Orioles:  9  Athletics:  5

I want to be happy that the A’s took two out of three against the Orioles, but it’s hard to feel optimistic when today’s game was absolutely ugly.

I felt good about the A’s in the first, Dan Straily had an easy inning getting the first two batters to pop up and then striking out the final to end the inning.  Collin Cowgill lead off the bottom half of the inning with a double and two batters later Josh Reddick hit his 29th home run of the season putting the A’s up 2-0. Yoenis Cespedes then doubled, Chris Carter then walked, but both were stranded after Josh Donaldson hit into a double play.

The A’s lead was then cut in half after Straily allowed a solo home run to Matt Wieters in the second.  The Orioles then tied it in the third inning off of an RBI single from JJ Hardy.  The Orioles then took the lead in the fourth inning when Matt Wieters hit his second home run of the game to lead off the inning.  The A’s would never see the lead again after that.

Dan Straily was not good today, only lasting 4.2 innings while allowing 5 hits, 4 runs, 2 home runs and walking 5.  Home runs have been one of his biggest issues in the majors, having allowed 8 over 28.1 innings since his call up.  His next scheduled start is in Yankee Stadium, so it will be interesting to see if his start is skipped or if he gets another shot in the home run friendly stadium.

Six pitchers came out of the bullpen today, Travis Blackley pitched 2/3 of an inning and allowed 1 hit, 1 walk and no runs.  Evan Scribner replaced Blackley in the fifth, faced one batter, allowed a hit and then was replaced by Pedro Figueroa.  Figueroa threw one pitch, getting Chris Davis to pop up, before being replaced by Tyson Ross.  Ross struck the last batter out to end the inning.

Tyson Ross came out in the seventh and walked the first two batters before he coughed up an RBI double to Manny Machado and a two run single to Endy Chavez. Jim Miller then came in to replace Ross, allowed a single to Robert Andino, but then struck out the next three batters.  Miller then pitched a clean 8th inning, walking 1 and striking out 1.

The A’s scored two more runs in the eighth off of a 2-run home run by Stephen Drew, their first runs scored since the first inning.  Jesse Chavez came in to replace Jim Miller in the ninth and allowed back-to-back doubles and a run to start of the inning. He then recorded two outs, but allowed an RBI single to Chris Davis.

The A’s tried to make a come back in the ninth, but fell short.  With one out Brandon Moss walked and Seth Smith struck out swinging.  Josh Reddick singled and Brandon Moss scored.  Yoenis Cespedes then kept the rally going by also hitting a single.  Jim Johnson then came in and got Chris Carter to ground out to end the game.

The pitching was not great today, having combined for 13 hits, 9 earned runs and 9 walks.  Those 9 walks were the worst to me, there is no way you can win a game by allowing 9 walks.  The offense was just as poor as the pitching, although the combined for 11 hits and 5 runs, they also struck out 12 times and were 2-10 with runners in scoring position and left 9 on.

Angels:  7  Athletics:  1

Yes, the A’s were swept by the Angels today, but a loss like this means very little when one of the players on the team gets hurt.

Brandon McCarthy left today’s game in the fourth inning after he was hit in the head by a line drive off the bat of Erick Aybar.  I did not witness the incident, nor do I care to see it, but from what I understand it was pretty scary.  McCarthy dropped to the ground after the hit and after a couple of minutes he was able to stand up and walk off of the field on his own.

He did not lose consciousness at any point, which is good news, but was taken to the local hospital to be examined further.  There are no updates as of right now, but we should know more later on tonight.

Before he left the game McCarthy allowed 5 hits and 3 runs over 3.2 innings, he walked 1 and struck out 3.  Travis Blackley relieved him after he left the game and allowed only 1 hit and 2 walks over 3 innings while striking out 2.

The Angels opened it wide open in the ninth after Ryan Cook lead off the inning with a walk to Peter Bourjos, he then gave up a single to Erick Aybar and a fielding error by Derek Norris loaded the bases with no outs.  Grant Balfour came in to relieve Cook and almost immediately walked in a run.  He got Mike Trout to strike out, but then gave up a 2-run single to Torii Hunter.  Jim Miller then came in to replace Balfour, he struck out Albert Puljols and then the Angels decided to kick us while we were down and Maicer Izturis stole home to score their 7th run of the game.

