Wild-card pursuit becomes tougher with series defeat
Three-game deficits with three weeks to play are by no means insurmountable, but they are significant. The A’s fell three games off the AL wildcard pace Sunday as they dropped a 4-3 decision to Texas at the Coliseum.
Sunday’s loss was Oakland’s second straight to the last-place
Rangers. On Saturday, the A’s squandered a 6-2, eighth-inning lead in an 8-6 loss.
“Any series right now is a tough one to lose,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said. “The way (Saturday) went, that’s a game that we had in hand, so that’s frustrating. And then losing the series, I mean, it doesn’t matter who you’re playing at this
point.”
The A’s (77-66) open a three-game series at Kansas City (65-78) on Tuesday night.
Toronto (80-63) and Boston (81-64) are in a virtual tie for the two AL wild-card spots. The Yankees (79-64) had a chance to join that virtual tie Sunday night but lost to the Mets at Citi Field.
The A’s and Seattle (77-66) fell 61⁄2 games behind in the AL West as division-leading Houston beat the Angels 3-1.
A’s starter James Kaprielian (7-5) took the loss as he allowed four earned runs on eight hits in 32⁄3 innings. It’s his third straight start in which he has failed to record an out in the fifth inning.
“I like what I feel, which is frustrating because the results aren’t there,” the rookie right-hander said. “Knowing that it’s the last few starts of the season, I think it’s pretty easy to see I’m pretty frustrated right now just because we’re not having the success that I want to be able to provide for this team.”
Texas lefty Taylor Hearn had retired 11 straight hitters entering the fifth before Yan Gomes took him deep. That’s 13 homers this season for the former Washington catcher. He has hit four with Oakland, which acquired him July 30.
With two outs in the sixth, Starling Marte hit an infield single. With Matt Olson at the plate, Marte took off for second. Hearn (6-4) stepped off the rubber and had Marte nailed at second — but Hearn’s throw went into center field and Marte motored to third.
Credit Marte with a steal of second and an error on Hearn to allow Marte to take the extra base. Make it 23 stolen bases in 23 attempts for Marte in 39 games with the A’s.
Olson made Hearn pay for his mistake by launching a drive off the façade of the second deck in right. That’s 34 homers this season for Olson, 19 off left-handers. The A’s first baseman leads the majors in homers off lefties, and the homer extended his Oakland record for a season.
That homer was the A’s last hit of the afternoon. In the eighth, Tony Kemp drew a leadoff walk from reliever Dennis Santana, but even with Kemp going on the pitch, Elvis Andrus bounced into a 1-4-3 double play.
The A’s have lost the past four games Kaprielian has started; their last win in a game he pitched came Aug. 20, when he held the Giants to a run in five innings in a 4-1 decision.
“I just want to be able to finish strong and help this team win, and I haven’t been doing that,” Kaprielian said. “And I just hold myself to a high standard and want to be able to contribute and I’m not doing it right now.
“So that game’s on me.”