A's Luzardo shows promise in 5-1 loss to Rockies

A's left-hander Jesús Luzardo was in disbelief. He had stopped a hard ground ball from Charlie Blackmon and had plenty of time to throw to first base to get the out.

But after an almost half-hearted throw over to Matt Olson, Blackmon was called safe, and two runners came around to score in the ninth inning to pad the Colorado Rockies' lead. Luzardo, almost wide-eyed, put his hands on top of his head in incredulity.

“I thought I had more time than I actually did,” Luzardo said after the A's 5-1 loss. “That was my fault.”

It was a tough moment in an otherwise encouraging outing from Luzardo, who, after a 67-pitch outing, is now on track to possibly make his first start of the season Monday in Seattle at the end of the A's upcoming fourgame series with the Mariners.

Luzardo threw 3 2/3 innings, allowing three hits and three runs with five strikeouts. His fastball was overpowering at times,

touching 98 mph at one point, but he also mixed in an effective slider and a changeup he could throw for strikes.

“I think my arm's ready (to start),” Luzardo said. “Especially after this time, getting my pitch count even higher than it was before. I think I'm ready in terms of arm strength and how I feel.”

All of it less than four weeks after it was disclosed that he had contracted the coronavirus.

“You see a lot of bad swings off of him,” A's manager Bob Melvin said. “The velocity's there, the breaking ball's there. Throwing 2-0 changeups to lefties. His stuff 's great, and to have it in this fashion after missing a significant period of time in summer camp is impressive.”