Rich Hill was solid in his return to the mound for the A’s on Saturday night, but his efforts were for naught as the A’s were beaten 4-2 in 10 innings by the Pirates at the Coliseum.
Pittsburgh scored twice in the top of the 10th, with the game-winning hit courtesy of David Freese, who singled to left to score Erik Kratz and give the Pirates a 3-2 lead. Gregory Polanco added an insurance run with an RBI single of his own.
Hill pitched six innings, allowing two runs on four hits, striking out six. John Axford, Ryan Dull and Ryan Madson each pitched a scoreless inning in relief, but Daniel Coulombe took the loss after struggling in the 10th frame.
The A’s struck first with two runs in the bottom of the third on a sacrifice fly by Jed Lowrie and an RBI hit by Josh Reddick. But the Pirates responded immediately in the next half inning. With two outs, Starling Marte singled in their first run, and Josh Harrison doubled in the tying run.
The game would remain tied until the extra-inning heroics by the Pirates.
The A’s fall to 35-46 and have lost three in a row, including the first two games of this series. They will try to salvage a game tomorrow afternoon at the Coliseum.
Dillon Overton allowed eight earned runs in a loss to the Giants on Thursday. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
By: Eric He
OAKLAND – The A’s were denied a sweep in the Bay Bridge Series in convincing fashion, as the Giants rocked Dillon Overton in his second career start to salvage a game by the final of 12-6 on Thursday night.
Oakland was on a roll coming into the game at the Coliseum. The A’s had won six of seven and notched three straight impressive wins over the Giants, one of the best teams in the baseball.
But their winning ways came to streaking halt as Overton allowed 8 runs in just three innings pitched. A 6-run second inning was his undoing, and it started with a double by Madison Bumgarner — the first pitcher to bat for himself as a designated hitter since 1976 — to center field.
Though the other team was essentially giving up its designated hitter, Overton couldn’t just slide meatballs past Bumgarner.
“Yeah, for sure,” he said when asked if he treated Bumgarner just like another hitter. “He swings the bat like he’s an everyday position player. He swings with passion, he swings with heart. He’s trying to hit a home run every time he gets up there.”
Bumgarner’s hit set up a big inning. Later on, with the bases loaded and nobody out, Brandon Belt hit a ground-rule double to knock in a pair of runs. Buster Posey followed that with a 3-run homer, and for good measure, Brandon Crawford went back-to-back with a big fly to right field.
Overton struggled with commanding his changeup — his specialty pitch — and the Giants jumped all over it.
“His changeup’s his pitch,” manager Bob Melvin said. “Looks like he was just missing with some pitches that inning and got into some bad counts. Wasn’t really able to establish that pitch. He threw it over the plate and they hit them.”
Overton concurred: “When you’re behind in counts, usually I can throw the changeup anytime, anyplace. But tonight I didn’t have a good feel for it. It was hard to throw it in for a strike, and when I did, I left it up.”
The A’s, who led 1-0 heading into the inning after Marcus Semien homered in the first, managed to cut the deficit to four in the seventh inning on a 3-run blast by Yonder Alonso.
In relief of Overton, Andrew Triggs and Daniel Coulombe pitched four scoreless innings, but Fernando Rodriguez walked in two runs in the top of the ninth and Belt singled in two more off Marc Rzepczynski to extend the Giants’ lead to 12-4.
The A’s scored twice in the ninth inning off Giants’ reliever Derek Law to alter the final score.
In his Major League debut last week, Overton beat the Angels throwing 108 pitches and allowing three runs. On Thursday, he got a rough “welcome to the big leagues” by the Giants’ bats.
“This is only my second start up at this level,” Overton said. “Everything was moving pretty fast. Usually, I can do a pretty good job of making adjustments as the game goes on, but tonight, it just didn’t really work out that way.”
Up next, the A’s will finish their brief five-game homestand when the Pirates come to the Coliseum for a three-game set starting Friday.
