Tag: Oakland Athletics

No Guarantees for Scuffling Reddick in Return to Roster

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

By Matthew Harrington

In 2012, Josh Reddick’s career took a gigantic leap, evolving from fifth outfielder with the Boston Red Sox to a 32 home run masher with the Oakland Athletics. The Savannah, Georgia native went from spare part to key cog in an offense, notching 85 runs batted in while providing Gold Glove-winning defense in right field. 2013 brought a regression, a return to the average with a .226 clip at the plate and diminished power (12 home runs). Again, 2014 proves more the latter than the former for the left-handed hitting outfielder who is scuffling to stay above the Mendoza line (.214 batting average in 50 games) while struggling to stay healthy enough to stay on the field.

Reddick last manned right field on May 31s but exited the game against the Los Angeles Angels after two at-bats nursing a hyperextended right knee. Just like in 2013, a season that ended in a second-straight American League West title for Oakland, the A’s rolled on without Reddick’s contributions required. They currently boast the best win percentage in the Major Leagues (.618) and are tied with the Milwaukee Brewers for the most wins in the big leagues (47). Over the last 10 games, all sans Reddick, the A’s have gone 7-3.

Reddick appears poised to wrap up a rehab stint with the Sacramento River Cats in time to join the team for a trip to New York to face the Mets starting Tuesday. While he may be ready to rejoin the team, the Swingin’ A’s might not have a clear role for him. When Reddick first went down to end May on a down note, general manager Billy Beane called upon third-string catcher Stephen Vogt to fill the roster vacancy. The idea heading in was that Vogt would provide some depth at catcher as well as the corner infield and outfield spots where he had a scattering of experience at the minor league level.

Instead, the 29-year-old backstop stole the starting right fielder spot from other candidates like Brandon Moss and Craig Gentry, producing an eye-popping .346 batting average to go with 11 RBIs in only 17 games. While no one will confuse Vogt for a Gold Glove outfielder, his defense afield has certainly passed the eye test. For a catcher, he certainly doesn’t look out of place roaming right field.

One thing Melvin has displayed in his tenure with Oakland is a loyalty his veterans, evidenced by Daric Barton’s ability to work his way into the line-up 30 times this season despite only nine hits. Reddick will receive every opportunity to regain his role as a starter, likely seeing the majority of starts in the coming days. Melvin, however, shouldn’t feel obligated to continue to pencil no.16 onto his lineup card every day if his offensive woes continue.

If Reddick still looks lost at the plate over the next few series, the best course of action may be another stint at Sacramento. Reddick still has a minor league option left, leaving the best course of action to be riding out Vogt’s hot streak for as long as it will last. By then, perhaps Reddick will rediscover his long ball stroke and return to Oakland with past woes behind him.

Rangers Derail A’s Comeback, Rout Athletics 14-8

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

By Matthew Harrington

OAKLAND, Calif. — When the Oakland Athletics and Texas Rangers last met at O.Co Coliseum for a three-game set April 21-23, the visitors scored 12 runs total en route to a sweep. The series marked a tightly-pitched affair after Rangers hurlers stifled the potent A’s offense to just seven runs and three-straight losses. The A’s welcomed Texas back to Alameda County Monday night in a game no one would confuse for a pitchers’ duel. Texas tallied 14 runs while the A’s scored eight runs, both surpassing the team totals from the April set at the Coliseum.

Rangers first baseman Donnie Murphy picked up three RBIs on a pair of home runs, his fourth career multi-homer game while Yoenis Cespedes went 1 for 3 with four runs batted in for the A’s. Brandon Moss also homered for Oakland, but four Texas long balls lifted the Rangers (35-35) passed the Green and Gold 14-8. The loss matches the second-largest margin of defeat the A’s (42-28) have suffered all season, with only last Friday’s 7-0 shutout at the hands of the Yankees marking a worse run differential.

Neither starting pitcher hurled a memorable game but Rangers righty Colby Lewis (5-4, 5.97 ERA) threw well enough to pick up the win. He went 5 1/3 innings allowing fives runs. Pomeranz (5-4, 2.91) struggled to complete 3 2/3 innings, serving up eight Texas runs (seven earned) on eight hits on start removed from a seven inning, one-run performance against the Los Angeles Angels.

“I wasn’t as sharp in the beginning,” said Pomeranz. “I actually felt really good up there. They were patient at the plate. I didn’t make some pitches, they just waited for some mistakes.”
The A’s bullpen yielded six runs, with Ryan Cook , Jeff Francis and Fernando Abad all guilty of surrendering two runs apiece. The A’s committed three errors.

