Texas tags Doubront for pair of 3-run HRs
As the A’s use September to sort through their options for next season, Felix Doubront is all but putting himself in the discard pile.
The left-hander, acquired from Toronto for cash July 31, gave up two three-run homers in Oakland’s 10-3 loss to firstplace Texas on Wednesday. Doubront has allowed 17 runs in 15 innings over his past three starts, and six homers among the 20 hits he has yielded.
“For the most part, the cutter’s his pitch and he just hasn’t been getting it in like he normally does, leaving it just on the plate just a little bit where they can extend and get it,” manager Bob Melvin said.
Doubront is arbitrationeligible, and though the A’s do have a need for starters — particularly left-handers — a performance this wobbly down the stretch might make Doubront a candidate to be non-tendered, or at the very least put him near the back of the line for rotation consideration in the spring.
Mitch Moreland had an RBI single off Doubront in the fourth and Elvis Andrus hit his career-high seventh homer that same inning, the first of Texas’ two three-run homers. Adrian Beltre connected on the other the following inning. Doubront also allowed the Rangers seven runs in his 4 2 ⁄3 innings at Texas on Sept. 13, and his career ERA against the Rangers is 12.82.
Arnold Leon did a nice job in relief of Doubront, allowing only one walk in 2 1 ⁄3 innings. R.J. Alvarez allowed a homer to Rougned Odor, an RBI double by Delino DeShields and an RBI single by Shin-Soo Choo in the ninth.
Josh Reddick, who could be traded this offseason given the fact he’ll be a free agent after next season, upped his value some more by banging his 20th homer of the season, a solo shot in the sixth. An excellent defensive player, Reddick had his first-ever two-error game, both while trying to pick up balls in right.
“The first one I tried to grab too aggressively. With the conditions of the field, I should know better than that,” he said. “I came in too hot. … The second one, I just botched really bad.”
As for the homer, “It’s a better number than ending the season with 19. ... But I’m going to go home and think more of the errors than the home run.”
Eric Sogard hit his first homer of the season leading off the seventh, ending a streak of 282 games and 457 at-bats without a homer, the A’s longest run without a homer since Jason Kendall’s 619 at-bat homerless streak from June 1, 2006, to June 13, 2007.
“It’s been a while,” Reddick said. “We tried to give him the silent treatment, but I guess no one wanted to be a part of it. It’s not often you can expect Sogie to go deep.”
Rookie Billy Burns tripled with two outs in the fifth inning — and he nearly had an inside-the-park home run when his shot down the firstbase line kicked under the folding chairs in the Texas bullpen, but Choo found the ball in time to get a throw to the plate. Burns had to stop in his tracks more than halfway down the line and retreat to the bag.
“I’m glad he didn’t (continue) because I don’t think he would have made it,” Melvin said. “They got the ground rule right. We have a new ground rule this year with those boxes, and if it goes underneath where the bench is, you kill it. If not, you play it. With expanded rosters in September, brought some chairs down there that don’t affect that ground rule.”
That was the team’s Oakland-record 41st triple of the season, but Burns was stranded there when Mark Canha flied out. Texas starter Colby Lewis did his usual number on the A’s, giving up only five hits and two runs in his six innings. Felix Hernandez South is 11-4 with a 2.90 ERA in his career against Oakland.
The A’s have dropped four games in a row and they are 24 games below .500 for the first time since finishing the 1997 season 32 games under.
The Rangers gained another game on Houston and lead the AL West by three games.