Marcus Semien hits a two-run home run Photo Credit: David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports
By Charlie O. Mallonee
The Oakland Athletics went into the game on Sunday against the Cincinnati Reds needing a win in the worst way. Losers of seven consecutive games, the A’s were in danger of going 0-8 on an eight game road trip. The psychological damage to the team by going winless on the road trip could have devastating effects for the rest of the season.
Not only did the A’s have to battle a losing streak, they had to battle the weather. The Midwestern summer has come early and it was 89-degrees with 55-percent humidity at game time. That made it feel like the temperature was 96-degrees. The Athletics are not used to playing in those conditions.
The A’s found their power and used the long ball with men on base to take an early lead that they never relinquished but only added to as the game progressed. Oakland had to pitch by committee due to the weather and because they were playing an Inter-league game in a National League park where the pitchers had to bat. They played the game like a team that knew they had to win the game.
In the batter’s box
Marcus Semien started off the scoring for the A’s in the top of the second inning when he hit a 3-1 pitch from John Lamb over the left field wall with Billy Butler on base to give Oakland a 2-0 lead. It was Semien’s 12th home run of the season. He finished the day going 2-for-4 with two RBI and one run scored.
The A’s scored two more runs in the second inning when Jake Smolinski hit his second home run of the year off Lamb with Josh Phegley on base. Smolinski’s home run gave the A’s a 4-0 lead at the time.
Danny Valencia joined the home run derby when he hit a solo shot into the left field seats in the top of the eighth inning off reliever A.J. Morris to give the A’s a 5-1 lead.
The A’s manufactured a run in the top of the ninth when Khris Davis hit a line drive single to center that allowed Coco Crisp to score the sixth run from second base.
Khris Davis had a 2-for-5 game with the insurance RBI.
Billy Butler continued to be productive at the plate going 3-for-3 with a run scored. The A’s have been waiting all season for Butler to catch fire.
Jed Lowrie stayed hot with the bat going 3-for-5 in the game. Lowrie’s average now stands at .303.
The A’s scored six runs on 15 hits with eight runners left on base.
The Reds only run came in the bottom of the second inning when outfielder Steve Selsky scored off catcher Ramon Cabrera’s double to left field. Kendall Graveman was on the mound for the A’s.
The Reds scored one run on seven hits and left six men on base despite the A’s having to use five different pitchers in the game.
On the Mound
Kendall Graveman started the game for Oakland on Sunday. Graveman entered the game with a 2-6 record and had really been struggling in last several starts. Graveman pitched well but succumbed to the weather very quickly. Graveman pitched to one batter in the fifth inning but had to come out of the game. He worked 4.0 innings giving up one run (earned) on seven hits while striking out five and walking two batters. Because Graveman did not work five innings it was up to the official scorer to assign the win and Graveman was given a no decision for his 4-plus innings of work.
Fernando Rodriguez came on in the top of the fifth for Graveman and pitched two perfect innings of baseball in relief. For his efforts, Rodriguez was credited with his second win of the season.
John Axford, Sean Doolittle and Ryan Madson each worked a perfect inning of relief for Oakland on Sunday. Axford and Doolittle were impressive as they were throwing pitches in the high 90’s. For Madson, it was his first work on the mound since his appearance in Houston seven days ago.
John Lamb (1-4, 5.14) took the loss for the Reds even though he only pitched four innings. Cincinnati used four pitchers in their losing effort.
Defense
The key on defense for the Oakland Athletics was the fact they did not commit an error in the game. Not only did they play errorless baseball, the A’s turned three double plays that all killed potential scoring opportunities for the Reds.
The Reds did not commit an error in the game.
Up next
The A’s will have no time to rest and celebrate their victory. Oakland heads back into action on Monday night as they open a four-game home series with the Western Division leading Texas Rangers. The Rangers are 8-2 in their last 10 games and have won two games in a row.
LHP Sean Manaea (2-4, 6.20) will take the mound for Oakland. The Rangers have yet to officially name their starter although speculation centers on LHP Cesar Ramos who is a long reliever and spot starter.
