Look back on home run derby for the ages between Athletics, Astros
OAKLAND >> It had never happened before in over 50 years of Major League Baseball at the Coliseum.
From A’s manager Bob Melvin’s perspective, it may take another half-century for it to take place again.
The A’s and Houston Astros combined for 10 home
runs Thursday night in their series opener, with Matt Chapman’s homer — his second of the game — in the bottom of the eighth proving to be the difference in a 7-6 Oakland win.
Three other players — A’s first baseman Matt Olson and the Astros’ Michael Brantley and Carlos Correa — hit two home runs each. A’s second baseman Corban Joseph and Astros third baseman Alex Bregman both hit one.
The only other time the A’s, since they moved to Oakland in 1968, and their opponents combined for 10 home runs in a game was April 23, 1985 in Anaheim against the California Angels.
“You could see in (batting practice) that the ball was carrying a little bit differently,” Melvin said Friday afternoon. “I haven’t seen conditions in this place like last night here ever.”
Much of the Bay Area sweltered in triple-digit temperatures Thursday afternoon, and it was 82 degrees — roughly 20 degrees warmer than usual — inside
the park at first pitch just after 7 p.m. It was slightly cooler Friday, with the temperature at first pitch at 69 degrees.
Add the fact the A’s and Astros had 193 and 209 home runs this season — both in the top six in MLB entering Friday — and a ball that might be wound as tightly as a Titleist, and the environment was ripe for the ball to fly farther than it usually does at the Coliseum at night.
Almost every one of the home runs hit in Oakland on Thursday likely would have gone out regardless of the conditions, with six of them traveling over 400 feet. Chapman’s home run in the sixth inning, for instance, traveled an estimated 453 feet — the longest by an A’s batter this season.
The one exception was Olson’s fourth-inning opposite-field homer, which traveled 376 feet and just cleared the wall in left field.
“My one to left was probably the cheapest out of all of them,” Olson said. “While it might not get out of here on a typical Coliseum night, I think that it’s a home run in a lot of places around the league.”
“I’ve seen that ball Olson hit yesterday be caught 10 feet in front of the track,” Chapman said. “We’ve hit countless balls 105 mph that were caught. That doesn’t happen but here and (Oracle Park). People don’t realize how unfair it is to hit here sometimes.”
Nine players across MLB hit two home runs Thursday night, marking the 32nd straight day that at least one player had at least two homers in a game. ”I think that’s what MLB wants. They want highscoring games,” said Mike Fiers the day after he allowed four homers in six innings. “Quick games, but high-scoring. So I guess it’s living up to what they wanted.”
• The A’s reinstated catcher Josh Phegley from the 10-day injured list Friday and designated catcher Dustin Garneau for assignment.
Phegley was placed on the IL July 31, retroactive to July 29, with a left thumb contusion on his catching hand. Phegley went 1 for 6 on a two-game rehab assignment with Triple-A Las Vegas on Aug. 11 and 12. He was 2 for 5 Thursday night at Single-A Stockton in a third rehab game.
Earlier Friday, the Toronto Blue Jays claimed catcher Beau Taylor off waivers. Taylor was designated for assignment by the A’s on Wednesday.
• Jesus Luzardo allowed six hits and four earned runs in 3 1/3 innings for Triple-A Las Vegas on Thursday.
• There remains no set date for Matt Harvey to pitch for Las Vegas. Melvin said the organization will, though, “give him a couple of starts to see what he has.” Harvey was claimed by the A’s after he was released by the Angels, where he posted a 7.09 ERA over 12 starts.