For A’s, rainless rain delay part of suspended game
DETROIT — The Tigers had one trick up their sleeves to prevent a four-game sweep by the A’s: the weather.
The A’s took a 5-3 lead in the top of the seventh Sunday, but the tarp went on the field before the bottom of the inning — even before the rain began to fall. The game will be resumed Sept. 6 in the bottom of the seventh before the teams play their regularly scheduled game at the Coliseum, the A’s first suspended game since April 6, 1998.
Because anticipated showers hadn’t hit yet when the umpiring crew signaled for the delay Sunday, A’s players milled around in confusion and, in some cases, evident annoyance.
“I thought we were going to trying to play a half an inning there and when they pulled it, it wasn’t raining, barely at all,” Oakland manager Bob Melvin said. “What was it, another 10 minutes or so?
“They were told once it started raining, it would rain really hard and to get the tarp on the field. And you know, if they have orders to do that, I get it. I’m not a weatherman, either. But it just wasn’t raining very hard.”
The home team must get a chance to respond if the score is tied to begin the inning and the visitors then score. But had the teams completed the inning and Oakland held onto the lead, the game could have been called at that point with the A’s awarded the win.
Asked if the A’s thought they could have played the bottom half of the inning, A’s starter Mike Fiers said, “We were ready,” and as he answered, closer Blake Treinen, standing next to him, nodded vigorously.
“We were hoping to play that half-inning,” said reliever Lou Trivino, who was caught on video throwing his arms up in disbelief when the tarp went on the field. “But I guess it was one of those things where they figured once it started, it wasn’t going to stop. I think we could have snuck it in, maybe.”
So here, then, is a partial recap of the incomplete game — set this aside if you need a primer for that game when it resumes in 3½ months:
The A’s took the lead in the seventh when Matt Chapman walked, Chad Pinder reached on a single and, with two outs, Stephen Piscotty doubled to right-center to score both runners. Piscotty also provided an RBI single in Oakland’s threerun third.
Piscotty is starting to pick up the pace, with 10 hits in his past 26 at-bats and reaching base safely in each of his past 19 games.
“I’ve been trying to grind through,” Piscotty said. “When I’m not at my best, I’ve still been able to operate and have some good at-bats.”
Fiers, the A’s Opening Night starter, has started to turn things around his past four outings — including, of course, his May 7 no-hitter against the Reds — but he wasn’t as sharp Sunday as he had been this month.
He gave up a triple to Niko Goodrum to open the first, and Dawel Lugo followed with a sacrifice fly. Then, after Fiers walked Nicholas Castellanos and gave up a single to Miguel Cabrera, a passed ball by Josh Phegley allowed Castellanos to score.
The A’s bounced back with three in the third to take the lead, with Marcus Semien tripling in one run before scoring on a sacrifice fly by Pinder. Piscotty then singled home Chapman, who had walked.
Fiers couldn’t maintain that edge, though: With one out in the bottom of the inning, Castellanos parked a first-pitch fastball down the middle into the Tigers’ bullpen to tie the game.
“He just capitalized on a first-pitch heater,” Fiers said. “I walked him on four pitches his first at-bat — if he’s going to hit it, he’s going to hit it — but I can’t go up there trying to make perfect pitches. He knew I had to attack him.”
The suspended game is the A’s first since the wee hours of April 7, 1998, when a game against Cleveland at the Coliseum was halted at 1:22 a.m. in the eighth inning because of the then-MLB curfew; it was resumed the next day and the A’s won 3-1. Susan Slusser is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: sslusser@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @susanslusser