Oakland Athletics relief pitcher John Axford Photo Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
By Charlie O. Mallonee
OAKLAND–The New York Yankees downed the Oakland Athletics 5-4 on Sunday at the Coliseum in Oakland. It was a painful loss on three fronts.
First, the loss gave the Yankees a four-game sweep over the A’s in the series. The last time the Athletics were swept in a four-game series at home was in April of 1999. After sweeping the Texas Rangers in three games to begin the home stand, the A’s could have never imagined closing it out 0-4 against a team they swept in New York earlier in the season.
Second, the A’s are not being able to take advantage of their home field environment. Oakland’s record is now just 8-15 at home while they are 11-11 on the road. That is really quite extraordinary as most teams fare much better in home stadiums before fan friendly crowds. For some unknown reason that is not happening for the Athletics at this point in time.
Third, it was another one-run loss. All losses are frustrating, but the one-run loss games just seem to come back to haunt a team because they are contests that could have been won if one thing had gone differently in the game. The A’s are 6-7 in one-run games this season.
On Sunday, the A’s took the lead in the bottom of the first inning when Billy Burns was able to steal second and third base and then score on a Stephen Vogt ground out. It looked like things might be going to go the A’s way in the game.
The Yankees scored single runs in the second and third innings off solo home runs from Brian McCann and Jacoby Ellsbury. The crowd became nervous as New York took the 2-1 lead.
Oakland came back to score to two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning when Stephen Vogt hit a double to left field that scored Jake Smolinski and Billy Burns. The crowd came to life with the A’s back in the lead 3-2.
The Yankees served notice that they were not going to go down easily by putting together a four-hit two-run inning in the top of the sixth to retake the lead 4-3.
The Yankees put the dagger into the A’s in the top of the seventh inning. With two and runner at first, Carlos Beltran hit a double down the left field line that allowed the Aaron Hicks to score from first giving New York a 5-3 lead.
The A’s did make it interesting by scoring a run in the bottom of the eighth inning, but it ultimately was too little too late and the Yankees won the game 5-4.
In the batter’s box
Carlos Beltran went 2-for-4, scored a run, had a double and a RBI for the Yankees. He has now hit safely in five straight games (10-for-22, .455).
Jacoby Ellsbury had a 1-for-4 day that featured a home run. He is hitting .310 over his last 24 games.
Mark Teixeira snapped an 0-for-19 hitless streak with an RBI single in the sixth inning
Billy Burns had a big day for the A’s scoring three runs to go with two stolen bases. He went 2-for-4 for the game.
Coco Crisp hit a double and that extends his hitting streak to six games.
Stephen Vogt had a big day going just 1-for-4 but he had three RBI in the game. Two of those RBI came off a two-out double in the bottom of the fifth.
On the hill
The Yankees put together a strong pitching performance on Sunday against the A’s. Starter Michael Pineda (2-5) picked up his second win of the season working six strong innings. Pineda gave up three runs (all earned) on six hits while striking out six batters and walking just one.
Pineda working six innings allowed the Yankees to then go to their three-headed bullpen monster of Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman. Miller did give up a run but it was unearned as it was created by an error. Chapman picked up his sixth save of the season and threw a number of pitches in excess of 100 mph.
Jesse Hahn did not have a bad start for the A’s. He went 5.2 innings giving up four runs (all earned) on six hits. He struck out three and walked none, but he did give up two home runs.
John Axford was asked to come in and get Hahn out of trouble in the sixth was not able to make it happen. The bullpen cannot save the day every time.
Daniel Coulombe who was just called up from Nashville worked the final two innings of the game. He did not give up a hit or a run. Coulombe struck out two and walked none.
The Disabled List continues to grow
The Athletics announced on Sunday that Sonny Gray has been placed on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right trapezius. The A’s now have 13 players on the DL which is the most in the Major Leagues.
Gray had been struggling through a very tough beginning to his 2016 season. His record stands at 3-5 with a 6.19 ERA in nine starts.
This is the first time Gray has been on the disabled list in his career.
Left-hander Daniel Coulombe was brought up from Triple-A Nashville to replace Gray on the Major League roster.