After Pomeranz held the Rangers in check to open the first inning, Coco Crisp had the A’s running right out of the gate. Crisp ripped a 2-2 pitch to left-center for a double, then came around to score on John Jaso’s flare to shallow center. Jaso, one of three catchers in A’s manager Bob Melvin’s line-up, advanced to second base on the throw to the plate. Lewis gifted Jaso third base after bouncing a wild pitch to backstop Robinson Chirinos. The free base allowed Jaso to score easily after Cespedes lofted the 2-1 delivery to left fielder Michael Choice for the sacrifice fly.

“We had some opportunities early,” said Melvin. “We went ahead 2-0. We had some opportunities in the next inning and we didn’t come through. We didn’t play a great game after that. Even though in the later innings we came back and made a game of it, it was just not far enough.”

Adrian Beltre and Alex Rios reached base to open the second, then advanced into scoring position on a Donnie Murphy sacrifice bunt. Chirinos then wrapped a two-run base hit to tie the ballgame after battling Pomeranz in a full count.

Former A’s utility man Donnie Murphy provided the tie-shattering blast in the fourth inning, depositing a no-out, two-run home run over the wall in deep left center. The first basemen entered play amidst a 0-for-14 cold snap at the plate before emphatically turning around his fortunes. The Rangers tacked on four more runs in the inning, highlighted by a two-out, two-run double off the bat of former American League All-star Beltre for a comfortable 8-2 advantage.

Michael Choice, the Rangers haul for shipping Craig Gentry to Oakland in the offseason, burned his former parent club with a two-run shot of his own. The dinger snapped 16 at-bats without a hit for the right-hander, placing Choice amongst Chirinos (3), Beltre (3) and Murphy (3) for Rangers with two RBIs or more Monday night. Chirinos and Murphy would later hit back-to-back homers off Fernando Abad in the ninth inning, the first two extra-base hits the southpaw has allowed this season.

A’s clean-up hitter Brandon Moss lifted his 17th home run of the season to bring Oakland within seven runs. Moss now has 31 big flys since the 2013 All-Star Break, tied with Edwin Encarnacion for the second most in the Major Leagues during that time. The Lone Star sluggers answered back, scoring on a rare sacrifice fly to third base for their 11th run.

Oakland scratched out a run of its own in the bottom half of the inning after back-to-back doubles from Alberto Callaspo and Coco Crisp to chase Lewis after four runs. Callaspo, returning from paternity leave Monday night, went 4 for 5 while sporting a new uniform number. The A’s second basemen donned a “7” between his shoulder blades Monday night.

Cespedes added three runs on a towering shot later in the inning, his 13th homer of the season, to cut the deficit to 11-7. Callaspo chipped in a run-scoring base hit in the eighth.

Kyle Blanks, who entered the game as a pinch hitter for John Jaso in the sixth, came up to the plate in the eighth representing the tying run with Callaspo at second and Vogt at first. He worked a full count off Neal Cotts but froze on a fastball right at the knees for strike three. In total, the A’s stranded 12 runners.
The Rangers added three more runs over the final two innings while holding the A’s in check despite a two-hit ninth inning rally.

“We scored some runs tonight,” said Melvin. “We’re a club that leads the league in pitching. We’re used to holding teams under four runs. The last couple games we haven’t been able to do that.”

Submariner Ben Rowen finished off the win, coaxing a ground ball out from Blanks to wrap up game one of the series. Tuesday’s match-up won’t be any easier for the A’s, with Texas sending Yu Darvish and his 2.11 ERA to the mound to face Tommy Milone.

The Cespedes Runs-and-Guns Show Snaps Angels Streak at Five

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

By Matthew Harrington

The Oakland Athletics emphatically avoided a sweep at the hands of their Southern California rivals by thumping the Los Angeles Angels 7-1 at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Left fielder Yoenis Cespedes nabbed a pair of runs batted in along with an outfield assist Wednesday night and catcher Stephen Vogt continued his torrid stretch since a call-up from Triple A Sacramento earlier this month.

Vogt launched a two-run home run into the bleachers in right field with one out to chase Halos ace Jered Weaver (7-5, 3.51 ERA) with the A’s leading 4-1. Oakland (40-26) also scored three runs in the ninth inning to firmly secure the victory for starter Tommy Milone while tagging Weaver with the loss. Jed Lowrie and Coco Crisp also picked up RBIs in the contest.