The offense was pretty much non-existent today, they combined for only 5 hits and 4 walks while striking out 13 times.  Their only run came in the third inning off of a RBI single by Seth Smith.

Like I said earlier, it’s hard to even be upset by this loss.  Of course I wanted them to win, but McCarthy’s health is much more important at this point.

Athletics:  20  Red Sox:  2

I think the score speaks for itself tonight.

The A’s combined for 19 hits, 20 runs, 5 home runs, 4 doubles,  2 walks, and 4 strikeouts tonight.  They faced seven Red Sox pitchers and only one of the seven did not give up a run to them (Junichi Tazawa).

Every player reached base tonight via walk or hit.  The only player to not collect a hit was Coco Crisp, but he walked and scored in the seventh.

It was a big night for Brandon Moss, who went 4-5 with a home run, 2 doubles and 4 RBI against his former team. Josh Reddick, also a former Red Sox, went 2-5 with a double and a grand slam, his first of his career.  Keeping up with the former Red Sox theme, George Kottaras went 3-5 with 2 home runs and 5 RBI.

Josh Donaldson also had a home run in tonight’s game.  He was 1-4 with a home run before he was pulled from the game with a strained right hip flexor.  The injury does not sound serious and he is considered day-to-day.  Brandon Inge is expected to be called up tomorrow and should take his place at third base for now.

Brandon McCarthy lasted 6.1 inning tonight, he allowed 8 hits, 1 home run, 2 runs, no walks and struck out 1.  McCarthy seemed to struggle a bit tonight, needing 107 pitches to make it through a little over six innings.  Pedro Figueroa, who was recalled from Sacramento earlier today for Jim Miller, finished the seventh inning and also pitched the eighth inning, he allowed a hit and a walk.  Evan Scribner closed out the game and he did not allow a baserunner.

Athletics:  12  Indians:  7

For the second time in two weeks, the A’s have swept the Cleveland Indians.  Today’s win also marks their eighth straight win against them.

The Indians scored in the first inning when Jason Kipnis lead off the bottom of the inning with a solo home run.  The A’s would tie it up in the third when Coco Crisp hit a solo home run himself, his ninth of he season.  The A’s would score five more in the following inning after a 3-run double by George Kottaras and a 2-run home run by Cliff Pennington.

The Indians scored a run in the bottom half of the same inning, when Jack Hannahan singled and Ezequiel Carrera scored.  Josh Reddick would get that run back (and one more), by hitting a 2-run home run in the very next inning, putting the A’s up 8-2.  The Indians scored again in the fifth off of an RBI ground out by Shin-Shoo Choo.

The A’s scored two more in the sixth. George Kottaras lead off the inning with a fly out, but Cliff Pennington singled and Coco Crisp doubled.  With runners on second and third Stephen Drew hit a sacrifice fly to score Pennington.  Josh Reddick then singled and Crisp scored.

Again, the Indians answered back, but this time with three runs.  After Jarrod Parker allowed a single and a double to lead off the bottom of the sixth, he was pulled and replaced by Evan Scribner.  Scribner then walked Jack Hannahan to load the bases, he got Lou Marson to pop up to record the first out of the inning, but then walked Jason Kipnis which scored Casey Kotchman.  He recorded the second out of the inning by getting Asdrubal Cabrera to pop up and then gave up a 2-run single to Shin-Soo Choo.  Jerry Blevins came in to replace Scribner and got Michael Brantley to ground out to end the inning.

» Continue reading “Sweep! A’s Outslug Indians In Final Game Of Series”

The A’s have acquired RHP Jesse Chavez from the Toronto Blue Jays for cash considerations.  Chavez had pitched in 9 games (2 starts) for the Blue Jays this season and had a 1-1 record with a 8.44 ERA. Over 21.1 innings in Toronto he had a 11.39 SO/9 and a .333 BABIP and a 5.91 FIP.  He has a career 5.74 ERA, a 5.17 FIP  (4.43 xFIP) and a 3.57 BB/9 rate.