This is Coulombe’s second time up with the big club this season. He faced the Red Sox on May 10 giving up three runs (all earned) in two innings of work. Coulombe had a 0.56 ERA in 13 appearances for Nashville.
Up next
The A’s travel to Seattle for a three-game series with the Mariners. The Mariners are coming off a sweep of the Cincinnati Reds and have won four games in a row. Seattle has sole possession of first place in the American League West.
The pitching probables are:
Mon 5/23 LHP Rich Hill (6-3, 2.54) vs RHP Taijuan Walker (2-3, 2.95)
Sunday afternoon in Baltimore started off with promise for the Oakland Athletics. The A’s put up three runs in the top of the first inning, and they appeared ready to do battle to win the rubber game of the three game series with the Orioles.
Instead, the A’s allowed the O’s to put on a power display that included six home runs, score 11 unanswered runs and never scored again after the first inning en route to losing the game 11-3. The loss meant the A’s also lost the series two games to one.
Oakland has now lost six of their last seven games. Even more importantly, the A’s have dropped four games under .500 for the first time this season. They are now 4.5-games behind division leading Seattle.
In the batter’s box
Manny Machado was the star of the game for the Orioles on Sunday. Machado went 2-for-4 in the game with six RBI. Both of his hits were home runs. His home run in the bottom of the eighth inning was a grand slam that put the game out of reach for the A’s. Machado now has nine home runs for the season.
Mark Trumbo went 3-for-5, had two RBI, scored a run and hit his ninth home run of the year in the game off Graveman.
Joey Rickard had a strong day at the leadoff spot for the O’s. Rickard went 2-for-4, scored three runs, had an RBI and hit his third home run of the season off Ryan Dull.
Jonathan Schoop could do no wrong on Sunday. Schoop went 3-for-4, scored two runs, recorded a RBI and hit his fifth home run of the year.
Designated Hitter Matt Wieters got in on the power act hitting his fifth round tripper of the season off Graveman in the second inning.
The Orioles scored 11 runs off 12 hits. The picked up five base-on-balls and struck out just eight times. Baltimore left 13 men on base.
The key man at the plate the A’s was Josh Reddick. Reddick went 3-for-3 with a run scored and a RBI. He has eight hits in his last eight consecutive at-bats which ties a franchise record. Reddick’s success at the plate has also caused the opposing team’s defense to abandon the shift which opens up the field for him.
Danny Valencia continues to look strong since returning to the lineup. Valencia went 2-for-4 on Sunday with a RBI.
On the hill
RHP Chris Tillman started the game for Baltimore. After giving up three to the A’s in the top of the first, no one thought Tillman would be around long enough to figure into the decision let alone pick up the win. Tillman went 6.1 innings giving up three runs (all earned) off six hits. He struck out seven and walked four. With the victory, Tillman’s record improves to 4-1 on the year.
Brad Brach and Vance Worley combined for 2.2 innings of scoreless relief for Baltimore to close out the game.
Kendall Graveman struggled again as a starter for the Athletics. Today his sinker just was not sinking. The opposing hitters were able to tee up on his pitches and drive them where they wanted the ball to go. Graveman gave up six runs on five hits in 2.2 innings of work. He walked three, struck out two and issued four home runs. Graveman took the loss and his record now stands at 1-4.
Ryan Dull and Marc Rzepczynski came on in relief of Graveman.
J.B. Wendelken – who was called up from Triple-A Nashville – saw action in his first major league game ever. He may want to forget the experience. Wendelken worked 1.1 innings and his time on the mound ended with Manny Machado hitting a grand slam home run off the rookie. It was not a storybook beginning to a career.
A’s backup catcher Josh Phegley took the mound to close out the game out for Oakland.
Up next
The A’s stay on the East Coast and open a three-game series in Boston on Monday night. Sonny Gray is scheduled to face Clay Buchholz in the series opener.
The Orioles travel to Minnesota for a three-game series with the Twins.
Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Eric Surkamp Photo Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
by Charlie O. Mallonee
There is nothing harder to do in Major League Baseball than to try to establish a winning streak on the road. After winning six games in a row, the A’s lost on Saturday to the Toronto Blue Jays.
On Sunday, the A’s wanted to get back into the win column and take the series from the Jays. The A’s were unable to accomplish either of those goals.
The A’s starting pitching left much to be desired on Sunday allowing Toronto to score six runs in 4.2 innings.
The A’s hitters showed some power hitting three home runs. The only problem with those round-trippers were that all three were solo shots.
The Jays starting pitching was not overwhelming but was just good enough to get the win.
Toronto used a combination of power and productive two-out hitting to score six runs which was more than enough to win the game.
On the hill
LHP Eric Surkamp (0-2, 5.59) started the game for the Athletics. Surkamp came into the game looking for his first win of the season. Instead, he was charged with his second loss of the year.
Surkamp gave up all six Toronto runs in his 4.2 innings of work. He gave up two home runs and two doubles. Surkamp threw 97 pitches (54 strikes), walked three and struck out just two Blue Jays. He face 26 batters in his time on the hill.
The Oakland relief corps did its job. Marc Rzepczynski, Ryan Dull and Fernando Rodriguez held the Jays scoreless in their 3.1 innings of work. The relievers allowed only three base runners in closing out the game for Oakland.
Drew Hutchison (1-0, 3.18) started the game for Toronto and picked up his first victory of the season. Hutchison was not over powering on the mound as he gave up two runs (both earned) on four hits in his 5.2 innings of work. Two of those hits were home runs. Hutchison struck out five and walked three A’s hitters.
Former Oakland Athletic Jesse Chavez relieved Hutchison in the top of the sixth inning inning. Chavez returned to the mound in the seventh and issued a home run to the A’s lead off hitter Chris Coghlan.
Brett Cecil, Drew Storen and Roberto Osuna finished off the game for the Jays holding the A’s without a hit. Osuna picked up his sixth save of the season.
In the batter’s box
The A’s were had only five hits in the game. Josh Reddick had the only multi-hit game going 2-for-4 including a home run. Khris Davis and Chris Coghland hit the other home runs for Oakland. Yonder Alonso recorded a base hit for the A’s.
Oakland was 0-for-2 with runners in scoring position and left just three men on base.
Three Blue Jays had multi-hit games. Ezequiel Carrera went 2-for-4 including hitting his first home run of the season. Kevin Pillar hit a double and scored a run in going 2-for-4. Darwin Barney also had a two-hit game for the Jays.
The Jays went 3-for-15 with runners in scoring position and left nine runners on base.
Up next
The Athletics head to Detroit for a four-game series that begins at 4:10 PM on Monday in Northern California. It could be an opportunity for the A’s to get back on the winning track.
The Tigers have lost four games in a row and have record of just 2-5 at home this season. They were just swept by the Cleveland Indians.
The A’s must achieve at least a 2-2 split in the four-game series. To come home 1-3 or heaven forbid 0-4 in the final series of this road trip would be devastating for the psyche of this team.
The majority of the preseason prognosticators had the Oakland Athletics finishing dead last in the American League West. Evidently, the A’s forgot to read the predictions for their 2016 season.
On Sunday, the Athletics survived seven innings of shutout baseball pitched by “King Felix” Hernandez (0-1, o.69 ERA), had strong pitching performances by their own stater and bullpen, used the long ball to defeat the Seattle Mariners 2-1 in 10 innings and won the series on the road three games to none.
The Athletics won the game via a solo home run hit by Coco Crisp in the top of the 10th inning off Seattle reliever Nick Vincent. With two outs, Crisp hit a 3-1 pitch 376 feet over the right field wall to give Oakland a 2-1 lead.
Sean Doolittle took the mound for the Athletics in the bottom of the 10th inning and closed out the game for his first save of the season.
The A’s record improves to 4-3 with the win and puts them in sole possession of first-place in the American League West.
The Mariners are struggling to figure out how they squandered such an outstanding pitching performance like the one turned in by “King Felix” on Sunday.