Milone (4-3, 3.47) went 6 2/3 against the Halos, yielding the lone run on an RBI double off the bat of Josh Hamilton with the A’s up 1-0. Other than that he proved perfect in the stopper’s role, striking out four Angels while only walking two. Ryan Cook pitched a scoreless third of an inning and Luke Gregerson and Jim Johnson fired a shutout frame each to close out the win and snap a five-game winning streak for LA.

Third-string catcher Vogt, a Visalia, Calif. native, had the pleasure of hitting his first homer of the season in front of a crowd of friends and family. The real highlight of the night, however, came in the sixth inning after Albert Pujols ripped what appeared to be a surefire double into the corner in left field. Cespedes bobbled the ball when fielding it to allow Pujols to attempt to advance to third base. Cespedes, however, threw a bullet reminiscent of his webgem throw to home plate Tuesday night to gun down the Angels first baseman for his second assist in the three-game set.

Also adding to his defensive highlight reel was Crisp, who robbed Josh Hamilton of a second-inning homer after scaling the wall in the left-center. After a premature fireworks display exploded out of the rock pile in center, Crisp gave a discerning finger wag.

The A’s managed to wrap the series up with a 3.5 game lead over Anaheim (36-29) in the American League West standings after narrowly seeing it creep down below two games. Oakland takes an off-day Thursday before returning to O.Co Coliseum to face David Phelps and the Yankees. Sonny Gray gets the ball for the green and gold in game one.

A’s Flounder Against Richards, Angels as Trout Makes Splash

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

By Matthew Harrington

Starter Garrett Richards and the Los Angeles Angels stifled the Oakland Athletics offense Monday night at Angel Stadium of Anaheim, besting the A’s 4-1 while limiting the visitors to four hits. Yoenis Cespedes and Stephen Vogt combined for all the Oakland offense, collecting two hits apiece. The A’s (39-25) scored one run for just the sixth time this season a day after exploding for 11 runs at Camden Yards.

Jesse Chavez (5-4, 3.04 ERA) pitched gave six strong innings, allowing three runs (two earned) on eight hits against the Halos, but the A’s offense failed to figure out Richards in support. The 26-year-old righty (6-2, 3.09) stymied the green and gold to only four hits over his seven innings.

The A’s took the lead in the top of the second after Yoenis Cespedes scored on a softly-hit Stephen Vogt single to left with two outs. Vogt proved steady at the plate and behind the dish in place of starting catcher Derek Norris. Norris sat out Monday night after taking a Manny Machado backswing to the back of the head yesterday afternoon in Baltimore.

Angels superstar Mike Trout collected his 44th and 4t5th RBIs on a sac fly in the third and a controversial fifth-inning ground-rule double respectively. With Hank Conger on second, Trout aboutfaced a 2-2 Chavez delivery to deep right field that looked labeled for the bleachers. Originally called a home run on the field, an umpire review revealed a fan reached below the railing to catch the ball for fan interference. Crew chief Bob Davidson overturned the play, placing Trout back on second base to the chagrin of Los Angeles manager Mike Scioscia. Scioscia argued the play, resulting in an ejection from Davidson with the Angels leading 3-1. Hank Conger and Raul Ibanez also plated runs for the Halos.

After Richards, Joe Smith and Closer Ernesto Frieri locked down the A’s bats, pitching a scoreless inning a piece. Smith struck out two while Frieri k’d the side to pick up his 11th save of the season. Ryan Cook and Fernando Abad pitched a third of an inning a piece and Jim Johnson wrapped up the A’s pitching performance, allowing an unearned run in his 1 1/3 innings of work.

With the win, the Angels (35-28) move 3.5 games back of the A’s for the lead in the American League West. They’ll look to put together a fifth-consecutive victory Tuesday night, sending Hector Santiago to the mound in his return. Santiago seeks his first win of the season in his return to the rotation after Los Angeles placed Tyler Skaggs on the disabled list Monday afternoon with a right hamstring strain.

The A’s counter with Drew Pomeranz fresh off a bounce-back outing in which he narrowly outdueled Yankees sensation Masahiro Tanaka in a 2-1 loss in the Bronx. Pomeranz pitched seven innings, his longest start of the season, just one appearance after allowing five runs to the same Angels in a fortunate 9-5 home field triumph May 30th.

A’s win a “laugher” over the O’s 11-1

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

By Charlie O. Mallonee

The Oakland Athletics were involved in a wild baseball affair on Sunday in Baltimore. The game featured 12-runs, 16-hits, 15-walks, an overturned grand slam home run, a bench clearing confrontation between the teams and two ejections as the A’s defeated the Orioles 11-1. The win also gave the series victory to Oakland two games to one.