The club has not announced what his role will be with the club, but it seems likely he will spend most of his time in Sacramento.  He had pitched in 19 games (17 starts) for Triple-A Las Vegas this season and over 95 innings has a .294 BABIP with a 3.42 FIP.

In other A’s news, the club has optioned Tyson Ross back to Sacramento and recalled Jim Miller.  Miller has made 24 relief appearances for Oakland this season and over 33.1 innings has a 2.16 ERA, a .250 BABIP and a 4.66 FIP.  His biggest issue this season has been the walks, having a 4.86 BB/9 rate on the season so far.

What is wrong with Cook?

Blue Jays:  3  Athletics:  1

You could say that the two teams on the field in Oakland today looked like two teams who played a 15-inning game the night before.  The offense wasn’t there today, for either teams, but it was the Jays who won in extras this time around.

After last night’s marathon the A’s needed A.J. Griffin to go out and pitch into the game as long as humanly possible, but an injury, which was soon described as shoulder tightness, took him out of the game after just 1.2 innings.  It was up to the tired bullpen to keep the A’s in the game today, which they did, shutting out the Blue Jays for the next 5.1 innings.

For the third consecutive game Ryan Cook came into the game in the 9th to save the game.  He was able to get the first batter to pop up to first base, but allowed a home run to to the very next batter and soon the game was tied.  He then was able to record the next 2 outs, but by then the damage was already done.

The A’s could not win it in the 9th, nor in the 10th when they had the bases loaded with 2 outs and Josh Reddick struck out looking to end the threat.

Jerry Blevins entered the 11th inning, having pitched in the 10th as well, and immediately gave up a single to Edwin Encarnacion, but then got David Cooper to line out to record the first out of the inning. Encarnacion then stole 2nd, but it didn’t really matter because Blevins then walked Rajai Davis.  Jeff Mathis then struck out swinging, and instead of turning a strike em out, throw em out double play, George Kottaras over threw the ball to Brandon Inge and Encarnacion scored on the error.  The following batter, Moises Sierra doubled and Rajai Davis scored, putting the Jays up 3-1.

The A’s went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the inning, and lost in extras for the first time since May 23rd.

The loss can be blamed on many things, Ryan Cook blowing his second game in a row, Bob Melvin for going with Cook, Jerry Blevins for giving up runs in the 11th or George Kottaras for the error that caused the Jays to score the winning run.  For me, it was the offense that lost the game today for the A’s.  You simply cannot expect the team to win when they only score 1 run.  The team combined for 4 hits today over 11 innings, they did walk 7 times, but were 1-6 with runners in scoring position.

» Continue reading “A’s Game Recap: Bad News Turns To Good News, Turns To Bad News”

Many of us wondered when Dan Straily was going to make his Major League debut and we now have an answer.  Straily will be making his Oakland debut tomorrow against Brett Cecil and the Toronto Blue Jays.

Dan Straily, a right-handed pitcher, has had a stellar year between both Double-A Midland and Triple-A Sacramento, putting together an 8-6 record over 22 games.  Between the 2 teams he has a a 2.60 ERA, leads in all of baseball with 175 strikeouts and has a 11.4 SO/9 rate over 138.1 innings and a very impressive 4.73 SO/BB ratio.

Before the season started John Sickels had Straily ranked as the A’s number 18th best prospect in the A’s organization calling him an “Under-the-radar prospect will need to prove that he can duplicate this at higher levels, but a sleeper.”.

With this move Travis Blackley, who was supposed to pitch tomorrow, is expected to be placed into the bullpen.  The A’s have not made an announcement as to who will be sent down, but many speculate that Jim Miller will be optioned back to Sacramento to make room for Straily.

Also on the move is utility player, Adam Rosales, who was promoted earlier today and is in the starting lineup tonight.  To make room for Rosales, Brandon Hicks has been optioned to Triple-A Sacramento.

Athletics:  7  Blue Jays:  2

The A’s begin their 6-game road trip with a win.  They have now won 6 straight, making it this their longest winning streak this season.

