photo from sfgate.com: Oakland Athletics’ Ramon Laureano hits a solo home run on a pitch from Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Marco Gonzales during the third inning of a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2019, in Seattle.
On the A’s podcast with Joey F
#1 The Oakland A’s and the Tampa Bay Rays will workout at the Oakland Coliseum on Monday and Tuesday in preparation for the AL wild card game on Wednesday it will give both teams some time to adjust to two days off and getting ready for the contest.
#2 There’s no doubt that having home field advantage is huge for the Oakland A’s for a one and done wild card game.
#3 Talk about Wednesday’s starting pitcher for Oakland Sean Manaea since returning recovering from Tommy John surgery he’s gone 4-0 with an ERA of 1.21.
#4 The Rays come into the Coliseum with a winning 96-65 the A’s 97-64 both are evenly matched the Rays have players to look for Travis d’Arnaud, Ji-Man Choi, Brandon Lowe, and Tommy Pham.
#5 The A’s have some big boppers Matt Olson, Matt Chapman, Marcus Semien, and Mark Canha all have home run success this season and they might apply that for post season.
The Oakland Athletics beat the Seattle Mariners 1-0 on Saturday night to win their 97th game of the season which tied their win total from the 2018 season. More importantly, the win guarantees them home-field advantage for the single-game Wild Card contest with the Tampa Rays on Wednesday night.
The A’s are 52-29 at the Coliseum this season and are 7-3 over their last 10 games. The Rays are 48-32 on the road in 2019 and 7-3 in their last 10 games. The tarps will be off on Mount Davis and the crowd could be up to 59,000-plus fans on Wednesday night to cheer the Athletics on to victory and into the AL Playoffs. The Coliseum can be an intimidating place for a visiting team.
The difference on Saturday night
It was a home run by Ramon Laureno that made the difference for the Athletics on Saturday night. Laureno hit his 24th HR of the season off Seattle pitcher Marco Gonzales in the top of the third inning with two out and count of 3-2. The ball traveled 392-feet over the left-field wall.
The A’s have hit 35 home runs versus the Mariners this season tying their franchise record for the most home runs in a single season against a single opponent. Oakland also hit 35 home runs against the Rangers this season.
Anderson gets the win
Brett Anderson was credited with the win. He now a 13-9 record for the season with a 3.89 ERA. Anderson worked 5.0 innings allowing no runs off three hits. He walked one and struck out three Mariners.
“I was willing to let him go out for the sixth. He got a little bit of elbow tightness so we took him out. But, I mean, good stuff. The best [velocity] of the year. I know it’s been eight, or nine or ten days or whatever. But we saw some 94s, some 93s, it looked good. (He) just felt a little something after the fifth. We didn’t want to push that,” said A’s manager Bob Melvin.
Luzardo gets the save
Jesus Luzardo worked 2.0 innings to earn his second save of the year. He allowed no runs off one hit. Luzardo walked none and struck out three.
A’s manager Bob Melvin said, “(He was) pretty calm. And we’ve seen him, in bases loaded nobody out situations in Texas too. I don’t think the nerves are really there. (He) hits a guy, then makes good pitches with his breaking balls in the last at-bat. And (Tim) Lopes is
swinging pretty good too. That’s kind of how we look at it today, we didn’t want him throwing too many pitches, but as long as he was under 30, we felt good about it. Now, three days rest for him as well…”
Melvin on Wild Card Home Field Advantage
“There’s going to be 50,000 people in Oakland, I got a feeling. When we get that bigger crowd at home, they have an effect. So, we’re excited about going home in front of our fans. There’s a great bond between us and the fans there, and they can get pretty loud.”
photo from sfgate.com: Oakland Athletics’ Marcus Semien rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run during the first inning of a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners, Friday, Sept. 27, 2019, in Seattle.
On the MLB The Show podcast with Matt:
#1 The Oakland A’s and Tampa Bay Rays both qualify for at least one game of wild card baseball the site is yet to be determined as it’s too close to call but either way there’s no doubt it should be a nail biter.
#2 The Rays Tommy Pham led the way with a two run homer and they got quality pitching from Tyler Glasnow who pitched 4 1/3 innings of no hit ball against the Toronto Blue Jays as the Rays beat the Jays 6-2 to clinch for a wild card birth.
#3 In the National League the Los Angeles Dodgers are in a four game win streak they took the first game game of their series against the San Francisco Giants on Friday night 9-2 and ran away with the NL West this season by over 20 games on top.
#4 The Oakland A’s announced they will start Sean Manaea who came in the season after recovery from Tommy John surgery and in his first two games he threw shutout ball. Manaea has won his last four starts with 1.21 ERA.
#5 The timing is good for the return of A’s outfielder Stephen Piscotty who just came off the IL manager Bob Melvin said it will be an adjustment period over the weekend in Seattle in preparation for Wednesday’s wild card game vs. the Rays.