The A’s not only showed off their high-powered offense but they also demonstrated their high-quality pitching. Scott Kazmir worked seven innings of shutout baseball giving up just four-hits while striking out seven hitters and walking just two men. Kazmir threw 96 pitches (62 strikes) en route to his seventh win of the season. Kazmir’s ERA is now a paltry 2.20.

The overriding philosophy of the A’s is to have their hitters “get on base”. They do not care if you get a hit, walk or hit-by-pitch as long as you get on base. On Sunday, the A’s walked more times than they got a hit. Oakland recorded 11 bases-on-balls off Baltimore pitching. Add to that 10-hits and you can see that the A’s had runners on base almost constantly.

The big inning for the A’s came in the top of the third. Derek Norris led off the inning with a walk. Callaspo then walked. Kyle Banks walked to load the bases for John Jaso. Jaso hit a fly ball to deep right-center field that appeared to leave the park and was called a home run by the umpires. The umpires reviewed the play and changed the call to a double. Norris and Callaspo scored but Banks was sent back to third while Jaso returned to second with a two-run double.

With runners at second and third and no outs, Nick Punto walked on four straight pitches from Ubaldo Jimenez. Josh Donaldson hit into a force out at home but the bases remained loaded with one out. Brandon Moss then took the first pitch to him over the center field wall for a grand slam home run with no review required. Moss’ 16th home run of the season gave the A’s a 6-0 lead and sent Jimenez to the showers after just 2.1-innings.

The A’s went on to score a run in the fourth inning, three-runs in the fourth inning and one in the ninth inning for the 11-1 win.

Jaso and Moss finished the game with four-RBI each. Nick Punto posted two-RBI and both came with two outs in the inning. The A’s left only two runners in scoring position with two out.

John Jaso went two for six and a run scored to go with his four-RBI. Punto went two for three with a run and two walks plus his two-RBI. Yoenis Cespedes went two for five on the day. Alberto Callaspo went one for three with two walks and three runs scored.

The Athletics went six for 10 with runners in scoring position.

In a lineup oddity, the A’s used three catchers in the game but only two worked behind the plate. Jaso was the DH, Vogt played right field and Derek Norris was the starting catcher. In the bottom of the sixth-inning, Manny Machado hit Norris with his back-swing and Norris was taken out of the game as a precaution. Vogt came in from right field to take over the catching duties.

In the bottom of the eighth-inning, Machado came to bat with two out. Machado thought a 1-1 pitch from Abad was deliberately thrown at his knees. On the next pitch, Machado swung and let the bat fly down the third base line. There was little doubt that he intended the bat to fly at Abad. Both benches cleared their dugouts and the pitchers emptied the bullpens. There were a few shoves and some yelling but it was a “nothing to see here” situation. The umpires ejected Machado and Abad once calm was restored.

Machado was also the instigator of the benches clearing brawl in the Friday night game. Machado can expect a less than warm welcome from A’s fans when Baltimore comes to Oakland in July.

The A’s are four for six on the road trip and now head to Los Angeles for a three-game series with the Angels.

Two Homer Night for Cespedes Puts A’s in Line for Sweep Over Yankees

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

By Matthew Harrington

The Oakland Athletics won their fifth-straight contest, coming from behind to beat the New York Yankees 7-4 at Yankee Stadium Wednesday night. Yoenis Cespedes mashed a pair of home runs to support starter Jesse Chavez (5-3, 3.04 ERA) while Josh Donaldson’s solo shot in the seventh inning provided the game-winning run. Sean Doolittle pitched a perfect ninth inning for his seventh save of the season to put Oakland (37-22) one win away from sweeping the Yankees.

The Yankees (29-29) scored all their runs in the bottom of the third inning with Derek Jeter lacing an run-scoring single and Jacoby Ellsbury ripping a three-run home run to right center field for a 4-0 off Chavez. Cespedes put the A’s on the board with a deep fly to center off pinstripes starter Vidal Nuno in the top of the fourth, then pounded his twelve four-bagger of reliever Matt Daley top open the sixth. Jed Lowrie and Alberto Callaspo also hit a sac fly each for the A’s to set up Donaldson’s go-ahead knock.

After Donaldson tagged Jose Ramirez (0-1, 4.50) with the loss for his team-best 16th homer of the season, the A’s picked up a pair of runs in the ninth. First came a bases loaded hit-by-pitch by Brandon Moss who played right field Wednesday for the first time since exiting Saturday’s game against the Los Angeles Angels with an injury. Kyle Blanks added the third sacrifice fly of the night for the visitors for the 7-4 final tally.