The A’s scored first when Derek Norris launched a 2-run home run in the second, it was his 3rd home run of the season.  The A’s bats were pretty silent until the 7th inning, when they scored 5 runs with 2 outs.  The rally began with Jemile Weeks hitting a triple that scored Brandon Hicks from second.  Coco Crisp then doubled in Weeks and put the A’s up 4-1.  Next Jonny Gomes and Josh Reddick would both walk and Yoenis Cespedes added 3 more runs when he cleared the bases with a single.

Lines of the Day:

• Travis Blackey: 7 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 8 SO.  The one run Blackley allowed was a lead off home run by Travis Snider in the 3rd.  It took him only 97 pitches to get through 7 innings and he struck out a season high of 8.
• Jemile Weeks:  4 AB, 2 H, 1 R, 1 RBI.  Weeks was moved down to the 9th spot today and it paid off.  He was the only player in today’s lineup to collect 2 hits, one of which was a triple.

Ugly Lines of the Day:

• Chris Carter:  3 AB, 0 H, 1 BB.  Chris Carter was the only player in the A’s lineup to not record a hit tonight, but he did reach base in the 4th when he walked.

A’s Extras:

• Evan Scribner and Jim Miller each threw an inning of relief tonight, Scribner allowed a hit and struck out two while Miller allowed 2 hits, including a solo home run and struck out 1.
• A’s top prospect, Michael Choice, has been shut down for the season due to a broken hand.  He had .287/.356/.423 slash line in Double-A Midland over 91 games with 10 HR.

Athletics:  6  Twins:  3

Well it wasn’t a pretty win, but it was a win.  The A’s had trouble at the plate tonight, striking out 15 times over the first 8 innings in the game.  The only player to not strike out tonight was the free swinging Yoenis Cespedes.

Lines of the Day:

• Jonny Gomes:  4 AB, 2 H, 5 RBI.  Jonny Gomes first got the A’s on the board in the 4th when he hit a grand slam off of Francisco Liriano.  He then later singled in Yoenis Cespedes in the top of the 9th to collect his 5th RBI of the night.
• Yoenis Cespedes: 4 AB, 2 H, 2 R.  After leaving the game last Sunday with a thumb injury it was nice to see Cespedes have a multi-hit game.  He did DH tonight, but could return to the outfield as early as tomorrow.

Ugly Lines of the Day:

• Brandon Hicks:  4 AB, 0 H, 4 SO.  Not only did Hicks wear the golden sombrero tonight, he also committed his 2nd error of the season in the 4th inning.
• Coco Crisp:  4 AB, 0 H, 3 SO.  There were quite a few O-fers tonight in the lineup, but Crisp and Hicks almost combined for half the strikeouts alone.

A’s Extras:

• A.J. Griffin collected his first major league win tonight.  He did have his “poorest” outing of the season allowing 3 earned runs on 8 hits and 1 walk over 6 innings.  His only 2 mistakes were 2 home runs to Josh Willingham, a solo in the second and a 2-run shot in the 4th.
• Jemile Weeks went 2-4 today with a double.
• Sean Doolittle pitched 1.2 innings of relief today, he allowed 1 hit, 1 walk and struck out 2.  He has only allowed 2 runs over his last 10 appearances (14.1 innings) and has struck out 22.
• Ryan Cook collected his 9th save of the season tonight.  He pitched a clean 9th and did not allow a hit or a walk and struck out 2.
• The A’s placed (RHP) Jim Miller on the paternity leave list earlier today and recalled (LHP) Pedro Figueroa from Triple-A Sacramento to replace him.
• The A’s also signed (RHP) Chris Ray today.  Ray was let go by the Indians last week after he requested to be released.  He pitched in 33 games of relief for the Indian’s Triple-A affiliate this season and during that time he had a 2-4 record with a 2.75 ERA, a 3.02 ERA and a 7.50 K/SO rate.

Yankees:  6  Athletics:  3

The A’s have now lost 7 straight games to the Yankees at the Coliseum.  Seven.

The good news is the A’s had 7 hits and 3 runs in tonight’s loss, that’s 2 runs and 3 hits more than their previous 2 games.

Lines of the Day:

• A’s Bullpen:  The A’s bullpen consisted of Jerry Blevins and Jim Miller tonight, they combined for 4.2 innings, allowed 1 hit, 1 walk and struck out 6.