Graveman still on schedule
Opening night starter faces minor leaguers after battling flu
MESA, Ariz. — Kendall Graveman was feeling under the weather and didn’t appear as scheduled against the Chicago Cubs in the A’s Cactus League finale on Wednesday, but manager Bob Melvin says the right-hander is still on track to pitch Monday night’s opener against the Angels.
Instead of tuning up against a lineup that included NL MVP Kris Bryant, Kyle Schwarber and other stars of the 2016 world champions, Graveman faced minor-leaguers at the A’s camp at Hohokam Park.
“He was sick yesterday,” Melvin said before the A’s 15-11 loss to the Cubs. “He’s better today, but it was going to be a shorter day for him anyway.
“Based on the fact he didn’t feel great it’s better for us to monitor his innings.”
Last year’s scheduled opening day starter, Sonny Gray, was a last-minute scratch due to a stomach virus, but Melvin said this wasn’t nearly as serious.
Melvin and many of the n A’s left spring training on a high note. After falling behind the Cubs on Wednesday, they scored eight runs in the fourth inning to take a 10-7 lead.
Following the inning, the minor league players and staff stayed behind to finish the game. Melvin, the coaches and other big-league personnel headed out the left-field exit at Sloan Park to board the bus for the airport and the return to Oakland for Thursday’s Bay Bridge Series opener at AT&T Park.
That lead didn’t hold up as the Cubs scored in each of the first seven innings and went on to win the game 15-11.
The A’s lost their last three to finish the Cactus League portion of the schedule with a 16-15 record.
In the fourth, Jed n Lowrie and Yonder Alonso started it with singles against Cubs starter John Lackey. A hit batsman and Jaff Decker’s bases-loaded walk started the scoring, and Richie Martin’s RBI single chased Lackey. Later in the inning, non-roster first baseman Andrew Lambo hit a grand slam and Matt McBride followed with another homer to complete the scoring.
Santiago Casilla n started in place of Graveman, but the career reliever didn’t make it out of his only scheduled inning. He retired only one batter and gave up five runs, bookended by Kyle Schwarber’s leadoff homer and Albert Almora Jr.’s grand slam. He was replaced by non-roster pitcher Kyle Finnegan, who got two quick outs to end the first.
Two more relievers, Sean Doolittle and Ryan Madson, then worked an inning each. Doolittle allowed a run on Kris Bryant’s RBI single in the second and Madson worked the third, giving up a home run to Willson Contreras.
Daulton Jefferies, the Cal product who was the 37th overall pick in the draft last June, followed the relievers to the mound. He was charged with six runs in 22⁄3 innings, starting with a tworun homer to Schwarber in the fourth.
The A’s entered n Wednesday with a .360 onbase percentage in spring training, something that Melvin and hitting coach Darren Bush have been emphasizing after the team finished at the bottom of the American League in the category last season.
“Sometimes it only takes a few guys to affect some of the other guys,” Melvin said. “I think almost across the board we’ve seen some better approaches. When you make it a priority and you stay on it, whether it’s in the cage, in batting practice, feedback after games, and then you get to watch guys like Matt Joyce and Jed Lowrie, hopefully we’re seeing results that will carry over into the season. I think we’ll be better.”
The A’s were last in the AL last season with a .304 on-base percentage. The league average was .321.