Chavez went six innings for the green and gold, allowing four earned runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out five. Fernando Abad pitched a third of an inning for the A’s in relief of Chavez, but Dan Otero did the heavy lifting with 1 2/3 scoreless innings before turning the ninth inning over to Doolittle.

The A’s send Drew Pomeranz to the mound in his first start since the Angels snapped his string of solid outings. The Halos roughed Pomeranz up for five runs after the lefty allowed only two in his previous 19 innings as a starter. He draws the assignment of facing Masahiro Tanaka, the Yankees marquee free-agent signing of the offseason.

New York earned the right to sign Tanaka after paying a posting fee of $20 million to the Rakuten Golden Eagles of Japan, the maximum in the new posting fee implemented this offseason. Under the new reals, any team that posts the highest bid is allowed to negotiate with the player, meaning the Yankees then had to outbid numerous other teams who matched the fee to sign the international sensation to a seven-year, $155 million contract. The 25-year-old is 8-1 on the season with 88 punchouts over 78.2 innings and a stellar 2.06 ERA.

Athletics Call-up for Vogt a Requirement, Reward

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

By Matthew Harrington

When the Oakland Athletics broke camp in March, they did so leaving behind third-string catcher Stephen Vogt. The omission of Vogt came as no surprise. It was a difficult decision, and Vogt may well have been the last player left off the roster, but he feel victim to the numbers crunch. In the offseason, General manager Billy Beane acquired left-handed hitting John Jaso to compliment righty Derek Norris. Jaso, a prototypical Athletic if ever there was one, gets on base, works well inserted in and out of the line-up and provides some sock of the bench. His arrival rendered Vogt, a lefty himself, superfluous despite any goodwill the unlikely hero earned by hitting a walk-off single in game two of the ALDS against Detroit last season. No, not even Vogt’s strong Spring campaign capped by a .364 batting average and three long balls could earn a spot over a player like Daric Barton or Sam Fuld when March turned to April and the dozens of players in big league camp were whittled down to 25 Athletics.

Fast forward to June 1st and you’ll see the name of a baseball battler penciled into the sixth spot on Bob Melvin’s line-up card in what would be a 6-3 Oakland win. Vogt, a veteran of eight minor league seasons, went 0-for-4 for the green but despite a rocky 2014 debut, the 29-year-old backstop returns to the A’s with confidence.

Certainly, Vogt’s promotion from Triple A came out of necessity. AL West-leading Oakland opens a three-game set at Yankee Stadium with question marks surrounding the health of starting right fielder Josh Reddick (hyperextended right knee) and clean-up hitter Brandon Moss (strained right calf). Vogt’s presence allows Jaso to split time at designated hitter in Moss’ stead while not surrendering the platoon advantage against right-handers (of which Oakland will see in two-of-three games in the Bronx). Vogt, a veteran with over 50 games of experience at first, catcher and left field, also provides some depth in the outfield and first base while granting Derek Norris some relief behind the dish.

The call-up, as brief or as long as it can be, also serves as the carrot on a string, the reward for Vogt’s impressive start with the River Cats. At the time of his promotion, Vogt had an impressive .364/.412/.602 line (including a .413 average against right-handers) with Sacramento, building on his 2013 Pacific Coast League All-star campaign in which he hit .324 with 13 home runs. For a baseball lifer, a nomad who has toiled away in baseball outposts like Durham, Hudson Valley and Charlotte, a taste of the Show every now and then is enough to labor away on the long bus rides for months on end.

The A’s are expected to activate reliever Ryan Cook from the disabled list, possibly as early as Tuesday, meaning a corresponding roster move must be made. Depending on the long-term outlook for Reddick, Vogt could be optioned back down to Sacramento to make room for the reliever. If he’s a casualty once again of the numbers game, he’ll at least take with him a peace of mind that his performance won’t go unnoticed. If Vogt continues to hit Pacific League pitching, the Oakland brass will almost undoubtedly beckon him back to the bright lights of the Bigs before season’s end.

Kazmir, Athletics Walk Off to Complete Game Win

Published on by Matthew Harrington3 Comments

By Matthew Harrington

OAKLAND, Calif. — The narrative surrounding the Oakland Athletics over the past three season states that the green and gold achieve with a line-up devoid of super stars but rife with supporting cast members. Josh Donaldson tossed that notion out the window with one swing of the bat Wednesday night, crushing a three-run walk-off home run off closer Joe Nathan to give the A’s (32-21) a 3-1 decision over the American League Central leading Detroit Tigers at O.Co Coliseum.