#1 How ironic is it that last meeting between Bryce Harper and the Philadelphia Phillies in Washington against the Nationals turned out to be a loss that mathematically eliminated the Phillies in Washington DC? The Nats fans found that to be poetic justice.
#2 The San Francisco Giants end their 2019 homestand and regular season this week as they opened a three-game series with Colorado. The Giants have some young prospects and veteran players who are looking to come back next season so everyone will play hard to the final game on Sunday.
#3 The Giants’ Bruce Bochy set to retire, Pablo Sandoval out with an injury for the rest of the season and Madison Bumgarner may not be back all have been a direct force in the Giants’ more successful days.
#4 The Oakland A’s are holding a 1/2 lead over the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL wild card race. The A’s are finishing up their regular season on the road against the Angels and Mariners. Can they pull it off?
#5 The San Jose Earthquakes, who won two out of their last seven games, faceoff against Philadelphia on Wednesday night, and on Friday, they host the Seattle Sounders. This is their best chance to put together a couple wins at home.
photo from uk.movies.yahoo.com: New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone shows the location and how much a pitch call was squeezing his pitchers after he was ejected for the fifth time for this season on Saturday at Yankee Stadium by Umpire Joe West against the visiting Toronto Blue Jays
On the MLB The Show podcast with Daniel:
1 Craig Kimbrell blows another save now 0-4, 6.53 ERA, Cubs start to regret $43 million contract
2 A’s Marcus Semien reaches base six times against Texas, chasing 200 hits
3 Padres fire manager Andy Green after four seasons 274-366 won loss record.
4 Tampa Bay Rays keep rolling with third straight walk-off win
5 Umpire Joe West ejects Yankees skipper Aaron Boone a day after blowing a strike call
@AB84 photo: Former New England Patriot Antonio Brown confers in practice photo with Patriots head coach Bill Belichick
On That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast:
#1 How surprised were you about the New England Patriots letting wide receiver Antonio Brown go on Friday. It looked like prosecutors were not going to go after him for the rape accusations made by his former trainer Britney Taylor.
#2 Baseball no doubt is in a state shock regarding Pirates pitcher Felipe Vazquez and his child solicitation charges can the Pirates shake this one off.
#3 Amaury talks about the A’s and how they are ahead of Tampa Bay in the wild card by two games. They’ve had to beat some of baseball’s best like the Houston Astros and the New York Yankees in recent weeks.
#4 The San Francisco Giants open a three-game series in Atlanta and the Braves need a win tonight to get back to back NL Eastern Division titles.
Amaury does the A’s Spanish play-by-play broadcasts on 1010 KIQI San Francisco and does News and Commentary each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com
#1 Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger injured his right elbow and will need surgery and said after last Sunday’s game that it was heartbreaking to be out on an injury. The injury knocked Roethlisberger out for the rest of the season and Roethlisberger said he looks forward to coming back next season.
#2 New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees torn thumb will need surgery. Brees sought a second opinion in Houston, and after being looked at in Los Angeles, Brees will miss six to eight weeks of the football season, which would put him at Week 10 at the latest that he can return.
#3 The Oakland A’s continue to believe in miracles. They got a huge win past the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday night. The A’s, who lost the first game of the series Monday night to the Royals 6-5, who came back on them, came back on the Royals on Tuesday night after being down 1-0 scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning for the 2-1 win. The A’s lead second place Tampa Bay by two games.
#4 What happen to the Raiders after having a 10-0 lead on Sunday? The visiting Kansas City Chiefs took over in the second quarter scoring four touchdowns and won it 28-10 and the Raiders couldn’t score in the second half.
#5 The San Jose Earthquakes, who have lost three of their last five games battled against one of the MLS’ best NYC FC, on Saturday losing 2-1. The Quakes’ Chris Wondolowski continues to find the back of the net with the Quakes’ only goal — his 14th of the season.
First, the Oakland Athletics defeated Justin Verlander (18-6) for the first time since 2013 on Thursday night. Secondly, they won the four-game series from the Astros 3-1 by winning the final game 3-2. The A’s record improved to 87-60 for the season.
The Athletics have now won three consecutive games and are now in sole possession of AL Wild Card Slot #1 by ½-game over the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays lost on Thursday night to the Texas Rangers 6-4.
The A’s got to Verlander early
If you are going to beat Justin Verlander, you have to get to him early in the game. Oakland scored their first run of the game in the top of the first inning when rookie Seth Brown doubled to left field to drive Marcus Semien home to score the first run of the game.
In the top of the third inning, Marcus Semien led off with a single to left. With one out, Matt Olson hit a towering fly ball for a two-run home run into the upper deck in right field off a Verlander fastball. It was Olsen’s 32nd home run of the season.
That would be all the scoring for the A’s in the contest, but it would prove to be all they would need.
The A’s starter won the game
Homer Bailey made the start for Oakland and recorded the win (13-8). He worked 5.1-innings allowing just one run (earned) off three hits. Bailey struck out four Astros and walked three.
