Graveman, Oakland bats bust slump
Chapman, Olson and Joyce homer in win
OAKLAND >> Matt Joyce, one of the A’s few graybeards at 33, saw lots of reasons to feel optimistic about the future of the franchise during a 9-3 win over the Orioles on Sunday.
He watched 26-year-old righthander Kendall Graveman fight off early trouble and deliver his best performance of the season just when the A’s starting rotation needed it most.
He saw 24-year-old Matt Chapman hit the first of three A’s home runs — and the biggest, a threerun go-ahead shot in the fourth inning — then make a dazzling play at third base moments later.
And he watched as Matt Olson, 23, homered for the third straight game — the first home run Baltimore ace southpaw Zach Britton has allowed to a left-handed hitter since 2013.
“Those guys are awesome,” said Joyce, who had a nice game of his
own with a double and a two-run homer. “I get very excited about these guys and the talent they have. I think it’s going to be an exciting future for the A’s.”
Manager Bob Melvin, whose team had dropped four of five games, was equally excited. In particular, he was encouraged by the tough-minded effort of Graveman, who was making just his third start after missing 2 1/2 months with a sore shoulder.
Seven of the first 12 batters he faced got hits, but Graveman limited the damage to a pair of runs, and wound up pitching seven effective innings. That was a huge boost for a rotation that labored over the past week. A’s starters allowed 29 earned runs (including 10 home runs) in 26 2/3 innings over the previous six games.
“Early on, the way things have been going you can’t help but think do we have to get somebody up pretty soon? After that it was like we’re used to seeing him,” Melvin said. “When you’re in a (rough) period like that, those are the type of guys you expect to do it for you.”
After giving up single runs in each of the first two innings — fueled by a Manny Machado triple and a Mark Trumbo double — Graveman pitched scoreless ball the next five innings. From the fourth through seventh, he allowed just one hit and faced only one batter above the minimum.
It was quite a contrast to his two previous starts. Graveman returned from his hiatus Aug. 3 against the Giants and was roughed up for seven earned runs in two innings, then allowed three earned runs in 5 1/3 innings of a no-decision outing against Seattle last Tuesday.
“To find that groove that I felt I was in before I got injured, the arm felt great all night … I think I’m finally getting back on track,” Graveman said.
The A’s tied the score in the fourth, then went up, 5-2, when Chapman delivered on some of the promise he showed a year ago when he was MVP of the Double-A Texas League after hitting 29 home runs for Midland. Chapman’s 36 homers in 2016 (including seven with Triple-A Nashville) are tied (with Jose Canseco) for the fourth-most by an A’s prospect in a minor-league season.
With a runner on third and just one out, Chapman claimed he was merely trying to get a ball to the outfield to score a run. “Luckily, I was able to do that and a little more,” he said.
Olson, who also initiated a heads-up double play on a high-bouncer off the bat of Seth Smith in the second inning, rocketed an 0-1 pitch over the right-field fence against Britton.
“I don’t even know what to say about the home run off Britton,” Melvin marveled. “No one’s done that.”
Olson virtually shrugged. “It’s a cool stat,” he said. “It’s not like I’m up there trying to swing differently against a lefty.”
• Even in victory, the A’s continued to be hurt by Baltimore extra-base hits. The Orioles had a double, triple and home run Sunday, giving them 24 extrabase hits in the four-game series: 16 doubles, two triples and six home runs. • Josh Phegley, on the 10day DL with an oblique strain, will work out with the team Monday, according to Melvin, then join the club’s Triple-A team in Nashville to DH on either Tuesday or Wednesday.
Jake Smolinski, coming back from shoulder surgery in March, will continue to DH for the Stockton Ports Class A team, Melvin said. He was 0-for-2 with a walk and a run scored in his first game on Saturday night.