“For the fans that was a fun game to watch,” said A’s starter Scott Kazmir. “Throughout the game it seemed like (Detroit Tigers Starter) Anibal Sanchez and I were battling it out. We ended up getting a couple base runners in the ninth and you just kind of had that feeling when Josh came up. He swung at the first pitch and didn’t miss it. That was awesome.”

Kazmir pitched a complete game but watched the bottom of the ninth on the hook for a loss after allowing a solo blast to Torii Hunter with two outs in the fourth for the only Detroit run. Donaldson picked his starter up, launching his 13th four-bagger to extend his streak of reaching base to 43 games when penciled on the line-up card at third base.

The pitchers’ duel expected Tuesday night in the much ballyhooed showdown between ace Sonny Gray and 2013 AL Cy Young winner Max Scherzer never materialized, instead morphing into a battle of the bullpens in a 6-5 home team loss. The true display of pitching prowess came Wednesday night, with Kazmir (6-2, 2.36 ERA) and Detroit’s Sanchez allowing a combined eight hits.

“You always want to give your starting pitcher support,” said A’s manager Bob Melvin. “Sanchez was unbelievable tonight. He pitched backwards. Fastballs in breaking ball counts, a lot of change-ups in counts where you’d expect fastballs. It took us a while to score some runs at the end but we kept grinding.”

Sanchez dazzled the Oakland hitters, scattering three hits over 8 1/3 innings, striking out nine while only walking one. He appeared en route to his ninth career complete game, but a one out double in the ninth by Coco Crisp knocked him out of the game after 111 pitches. First-year Detroit manager Brad Ausmus tabbed Nathan to close out the contest and nail down his 13th save of the season.

“I don’t think anybody thought we were going to come up short,” said Melvin. “Once Coco got on I think we had a really good feeling we were going to win the game. That’s what this team has been great at here in the last couple years. Until that last out is recorded, we always feel optimistic that we have a win.”

John Jaso continued the rally, flipping a 2-2 Nathan delivery over the third baseman Nick Castellanos’ outstretched glove for a single, setting up base runners on first-and-third with one away for Donaldson, the fourth place finisher in the 2013 AL MVP voting.

“In that situation, they’re looking for a double play,” said Donaldson. “I was just trying to hit something in the air and get one run.”

Donaldson wasted little time against Nathan(2-1, 4.58), crushing the first-pitch offering from the four-time All-star deep to left field to hand the righty his fourth blown save of the year. The A’s third basemen stood at home plate watching as his blast sailed dangerously close to the foul pole.

“I was just trying to watch it to see if it stayed fair,” said Donaldson. “If it went foul, I didn’t want to waste my energy running.”

The ball indeed landed fair for Donaldson’s second career walk-off home run, the first also coming against Detroit last April. While the homer, Donaldson’s 13th of the campaign, marked a huge highlight in the young slugger’s career he remained humbled about its significance.

“It’s just one of those things,” said Donaldson sheepishly. “I just go out there and play to win.”

The homer, which no doubt will play repeatedly on sports highlight shows until the next news cycle tomorrow, boosts Donaldson’s candidacy for a 2014 All-Star game starting spot. He currently sits in first place amongst third basemen in the fan vote, and could be the A’s first position player to appear in a Mid-Summer Classic in 11 seasons.

Donaldson entered play Wednesday second in the AL in runs scored (42), tied for second in go-ahead RBIs (38) and fifth in home runs (12). He’s also ranks in the top ten in slugging percentage, walks, RBIs and extra base hits. Those numbers are reminiscent of former A’s basher Jason Giambi, green and gold member elected by the fans to the All-star squad back in 2000.

No stranger to the All-star game, Torii Hunter made his presence felt earlier in the game. The right fielder crushed Kazmir’s only mistake, a full count pitch to deep right center field for his second home run in as many nights. The 38-year-old Hunter now owns eight long balls on the season along with 29 runs batted in for the Motor City Kitties. Kazmir finished the night with eight strikeouts and no walks for his first complete game since 2006.

“We’ve seen him pitch pretty similar to this a few times,” said Melvin. “He’s been consistent for us. It probably rates up there with some of his games. But when you’re pitching against a guy that’s throwing the ball that well, you’re not scoring very many runs. You have to be perfect. He was close to that.

Melvin would like to receive another near perfect performance when he sends Jesse Chavez to the mound to stymy the AL’s best offensive team in the matinee finale of the four-game set Thursday afternoon. Detroit (29-20) sends Rick Porcello, owner of seven wins in 2014, to the hill seeking a series split after losing the first and third games in Oakland.