On the mound
Hernandez was a master on the mound. He pitched seven innings giving up just three hits and no runs. The “King” recorded 10 strike outs and issued just two walks. He threw 99 pitches (62 strikes). The Seattle radio broadcasters said the outing was Hernandez at his best especially with the command he showed on his change-up and breaking ball. It is hard to imagine that such a quality outing simply ended in a no decision.
Chris Bassitt made his second start of the season for Oakland. Bassitt worked seven innings giving up three hits and one unearned run. He had four strikeouts but issued base-on-balls to five Seattle batters. Bassitt threw 97 pitches (58 stikes). Bassitt has yet to figure into a decision in his two starts this year.
The A’s used three pitchers out of the bullpen on Sunday. Ryan Madson, John Axford and Sean Doolittle worked one inning each. The three relievers gave up no runs, no hits, no walks and struck out two hitters. Axford was credited with his first win of the year while Doolittle recorded his first save of the season.
Seattle also used three pitchers out of their bullpen. Joel Peralta was charged with a blown save when gave up a home run to Marcus Semien. Steve Cishek worked a scoreless inning. Nick Vincent was tagged with the loss when he gave up the game winning home run off the bat of Coco Crisp.
In the batter’s box
The A’s scattered five hits over the 10 innings versus Seattle. No Oakland player had a multi-hit day. Crisp, Lowrie, Alonso, Phegley and Semien all had one hit each.
Marcus Semien tied the game at 1-1 when he hit his first home run of year in the top of the eighth inning off Peralta. Semien hit a high fly ball over the left field wall on a 3-2 pitch.
The Mariners managed to get just six hits off the four Oakland pitchers. Nelson Cruz had a two-hit game than included his second double of the year. Seattle catcher Leonys Martin also had a two-hit game.
The Athletics went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base.
The M’s were 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position and they left 10 men on base.
MVP
The MVP of the game has to be Felix Hernandez. The “King” was brilliant on the mound and showed why he is one of top pitchers in the major leagues. Plus, he deserves to get something for pitching that well and having his team lose the game.
Honorable Mention
Coco Crisp deserves this honor for hitting his first home run since August 27, 2014. After battling through injuries last season, it was nice to see Crisp carry his team to a big win using his bat.
Up next
The Athletics will be back in action on Monday in Oakland when they open a three-game series with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
The Oakland A’s wrapped up a disappointing 2015 campaign with a 3-2 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Sunday afternoon on the road, and it went just like many of their games this season — a promising start only to be erased by a sputtering bullpen and a one-run loss as a result.
Seth Smith’s solo shot to center field off Ryan Dull in the eighth inning was the difference in this one, as the A’s went down quietly in the ninth off Mariners closer Tom Wilhelmsen.
The A’s struck first with two run in the third inning — one on a sacrifice fly by Bryan Anderson and the other on Mark Canha’s 16th homer of the season.
But the Mariners responded with single runs in the fourth and sixth innings of A’s starter Chris Bassitt, who finished with a no-decision.
Oakland finishes with the worst record in the American League at 68-94, its worst record since 1993. It has been a forgettable season for the A’s, who were hampered by a revolving roster, injuries, and an unreliable bullpen. For a team coming off three consecutive playoff appearances, they certainly took a huge step back and shook up the roster in every which way.
The many trades last offseason — Josh Donaldson, Brandon Moss, and Derek Norris were sent packing — netted the A’s many young prospects, but also resulted in poor clubhouse chemistry, per a report in the San Francisco Chronicle.
Yet, the A’s could be setting themselves up to shock the baseball world again next season. They were better than their record, which consisted of a high amount of one-run losses. Billy Burns, Mark Canha, Marcus Semien and Josh Phegley all showed promise in 2015 and could make up the future core of the A’s. Danny Valencia impressed after being acquired by the A’s midseason. Add that to established veterans in Josh Reddick and Stephen Vogt and that’s a half-decent lineup.
