A’s split with 5-1 win in Texas as Bassitt gets 8th W in row

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Chris Bassitt is on quite a roll for the Oakland Athletics since being their opening day starter and then losing his first two games. He hasn’t lost since.

Bassitt limited Texas to five singles while pitching seven innings to win his eighth consecutive decision, the longest winning streak by an American League pitcher this season, as the A’s beat the Rangers 5-1 on Thursday for a series split.

“Seven innings nowadays feels like nine for a starter,” manager Bob Melvin said. “That’s what he sets out to do. He wants to go out there and take some pressure off the bullpen. He wants to pitch deep in games.”

Since losing to Houston on April 1, and then against the Los Angels Dodgers five days later, Bassitt (8-2) had gone 8-0 with a 2.95 ERA in 14 starts.

It is the longest winning streak in his seven big league seasons, the last six with Oakland.

Jed Lowrie drove in runs with a single and a no-doubt home run for the A’s (4631), whose four-game split dropped then behind Houston in the AL West. The A’s arrived in Texas having led the division for all but one day since April 19.

Bassitt was facing what was to be his last batter regardless in the seventh when Isiah Kiner-Falefa, the new Rangers shortstop after they traded 12-year starter Elvis Andrus to Oakland just before spring training, grounded into an inning-ending double play.

Andrus made a sliding grab up the middle and flipped to the ball with his glove to second baseman Lowrie for the relay to first.

“Pretty vintage Elvis,” Lowrie said. “An amazing play by Elvis, so he saved me there,” Bassitt said.

Lowrie’s RBI single in the first was already the fourth hit for the A’s, and put them up 3-0 against left-hander Kolby Allard (2-3).

Ramón Laureano had an RBI double and another run scored on a groundout.

Allard managed to make it through six innings. The only other run he allowed was Lowrie’s 433-foot homer to straightaway center leading off the fourth.

“It was kind of frustrating a little bit,” said Allard, who hadn’t allowed more than two runs in any of his four previous starts since moving into the rotation.

“Obviously settled down fairly good and kind of pitched well the rest of the game, but just frustrating going out there and having the first inning go as it did.”

STRANGE TRIP AROUND THE BASES

Texas got its only run after Eli White was hit by a pitch leading off the second, moved up two bases on the same wild pitch and scored on a groundout.

White also had two singles and is 8 for 15 his last four games.