Well, at least they scored. The Oakland A’s managed to put a four spot on the board against the Guardians. But, another disappointing performance from their pitching staff was their downfall. Oakland falls to 0-2 on the year, losing 6-4 in front of (wait, excuse me? 3,837 people only were in attendance? You got to be kidding me.)
Not only is the attendance getting worse, but this team has not looked good at all through their first two games. A’s fans hoped starter Ross Stripling would help give the team a jolt, but that was out the window after he allowed three runs in the first inning.
Missed these, bro.#ForTheLand pic.twitter.com/nSl1EKLSm4
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) March 30, 2024
At least Stripling settled down after that rough start. He pitched a total of five innings and recorded six strikeouts. He would allow five runs (four earned runs).
At Least Oakland’s Offense Scored
As for the offense, in total, the Athletics went 12 innings without scoring to start 2024. It didn’t hit 13, at least. Why? J.D. Davis, that’s why.
JD Davis gives the A’s their first run and home run of the season.
— Joe Hughes (@VegasJoeHughes) March 30, 2024
He must have seen that Matt Chapman homered for the Giants tonight and wanted to match it. #Athletics pic.twitter.com/DYFC02ylka
You can’t say the A’s offense didn’t put up a fight. They scored a run in the fourth, fifth, sixth, and eighth innings. Davis would homer again in the sixth inning, as well. That’s great for himself and the A’s (wait, never mind. It’s only good for himself. He’ll probably get traded at the deadline at this rate).
Cleveland’s starter Logan Allen got the job and the win, regardless. He allowed just three runs in five innings, and the bullpen prevented the A’s from making any sort of comeback.
Actually, Oakland was close to making a rally. In the bottom of the ninth, 1B Ryan Noda singled and the same for SS Nick Allen after him. That left Lawrence Butler to come to the plate, with a chance to win the game with one swing. In the end, that one swing led to a double play, and closer Emmanuel Clase escaped with the save for Cleveland.
Statistics Of The Game
- Winning Pitcher: Logan Allen (1-0, 5 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 3 K)
- Losing Pitcher: Ross Stripling (0-1. 5 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 6 K)
- Save (1) : Emmanuel Clase (1 IP, 2 H, 0 K)
- J.D. Davis (OAK): 2-4, 2 HR (2)
- Andres Gimenez (CLE): 3-3, 2 RBI, 2 BB
Play Of The Game
JD Davis making a strong impression with the #Athletics with a pair of homers tonight in Oakland. pic.twitter.com/KNHL0oy2DL
— Joe Hughes (@VegasJoeHughes) March 30, 2024
Dead center, gone. Davis is going to have one great year for the Athletics if he keeps this up.
Onto Game 3
This will be the first-day game of the season for the Athletics, as the first pitch is set for 1:07 PM (4:07 PM EST).
Oakland will send J.P. Sears to the mound for his first start of the year. Sears is a promising pitcher, and impressed this spring (2-1, 2.09 ERA). He will look to improve from a 2023 season (5-14, 4.54 ERA) and become a mainstay on the roster. In his career, he is 0-1 with a 3.77 ERA vs Cleveland.
As for the Guardians, they will roll with Tanner Bibee. He was great in 2023, going 10-4 with a 2.98 ERA in his starts. Just 25 years old, the California native will face Oakland for the first time in his career.
Let’s hope the A’s get their first win of the year (and maybe a bigger crowd attendance?)
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Featured Image: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