A’s fans are surely tired of their team coming up short year after year, whether it’s an early playoff exit or a non-competitive regular season campaign. What awaits them could either be a bounce back season or the start of a painful rebuild that seems to keep recurring in Oakland.
The season is just about over for the Oakland Athletics with only one game remaining for the Green and Gold. That didn’t keep the A’s from milking every last moment of the 2015 season Saturday at Safeco Field where Oakland (68-93) topped the Seattle Mariners 7-5 in extra innings.
Marcus Semien launched a two-run shot in the top of the 13th inning to give the A’s a two-run lead and lefty Felix Doubront notched his first save of the season. The A’s blew a 4-0 lead but received 7 innings of scoreless ball from the bullpen after Daniel Coulumbe blew the 4-run edge.
Midseason acquisition Danny Valencia continued to impress , launching his 18th home run of the season off Roenis Elias in the top of the 1st inning. The homer also plated Brett Lawrie and Mark Canha for a 3-0 lead. The A’s added a run in the 3rd inning on a fielder’s choice ground out by Stephen Vogt with the bases loaded.
The M’s (75-76) responded in the bottom half of the frame, touching A’s starter Sean Nolin up for a trio of runs on Robinson Cano’s 21st homer of the season. The long ball came with a pair of runners on base and two outs in the inning.
The 6th inning proved to be the fatal inning for the A’s, with reliever Coulombe looking to preserve the one-run lead. After Seattle loaded the bases, Coulombe managed to induce a double play off the bat of Jesus Sucre that scored one. Ketel Marte pick up the two-out base hit, plating Shawn O’Malley to give Seattle a 5-4 lead.
The Fernandos, Rodriguez and Abad respectively, pitched a perfect 7th and 8th inning to give the A’s a chance with the final three outs of the contest. Former Mariner close Tom Wilhemsen entered the game in dubious fashion, walking Billy Burns then plunking Mark Canha to put the tying run in scoring position with no outs. A wild pitch moved the tying run within 90 feet, with Brett Lawrie cashing it in on a sacrifice fly to left field to knot the score at 5-5. Edward Mujica pitched a perfect ninth to force extra innings.
Switch pitcher Pat Venditte (2-2, 4.40 ERA) performed brilliantly in his relief stint. The ambidextrous reliever pitched three innings without surrendering a hit, punching out three Mariners. His outing earned him the win, setting Semien up for the clutch homer.
Stephen Vogt opened the 13th inning with a single to right off reliever JC Ramirez. Semien then came up to the plate, working a 3-1 count before tagging Ramirez (1-2, 5.32) for the homer and the loss. Doubront pitched a 1-2-3 bottom of the inning for his first save since 2011 and 4th of his career.
Oakland and Seattle wrap up the regular season with a Sunday matinee, pitting the A’s Chris Bassit against Seattle’s Vidal Nuno.
OAKLAND, CA – JULY 23: Russell Martin #55 of the Toronto Blue Jays rounds the bases after hitting a two run home run off of Drew Pomeranz #13 of the Oakland Athletics during the second inning at O.co Coliseum on July 23, 2015 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Jason O. Watson/Getty Images)
By: Eric He
OAKLAND — It was a day of realization for the A’s.
Realization that their second best pitcher is gone, and others will likely follow before the trade deadline. Realization that despite a 30-22 record since May 23, it was probably too little, too late to make a playoff push.
That realization started early on Thursday with news that Scott Kazmir had been dealt to the Astros — a divisional opponent, no less — for two minor leaguers. It ended in the form a 5-2 defeat to the Blue Jays at the O.co Coliseum on Thursday afternoon as the A’s drop two out of three in the series and fall back to nine games under .500.
Russell Martin had three RBI for the Blue Jays against a scrambled A’s pitching staff.
Kazmir was scheduled to be the starting pitcher on Thursday afternoon, but with the trade, Bob Melvin had to turn to Plan B — a bullpen game.
Drew Pomeranz started the game pitched into the second inning and gave way to Dan Otero, but not before allowing the Blue Jays to jump in front. After a leadoff single by Danny Valencia in the second inning, Martin drilled a 3-2 fastball over the right center field wall to put the Blue Jays up 2-0.
