Fans, teammates welcome back Piscotty in A’s loss
Two days after his mom passes, he takes field in right
OAKLAND >> When the clubhouse doors opened to the media Tuesday, Stephen Piscotty was enjoying a light moment with teammates in an area off-limits to media, sitting on a couch and playing cards with Chad Pinder, Jed Lowrie, Marcus Semien and Jonathan Lucroy.
It looked like any other day of a 162-game season, except that for Piscotty, it was the first time he played a baseball game without one of his biggest supporters.
Two days after the death of his mother Gretchen, Piscotty was in the lineup and batting eighth for Athletics in a 4-2 loss to the Houston Astros before a crowd of 9,675.
It was the second straight loss for the A’s, who fell to 18-18 despite starting ace left-hander Sean Maneau (4-4). The Astros will go for as series sweep today.
As it turned out, Piscotty was involved in the game’s first play — catching a fly ball to right off the bat of George Springer, who had six hits Monday night.
In his first at-bat, with the score 1-1 and two outs, Piscotty fouled off the first pitch from Houston starter Lance McCullers Jr. (5-1) and then lined a clean single to right-center.
The plate appearance included a nice gesture from McCullers, who said afterward he stepped off the mound to give the small
but vocal crowd a chance to voice their support for Piscotty.
“Our fans know, so they gave him a great reception,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said. “I know it probably made him feel good, and to get a hit the first time up, that’s what you’re hoping for. Now it’s just about moving on for him.”
Manaea, who gave up four runs on seven hits in 5 2/3 innings, wasn’t so focused he couldn’t enjoy the moment.
“It was really, really incredible to watch,” Manaea said. “I definitely got chills during his first A.B. when the crowd gave him an ovation.”
At the end of the inning, as Piscotty was taking his position in right field, his father Mike Piscotty appeared on the scoreboard, interviewed by A’s in-stadium host Kara Tsuboi. The elder Piscotty thanked the fans for their support and added, “Way to go with that hit, Stephen.”
Piscotty later made solid contact on a grounder to short for a double play in the fourth inning and flied
to left in the seventh. Defensively, Piscotty took away an attempt at extra bases from Jose Altuve by running down a ball at the fence to end the fifth.
Gretchen Piscotty, 55, passed away in her Pleasanton home after a yearlong battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a neurodegenerative disorder also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.
Piscotty declined comment through a team spokesman, and may speak to the media today.
Melvin said the decision to play rested with Piscotty.
“I talked to him about it and I gave him the option, and he wanted to play,” Melvin said. “I knew coming in today that was he wanted to do as of yesterday. But today he wants to be in the lineup, be around his teammates.
“He knows he’s going to have a lot of support from the guys today. Sometimes just actually getting on the field and concentrating on what you do is a little bit of a release from what he’s going through.”
Third baseman Matt Chapman was happy to have Piscotty back in the lineup.
“We’re all here for him,” Chapman said. “Just trying to let him go through everything he needs to go through. We’re all here for support. I can’t imagine what he’s going through.”