The Oakland Athletics are returning home to the Oakland Coliseum after a six-game road trip. With trips to Tampa Bay and Atlanta to face the Rays and Braves respectively, they unfortunately went 2-4 during their time away from Oakland.
Looking into more detail of the team’s performance in those two series, Oakland was in every single game. Let’s begin with the Tampa Bay series.
Stinging Losses To The Rays
Oakland’s first stop was Florida, as they would visit the Rays for three games at Tropicana Field.
Mitch Spence got things rolling for the A’s, as the rookie pitched 5 1/3 outstanding innings, only allowing one hit while striking out four batters. Miguel Andujar continues to perform well at the plate since being activated from the IL, hitting a three-run home run to help Oakland grab game one of the series 3-0.
In game two of the series, Oakland was down 3-2 heading into the eighth inning. But, with a man on, JJ Bleday hit a game-tying single to bring Miguel Andujar home. Unfortunately, A’s reliever Michael Kelly came into the ninth and allowed a walk-off single to Jose Siri as Tampa Bay got the win.
Game three of the series took 12 innings. Oakland scored five runs in this game, highlighted by a 406-foot two-run home run by Shea Langeliers. However, the A’s suffered another walk-off loss. Isaac Palacios hit a single into center field to nab the series-clinching win.
If a few balls went the A’s way, they could have left Tampa Bay with three games won under their built. Instead, they suffered two heartbreaking losses as they headed to Atlanta for a three-game series with the Atlanta Braves.
Bravery Isn’t Enough To Defeat The Braves
Up next on the slate was the Braves, who recently lost Ronald Acuna Jr. for the rest of the season. Oakland got seven innings from starter JP Sears, but he allowed four runs and was outdueled by Atlanta’s starter Reynaldo Lopez (6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER) as the Braves took game one with a 4-2 win.
The A’s bounced back the next day, scoring 11 runs on 16 hits to take game two. Atlanta did score nine runs of their own, but Oakland’s bullpen led by Dany Jimenez (first save of the season) held things down to grab the series-tying win.
But, it seemed like the A’s used all of their offensive skills in the second game and left nothing for the third. They only scored one run on two hits, as Charlie Morton shut the A’s down for six innings and only allowed that one lone run. For the A’s, it was actually Luis Medina‘s first start of the season and didn’t do so bad himself (5.2 innings, allowing just two hits and one unearned run). His ERA remains at 0.00, so that’s a positive. But, the offense couldn’t get anything going and they would lose 3-1.
Back to Oakland
With the road trip completed, Oakland finished with a 2-4 record on this trip and is relieved to be heading back home. But, all of their losses were by two runs or less, showing they were in every single game played.
The Athletics begin a six-game homestand, beginning on Tuesday with the Seattle Mariners for three games. Then, they welcome in the Toronto Blue Jays for another three games. Let’s see if Oakland can win these two manageable series, and improve on their 13-16 record at the Coliseum.
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