A’s manager Bob Melvin said the plan is for Pomeranz to stay in the rotation, but he will need to gradually warm up to the pitch count. Pomeranz threw 44 pitches today.
“It’s going to be a progression to get him there,” said Melvin.”He hasn’t thrown over 20 pitches, and had an extended time off. 45 pitches was what were looking for today. It’s not an easy thing to do.”
Added Pomeranz, who was told he would be starting at 10am this morning: “Finding out today, there’s not really much you can do.”
The A’s responded with two runs in the bottom of the third inning. Marcus Semien led off with a double, and Billy Burns singled him in with a base hit to right that was bobbled by Jose Bautista. Later in the inning, Josh Reddick evened the score with a fielder’s choice ground ball RBI.
Toronto retook the lead in the top of the fourth with back-to-back two out doubles by Martin and Chris Colabello, both landing just fair down the right field line. To add insult to injury on a depressing day for A’s fans, Josh Donaldson doubled the Blue Jays lead to 4-2 with a homer off Otero to right center.
Otero lasted three innings and allowed two runs and was relieved by Arnold Leon, just called up from Triple A Nashville to take Kazmir’s spot on the roster. A sacrifice fly by Martin in the fifth added another insurance run to push the lead to 5-2.
The Blue Jays also had to make an emergency switch at pitcher, with scheduled starter Drew Hutchinson scratched with flu-like symptoms and R.A. Dickey moving up a day to pitch in his place.
And Dickey — he of a 3-10 record and ERA over 4.50 — was masterful, going 8.1 innings on 104 pitches, allowing just the two runs while striking out six.
After the third inning, the A’s managed to get just one runner in scoring position — a one-out double by Billy Burns that was wasted in the eighth.
Kazmir traded
Hours before the game, the A’s announced they had traded Kazmir to the Houston Astros for RHP Daniel Mengden and C Jacob Nottingham. Kazmir, the A’s No. 2 man in the rotation behind Sonny Gray, was 5-5 with a 2.38 ERA in 18 starts.
Both Mengden and Nottingham are in the Astros’ Single A organization in Quad Cities, clearly making this a move toward the future. They aren’t even ranked in the Top 15 of the prospects with the Astros, but as with all Billy Beane trades, patience is a virtue.
“Obviously everybody’s sorry to see [Kazmir] go on a personal level today,” said Melvin. “But it’s our job to go out there and just focus on one particular day. If you get too far out and worry about what potentially could happen and wait for the other shoe to drop, then you’re not focused on what we’re doing today.”
Josh Reddick, now one of the longest-tenured A’s, touted Kazmir’s positive presence in the clubhouse.
“It’s never easy to deal with,” Reddick said. “Losing a good teammate and a great guy like that. Especially a guy who’s been one of our better pitchers for the year.
“No matter who gets dealt, we still have to go out here and win ball games with the personnel that we have. It may get tougher. We’ve got to get the job done no matter who’s out there.”
The A’s may not be done shipping out players. Ben Zobrist and Tyler Clippard are also primed to be on the trade block — Kazmir’s exit may just be the tip of the iceberg in what might be a painful exodus in Oakland.
More Quotables
“It shouldn’t be hard to play a baseball game. Granted, everybody talked to [Kazmir]. We’re sorry to see him go. He was a big personality in the clubhouse and certainly performance-wise was key for us, but once you get on the field that’s what you have to focus on.”
– Bob Melvin
“Look, there’s nothing we can do about this. We’re going to go out there with the same expectations, try to win today’s game and not think too far out.”
– Melvin on his message to his players
“He’s guided a lot of us that he’s gotten close to, especially as pitchers. You pick up things here and there. I actually use his same changeup grip that’s modified now. You pick up a lot of things from a guy like that who has been around.”
– Drew Pomeranz on Kazmir
What’s on Tap
The A’s will look to regenerate some momentum in the Bay Bridge series against the Giants over the weekend, beginning Friday night at AT&T Park.
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