“Rally Killers” Lift A’s to 10-0 Rout of Tigers

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

By Matthew Harrington

OAKLAND, Calif. — A note inscribed next to the Oakland Athletics line-up card posted this afternoon stated “Home runs can be rally killers”. After a 10-0 routing of the Detroit Tigers the A’s may have reason to rethink that mantra.

“Homers can be rally killers,” said A’s catcher Derek Norris. “But when you’re hitting four or five of them a game they can probably make a different statement. That’s more for the solo home runs. Anytime you can scratch off two, three grand slam home runs, those are hardly rally killers. That’s how you bury a team.”

The A’s (31-20) did just that, outmuscling the visiting Tigers (28-19) in a Memorial Day matinee at the O.Co coliseum capped by Derek Norris’ first career grand slam. Five different Athletics homered, including four solo shots off Tigers starter Drew Smyly (2-3, 3.86 ERA) to snap a four-game losing skid. A’s starter Tommy Milone (3-3, 3.50) turned in a brilliant performance, going 6 2/3 innings without surrendering a run against a potent Tiger offense that tops the junior circuit with a .278 team batting average.

“Zero runs, that’s always a good day,” said Milone. “I’ve got to give it to my defense and obviously the offense. They backed me up today.”

Milone threw an economical 105 pitches, needing more than 20 pitches in an inning only once to retire the side, yielding a scant four hits to the visitors. The lefty collected six K’s, one shy of a season-high, while only issuing two walks. Andrew Romine and reigning AL MVP Miguel Cabrera represented the lone Tigers hitters to reach second base Monday afternoon, each doubling off Milone. The A’s starter now has three wins in four starts after dropping three-straight decisions over his first five appearances.

“I think he was just trying to do too much,” said battery mate Norris. “He was trying to create stuff that wasn’t there. Finally I said to just sit back and throw the baseball just like you know how. His focus has been higher, his determination has been higher. He’s been attacking hitters and not shying away from contact.”

Brandon Moss opened the long ball barrage, leading off the second inning with a deep blast to right center that Austin Jackson nearly scaled the wall to steal. Moss’ extra-base hit marks his 18th of the month, tying an A’s record with Jason Giambi (2001) for most in May. Two batters later, designated hitter Blanks took Smyly yard on a 2-1 offering to make it 2-0 Oakland.

“There are very few guys on this ball club that are trying to hit home runs,” said Norris. “You look at some of the guys like Moss and (Josh) Donaldson, they’ve literally shaped their swings to try to become fly ball hitters and have home run swings. It’s definitely an art that not everyone can grasp.”

For Blanks, it was the first home run hit as a member of the Athletics after coming over in a May 15th trade with the San Diego Padres. Blanks’ last Major League round-tripper came 49 games ago on June 16, 2013. He also spent some time in the minors with the Padres since then.

“It makes him feel like a part of the team that much quicker when you get into a game like that,” said manager Bob Melvin. “You’re scoring runs with homers. It really gets you feeling like ‘Hey, I’m a part of this team’.”

Josh Donaldson and Yoenis Cespedes added back-to-back solo blasts off Smyly in the bottom of the third for a 4-0 edge. The twin displays of power marked the second time this season consecutive batters have homered, with Cespedes and Moss achieving the feat May 9th. The A’s made it a six-pack in the fourth after Coco Crisp hit a bases-loaded sacrifice fly and Josh Donaldson hit a run-scoring two-out single off Smyly. In total, the Tigers starter went five innings while allowing six runs, all earned, to accompany two walks and a trio of strikeouts.

Norris brought the scoring into double digits, launching his first career grand slam to deep center field off reliever Phil Coke in the Oakland half of the 8th. Blanks opened the inning by drawing a walk, moved to second when Craig Gentry was awarded first base on catcher’s interference. Crisp reached base on an error to load the bases for the Oakland backstop.

“I hit the ball hard a couple times earlier and came away with nothing,” said the A’s catcher after going 0-4 heading into his 8th inning at-bat. “I was just trying to get the RBI. I was trying to get something out over the plate. Fortunately it just came back over the middle and I put a good swing on it.”

Dan Otero and Sean Doolittle pitched 2 and 1/3 innings of perfect relief to finish off the drubbing of Detroit, the team that bounced Oakland from the playoffs in 2012 and 2013. The reeling Tigers now have lost seven of their last eight, but send 2013 Cy Young winner Max Scherzer to the mound to play stopper Tuesday night. The A’s will counter with ace Sonny Gray.

“Sonny’s always pumped,” said Norris when asked if there was any extra motivation for the young A’s starter facing a familiar playoff foe. “He’s 100 percent determined every fifth day. He’s on it, he’s focused. He’s ready.”

