Late Texas HRs shock Oakland bullpen
RANGERS 5, A’S 3
ARLINGTON, Texas — For the A’s relief corps, Yusmeiro Petit embodies reliability. No pitcher has appeared in more majorleague games since 2017. The righthander mans any situation. He can defuse crises using control and guile but he is not invulnerable. The Rangers showed it Wednesday in abrupt fashion in handing Oakland a 53 loss.
Petit inherited a onerun lead in the seventh. The A’s had built it in the top of the inning. Starter James Kaprielian sat at 82 pitches. Manager Bob Melvin turned to his lateinning reinforcement.
In a span of three pitches to three batters, the Rangers seized the lead back. Petit started Nate Lowe with a changeup that arrived at 80 mph and up. Lowe drove it for a gametying home run.
Lefthanded hitters were 5for54 against Petit before Wednesday. Eli White, a righthanded hitter, followed. White lined a firstpitch fastball to left field. Petit started Brock Holt, another lefthanded hitter, with a changeup. Holt flared it to left — at 64.8 mph; Holt had no idea where it had gone. It dropped in the outfield for a goahead single.
“They were aggressive,” Melvin said. “But I mean, he throws a firstpitch changeup and usually that’s a pretty good popup pitch for him, he just didn’t get it in a spot where he wanted to. So maybe not his best location of the year. It doesn’t happen often when he’s on the mound.”
Petit’s outing was his 37th this year, most in the majors. He had a 0.79 ERA in his first 20 games, but in 17 since he has allowed 13 earned runs. Melvin noted Petit had not pitched in four days and was “good to go.” Other leverage options are tenuous. After Petit finished the seventh, Melvin brought in Cam Bedrosian for the eighth. Adolis Garcia hit a home run, his second of the game, to extend Texas’ lead.
A night after totaling 15 hits, the A’s were held scoreless into the seventh by righthander Mike Foltynewicz. Sean Murphy had their lone extrabase hit after six innings, a double on a fourthinning sinker. Murphy led off the seventh and saw another sinker in a similar spot. He drove it an estimated 443 feet over the centerfield wall.
Elvis Andrus then lined a double. Texas summoned Spencer Patton, a righthander, to face a run of lefthanded hitters. Skye Bolt delivered a gametying single. Bolt had started in center for the A’s with Ramón Laureano playing right field to ease his workload. Bolt, who entered 2for19 on the season, had two singles for his first multihit game in the majors.
“I think it’s a combination of a little bit of trust that I’ve built with Bob and the rest of the staff as far as how I can play center field,” Bolt said. “I think they know I can go get it and really minimize mistakes and just keep the ball in front. And the back half of that is to give Ramón a little bit of a (rest) there.”
Singles by Tony Kemp and Matt Chapman scored Bolt. The A’s still threatened with two on and one out, but Rangers lefthander Brett Martin retired Matt Olson and Laureano to escape. That loomed as the Rangers jumped ahead against Petit, turning a potential win for Kaprielian (six innings, two runs) into a nodecision. The righthander has allowed two or fewer in six of eight starts. His ERA since joining the rotation is 2.86.
“Pitched great,” Melvin said. “He’s been really consistent for us this year. When he comes out of games, usually we’re in a good spot to have a chance to win.”
Kaprielian held Texas scoreless until the fifth. A twoout walk to Nick Solak hurt. Jonah Heim, the catcher traded by Oakland to the Rangers as part of the Elvis AndrusKhris Davis deal in February, doubled on an 02 curveball. Garcia hit a 22 fastball for a solo homer in the sixth.
“Gave Jonah too good a pitch to hit there,” Kaprielian said. “I know it’s the bottom of the zone but maybe not the right pitch. But that’s on me. I put that thing there and they took advantage of it.”