, 7.04.

The loss was the Athletics’ 81st of the year, leaving them with a winning percentage of .283, the Royals were grand slam walked off by the Red Sox, 6-2 and fell to 36-78, .316.

The 1899 Cleveland Spiders were idle on August 7 and so remained at 17-80, .175. The same day in 1962, the New York Mets fell, 7-5 at Chavez Ravine to Don Drysdale and the Dodgers.

The Mets, who finished the season at 40-120, .250,were 29-82, .261. So the A’s might yet escape the dishonor of having the worst record of any major league team in the early or modern era of big league baseball.

The four game series between the teams from Dallas-Fort Worth and Oakland -Las Vegas will resume Tuesday night at 6:45. Oakand’s JP Sears (2-8, 4.07) will arm wrestle with newly acquired Ranger starter, Max Scherzer (10-4, 4.04).