World champs are next challenge for Manaea in post-no-hitter start
HOUSTON — On Friday, the A’s face the reigning majorleague champs for the first time. And Sean Manaea gets a crack at becoming a modernday Johnny Vander Meer.
Vander Meer, of course, is the only man in history to throw back-to-back no-hitters, and at least briefly, every pitcher who throws one can dream he’ll equal that 1938 feat. However, there’s often something of a letdown in the next outing — the sheer amount of hoopla after throwing a no-hitter can throw off a starter.
“It’s a whirlwind, no doubt, up until the next start,” said team broadcaster Dallas Braden, whose Mother’s Day perfect game in 2010 was the A’s last no-hitter before Manaea’s on Saturday against Boston. “What Sean experienced is a whole litany of firsts and what he has to do now is focus in on the work and try to remember what went on in his bullpen session this week. You have to regain that acute focus on who your next opponent is and not let the distractions get to you — and I’m one of those guys pulling on Sean to do extra stuff this week. It’s just a lot.
“If he can focus on what he can control — work in the video room, the weight room and on the field — he’ll be fine. But he has to make sure all the boxes are ticked.”
Manager Bob Melvin said that having an extra day off should help Manaea, too. Over his career, Manaea has a 2.58 ERA on five days’ rest compared with 3.77 with four.
“I’m glad he’s getting an extra day. I think that was important, not so much because of the pitch count but because of the ups,” Melvin said.
For the Astros, facing a starter they know well coming off a no-hitter is tricky.
“It’s a challenge because a guy is coming off his best performance and the emotional high of accomplishing something so unique,” Houston manager A.J. Hinch said by phone. “It’s hard to study film of his most recent start — you don’t really want to see that. So you focus on what he might do against you.
“For him, some of it is the internal drive to continue that hitless, scoreless streak, but ultimately it comes down to pitch selection and getting a ball you can hit. When Manaea is on, that’s tough to do. But we have a long history with him. It would be different if our guys hadn’t seen him much, but I think we have a pretty good game plan against him.”
Manaea is 1-3 lifetime in eight starts against the Astros, but has a 2.45 ERA against them, and Houston has hit .213 against the lefty.
Facing the champs will be a good test for the A’s, winners of eight of their past 10 games, and for Manaea, who is pitching the best he ever has. He has a 1.23 ERA and his .177 opponents’ average against is the lowest in the majors.
“Realistically, if Sean does what he’s capable of and if what we’ve seen from him in his first five starts is indicative, he’s not going to be too fazed by who the competition is,” Braden said. “But let’s be real: You know who the Astros are and that they just had a nice little ring ceremony.
“But guess what? Sean Manaea put everyone on notice about who he is, too — he sliced and diced the team with the best record in baseball.”
The A’s went 7-12 against Houston last year, but won the final five meetings, including a four-game sweep at the Coliseum in September.
“They were the elite team in our division last year and they’ve gotten better, so they’re going to be a handful,” Melvin said. “We kind of got over the hump last year with Houston. … Hopefully that plays into the confidence factor. But going into their place, it’s a hornet’s nest.
“They’re so deep. They lead the league in pitching, they have a great offense, they play good defense, a little bit of everything — a lot of everything.”