A’s hold off Abreu, White Sox 5-3, force Game 3
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Oakland’s long-reliable regulars Marcus Semien and Khris Davis powered a couple of home runs, Mark Canha made a gamesaving catch against the wall and red-hot right-hander Chris Bassitt delivered the start of his life.
Now, the slugging A’s are right back in a familiar fall position: one winner-take-all postseason game with the season on the line.
Semien and Davis connected early and Oakland’s bullpen barely held off Jos√© Abreu and the Chicago White Sox late for a 5-3 win Wednesday that sent the AL playoff series to a deciding Game 3.
The A’s lost in the AL wildcard game each of the past two seasons, providing added motivation to win the division and earn a longer series.
Game 3 is Thursday at the Coliseum.
“It feels good. We’re hungry for more wins,” Semien said. “Tomorrow, anything can happen. It’s just like Game 7.”
A’s reliever Jake Diekman walked home a run in the ninth, then retired the big-hitting Abreu on a sharp grounder to end it and even the best-of-three wild-card matchup at 1-all.
The White Sox went 14-0 in the regular season against lefthanded starters and beat southpaw Jes√∫s Luzardo in the playoff opener. A’s manager Bob Melvin acknowledged it might make him reconsider who to start with the season on the line — perhaps righty Mike Fiers over lefty Sean Manaea.
“I’m pretty sure we’re pretty dang confident in anyone we throw against the White Sox,” Bassitt said. “The numbers don’t mean anything. It’s the postseason. I thought they put absurd at-bats against me, and I’m a righty.”
Bassitt allowed one run on six hits in seven-plus innings during an impressive postseason debut as the AL West champion A’s snapped a six-game postseason losing streak dating to 2013.
The right-hander, drafted by the White Sox before being traded to Oakland in December 2014, came in on a nice roll with an 0.34 ERA in September.
Things got interesting when Bassitt gave way to Liam Hendriks after a leadoff single to Tim Anderson in the eighth with a 5-0 lead. Yasmani Grandal hit a two-run homer one out later.
Hendriks surrendered a pair of two-out singles in the ninth and walked Yo√°n Moncada to load the bases. Diekman relieved and walked Grandal to bring home a run.
Abreu, a leading candidate for AL MVP, hit a hard grounder to second base as Diekman earned a tough save.