Unlikely heroes’ clutch pitching, hits pace victory
TORONTO — Rookies led the way for Oakland on Friday night — one whose career was in jeopardy less than a year ago, another who walked into Rogers Centre less than half an hour before the first pitch.
Dustin Fowler smacked his first career home run and drove in the first two runs in the A’s 3- 1 win over the Blue Jays, in which just- arrived reliever Josh Lucas wound up taking over in the second inning because Oakland lost yet another starter to an early injury: Brett Anderson left with a shoulder strain.
“I had no idea he was coming out,” said Lucas, who was playing catch because he’d missed the pregame activities. “All of a sudden
they said, ‘ Hey, you’re in the game!’ Caught me off guard. Ripped my ( compression) sleeve off and ran out there. I was just completely confused.”
Lucas wasn’t in uniform until about 20 minutes before the game thanks to traffic coming in from the airport. “It was wild,” he said.
Wielding a terrific slider, he went 32⁄ innings; the most 3 he’d gone at Triple- A Nashville was two innings, and that just once. In his one previous callup with Oakland, he’d worked three scoreless innings against Boston on April 20. According to stats expert David Feldman, Lucas was the first A’s reliever to record seven strikeouts in fewer than four innings since John Briscoe struck out seven in 22⁄ innings on May 11, 1994. 3
“He was just a godsend for us,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said.
“It’s one of the better relief performances I’ve seen in my eight, nine, however many years I have,” Anderson said. “It was phenomenal. We TampaBay- Ray’d, Sergio- Romo’d them on accident, get all the right- handed hitters in there and they’re not expecting him for the second.”
Fowler gave Lucas some backing, sailing a solo shot into the Toronto bullpen in the third inning. “It was great, especially being one of my first home runs to the opposite field,” Fowler said. “I didn’t think I had that. I was shocked when it was over.”
It’s been a memorable road trip for the A’s center fielder, who recorded his first bigleague hit one week earlier at Yankee Stadium, against the team that traded him and the pitcher, Sonny Gray, for whom he’d been traded last year.
The A’s acquired Fowler while he was rehabbing from a devastating knee injury incurred when he collided with an unpadded electrical box at Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago during his majorleague debut. There were fears the injury, likened in severity to one that might be sustained in a car accident, might end Fowler’s career.
Fowler’s night wasn’t finished: With the game tied in the seventh, Chad Pinder doubled with two outs and Fowler sent Pinder in with a double to center to put Oakland up 2- 1.
Catcher Josh Phegley — here for the four- game series because Bruce Maxwell couldn’t get into Canada while facing a gun charge in Arizona — smacked the third double of the inning off Marco Estrada, driving in Fowler. Fowler also walked and stole a base.
Anderson said he didn’t feel the shoulder issue until warming up for the second. Anderson, who has spent 10 stints on the disabled list in his big- league career, entered Friday with an 0- 2 record and an 8.16 ERA in three outings.
“It’s one of the few body parts I haven’t hurt until today,” Anderson said, knocking on the wood of his locker. “So it’s frustrating. My stuff felt good, my command felt good, I felt like I could have had a good start.”
Starter Andrew Triggs left Thursday’s game in the third inning with nerve discomfort in his right hand.
The A’s used five relievers Friday, with Blake Treinen closing things out. Treinen took over with two on and two outs in the eighth. He struck out Kevin Pillar, then worked a 1- 2- 3 ninth for his ninth save.
A’s third baseman Matt Chapman didn’t start for the first time this season. Melvin wants to get his regulars some rest where possible. Catcher Jonathan Lucroy and right fielder Stephen Piscotty also were off Friday, and second baseman Jed Lowrie is likely to be off Saturday.
Chapman entered the game in the eighth, extending his games- played streak to 124 games, and he doubled in the ninth. He’s 8 for his past 16.