Moss Homer, No-Hit Rally Lift Athletics over Rays 3-2

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment
ST. PETERSBURG, FL - MAY 21: Pitcher Sean Doolittle (C) of the Oakland Athletics celebrates his save with teammates Fernando Abad #56 of the Oakland Athletics and catcher Derek Norris #36 of the Oakland Athletics after striking out Wil Myers of the Tampa Bay Rays to end the ninth inning of a game on May 21, 2014 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Brian Blanco/Getty Images)
ST. PETERSBURG, FL – MAY 21: Pitcher Sean Doolittle (C) of the Oakland Athletics celebrates his save with teammates Fernando Abad #56 of the Oakland Athletics and catcher Derek Norris #36 of the Oakland Athletics after striking out Wil Myers of the Tampa Bay Rays to end the ninth inning of a game on May 21, 2014 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Brian Blanco/Getty Images)

By Matthew Harrington

The Oakland Athletics managed only one hit against the Tampa Bay Rays Wednesday evening at Tropicana Field, but the lone base knock proved to be an efficient one. Brandon Moss’ solo home run in the fourth inning proved to be the game-winner in a 3-2 decision over Tampa Bay (19-28). Oakland (30-16) also scored two unearned runs in the second, proving to be all the run support Tommy Milone (2-3, 3.99 ERA) would need. The lefty fired 5 2/3 innings of two-run ball, outdueling Erik Bedard for a fifth-straight victory for the Green and Gold (30-16), leaders of the AL West by four games. Sean Doolittle converted the save just hours after manager Bob Melvin declared the flame-throwing southpaw full-time fireman, replacing the previously employed closer-by-committee approach.

To open the second inning, the A’s loaded the bases on Bedard without registering a hit. Yoenis Cespedes reached on an errant throw from shortstop Yunel Escobar that pulled James Loney off the bag at first base. Derek Norris and Brandon Moss followed the error with back-to-back walks and nowhere to put Alberto Callaspo, but the second basemen struck out for the first out of the inning.

Defensive miscues doomed Bedard’s brilliant performance though after a second error in the inning brought Cespedes and Norris around for a 2-0 lead. Rays second-sacker Sean Rodriguez turned a surefire double-play from Josh Reddick into a two-run mistake, sailing the potential twin-killing feed to Escobar into left field instead. The misplay gave Cespedes and Norris ample time to cross home plate from third and second base respectively.

While the A’s bedeviled the Rays to two runs on four base runners without a hit earlier, it only took one batter in the fourth for Oakland to add to the lead. With two outs in the top of the fourth, Brandon Moss crushed a first-pitch hanging breaking ball from Bedard to right field for his 10th long ball of the season to make it 3-0 for the visitors. Moss collected his 40th RBI of the season, the fourth-highest total in the Majors this season. Moss is also second in the junior circuit in on-base plus slugging percentage (.988) and sixth in the AL in on-base percentage (.393) in a quest for his first All-star bid of his career.

Tampa scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth on run-scoring singles from Loney and Escobar, the latter of which greeted reliever Fernando Rodriguez into the game. Rodriguez relieved Milone, who departed the game responsible for one run already and on the hook for a pair of runners on base as well. Only one of the runners scored before Rodriguez could retire the side, closing the book on Milone after three strike-outs and a solitary walk issued. His opponent Bedard (2-2, 2.63) went 5 1/3 innings, striking out six Athletics while yielding the lone hit to Moss for the only earned run of the night

After closing out the sixth inning, Rodriguez pitched a scoreless seventh before handing the ball over to Luke Gregerson for the eighth. Gregerson retired Evan Longoria looking at strike three but surrendered consecutive singles to Loney and pinch-hitter Matt Joyce to put the tying run at third with only one out.

Fernando Abad, the Athletics most reliable reliever this season, entered the game trying to cut off the Rays rally. He lost David DeJesus on a full-count base on balls to fill the bases with Rays but induced a lead-saving double play from Escobar to end the inning and the stamp out the Tampa scoring threat at two runs.

Sean Doolittle pitched a near-perfect ninth for his fourth save of the season, striking out two while allowing a lone hit to close out the game and put Oakland in line for the sweep in the Sunshine State. A’s ace Sonny Gray will take the bump for Thursday’s matinee from the Trop looking for win number six in a row for Melvin and associates. He’ll be opposed by the Ray’s Alex Cobb in the finale before the team heads north of the border for a weekend series in Toronto. The Blue Jays currently stand tied with the New York Yankees for first place in the AL East.