The A’s used five pitchers in the game.
Liam Hendriks picked up his 21st save of the season closing out the game for the A’s.
Final Totals
For the A’s: 3 runs, 6 hits, 1 error, 5 Left on Base
Up next
The A’s have to play outside in the heat and humidity of the Dallas-Ft. Worth Metroplex versus the Rangers. It should be about 92-degrees with 58-percent humidity at game time on Friday night.
The A’s will send RHP Chris Bassitt (10-5, 3.63 ERA) to the hill to face the Rangers LHP Brock Burke (0-1, 3.52 ERA). Bassitt won his last start versus the Tigers at the Coliseum last Saturday night.
This morning on my Oakland A’s podcast with Lee Leonard, I told our listeners not to panic about the A’s 15-0 loss to the Astros on Monday night. Baseball is a funny game and sometimes a game will just get away from a team. Just as frequently, when a team scores a bundle of runs in a game – they will not be able to repeat that feat in the next game no matter how hard they try. It’s just a “baseball thing”.
The A’s turned the table on Tuesday
Oakland showed up on Tuesday night ready to play and scored seven – that’s right seven – runs in the top of the first inning before the Astros ever had a chance to pick up a bat. The Houston starting pitcher – Wade Miley – was credited with working 0.1-innings while giving up seven runs (all earned) off seven hits. He walked one and struck out none. Miley entered the game with a record of 13-4 and an ERA of 3.74. His record is now 13-5.
It was like the A’s had all of this pent-up energy that just had to be released and they took it all out on the Astros on Tuesday night. The A’s scored two runs in the second inning, two in the third, six runs in the fourth, two more in the fifth, one in the sixth and tacked one more on in the top of the ninth inning for a total of 21.
Oakland won the game 21-7.
Tanner Roark picked up the win
Tanner Roark picked up his 10th victory of the season in this game. He worked 5.2-innings allowing five runs (all earned) off eight hits. He walked one and struck out three. He did give up three home runs. Roark threw 105 pitches (65 strikes).
Ryan Buchter faced one-hitter and Daniel Mengden worked 3.0-innings giving up two runs (both earned) on four hits. He walked two and struck out one. Mengden did allow one home run.
Focus on the A’s with the bat
Mark Canha: went 3-for-6 with three runs scored and one RBI.
Chad Pinder: also had a 3-for-6 game scoring one run and adding an RBI.
Khris Davis: joined the 3-for-6 club with two runs scored and three RBI. Davis hit his 20th HR in the game.
Sean Murphy: had a two-home run game. He went 3-for-5 at the plate with three runs scored and four RBI.
Matt Olson hit two home runs and now has 31 for the year.
Marcus Semien hit his 27th round-tripper of the season in this contest.
For the A’s, it was 21 runs off 25 hits and just eight men left on base.
Wild Card Race
Tampa Bay, Oakland, and Cleveland all were winners on Tuesday. The Rays stay in Wild Card Slot #1 with a 1.5-game lead over the A’s. The A’s own Wild Card Slot #2 with a 0.5-game lead over the Indians. The race is tight and very competitive.
After the Houston series, the A’s do have a game versus a team with a winning record.
Up Next
Game three of the four-game series will be played on Wednesday night at 5:10 PM PDT. LHP BrettAnderson (11-9, 4.08) will start for Oakland while RHP Jose Urquidy (1-1, 5.33) will take the mound for Houston.
#1 The Oakland A’s made easy work of the Detroit Tigers on Friday night at the Oakland Coliseum in a make game from a rain out from May 29th the A’s played visiting team in Oakland and picked up the game from where it was left off in the seventh inning Chad Pinder in the top of the ninth hit a two run home to help the A’s cap a 7-3 winner.
#2 In the regular game, the A’s got four runs on the board against the Tigers starting pitcher Spencer Turnbull in the bottom of the second inning and there was no looking back from that point as the A’s carried the win improving their wild card record to just a 1/2 game back of the Tampa Bay Rays.
#3 Speaking of the Rays Tampa Bay got a 5-0 shutout over the struggling Toronto Blue Jays. The win helps the Rays hold a 1/2 lead over the A’s in the AL wild card. The Rays have won seven of their last 10 games and are in second in the AL East.
#4 Former Baltimore Orioles pitcher Jim Palmer and current Orioles TV analyst was diagnosed with shingles in his spinal column. Palmer did not work Friday night’s game. Palmer said that team doctors have told him to get an MRI, which he plans to do. Palmer is the only surviving starter from the 1971 Baltimore Orioles starting staff, of Dave McNally, Pat Dobson, and Mike Cuellar.
#5 The Boston Red Sox got a win over the New York Yankees 6-1 on Friday night at Fenway Park. It doesn’t lessen the Yankees’ position in the standings, but it was an important win for the Sox anytime they could beat their rival and show a fighting spirit in what’s left in the final weeks of the season. The Sox will take it.
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