Blake Treinen:
Struggling former Oakland closer looks to rekindle 2018 form.
The A’s are clicking entering Tuesday night’s home game against Seattle — 17 wins in their past 22 games to climb into the thick of playoff contention. They still could use reliever Blake Treinen regaining something resembling his lightsout 2018 form.
Treinen sought out manager Bob Melvin for a talk Sunday, in the wake of another rocky outing: one inning, two hits and two runs allowed in Saturday’s 132 rout of the White Sox. Treinen entered the game in the seventh, with the A’s ahead 120, and walked the first batter he faced.
Then, afterward, Treinen told The Chronicle he was “beyond frustrated” with the way he’s pitching and said, “it’s not fun being a punching bag.” He sounded more than a bit discouraged, suggesting he’s letting down his teammates.
“He’s trying to remain positive,” Melvin said. “He’s still getting good sink and throwing hard, it’s just about getting some results. We’re still not quite there with him, but I think mentally he’s in a good place. … It’s just remaining confident, trying to get through a tough time.”
Melvin planned to talk to Treinen before Sunday’s game, but Treinen came into Melvin’s office first to assure him he hasn’t lost faith in his abilities.
“So I really don’t need to talk to him about confidence — I think he feels pretty good,” Melvin said. “He just needs to get some results, get out there a few times in a row where he can get into a rhythm.”
Treinen, who lost the closer’s job to Liam Hendriks, has a 23 record with 16 saves and a 4.54 ERA. He spent nearly two weeks on the injured list with a strained right shoulder; in his three appearances since then, he allowed the decisive 12thinning run July 3 against Minnesota, pitched a scoreless inning July 6 at Seattle and then struggled Saturday.
This all comes one year after Treinen put together a terrific season in which he was 92 with 38 saves and an 0.78 ERA.
“He definitely has last year to look back upon, and have that as a resource, because he had one of the great years a reliever’s ever had,” Melvin said.