Surging Andrus ends no-hit bid by Astros’ Verlander in 7th inning

Elvis Andrus faced Justin Verlander for a third time Wednesday, well aware that the Astros’ right-hander was working on a no-hitter in the seventh inning.

“I was talking to (Christian) Bethancourt about how I’ve never been part of a no-hitter as an offense, not even in the minor leagues,” said Andrus, the Oakland Athletics’ shortstop. “I was like, ‘I don’t know if it is going to happen, but I’m not going to let that happen.’ So I was really into that at-bat.”

Andrus broke up Verlander’s bid by pulling an inside fastball down the left-field line for a double. He hit another RBI double in the ninth, driving a 95-mph fastball from Ryan Pressly into the gap in right-center.

It came in a 5-4 loss but continued an encouraging stretch for Andrus. He was batting .189 on May 9. He’s hitting .324 in his past 21 games, with 10 extra-base hits, upping his season mark to .247.

Andrus’ 31.3% pull rate as of Wednesday, per Fangraphs, would be the second lowest over his 14 major-league seasons. Andrus said he has “been thinking more pull, trying to be more aggressive, especially the last couple of weeks.”

Hitting “the other way is going to happen naturally, that’s my inside-out swing,” Andrus said Wednesday morning. “But if I think too much the other way, that’s when I start missing balls and swinging under. So thinking pull side or being more aggressive in my approach allows me to go the other way the right way.”

Most of Andrus’ hits — especially his extra-base hits — this year are balls he put into play to the pull side of second base. That includes 11 of 16 extrabase hits and all three of his home runs.

“Being able to open the field has always been key,” said Andrus, who doubled twice in Tuesday’s 3-1 loss. “Sometimes I go too much to the right side of the field and that kind of closes my field the other way.

“When I know I can hit line-to-line, it’s a sweet spot for me. I can, like (Tuesday), be able to pull the ball and at the same time, go the other way at any time. … I think as a hitter, that’s when you’re at your best. You make (pitchers) have to give you a quality pitch every time, because if they miss one, you’ll get it.”

Andrus’ hitting struggles in 2021, his first year with the A’s, were extreme. His .614 OPS was the lowest of any qualified American League hitter, and his 72 weighted runs createdplus (wRC+), which measures overall offensive value, ranked second lowest.

A 100 wRC+ is MLB average. Andrus ended May at 102, one of just three A’s hitters above the average. His .678 OPS ranked 15th out of 21 qualified shortstops.

For the first month, Andrus said, he thought he was “driving the ball without being consistent on my swing” and

worked on getting to a “strong position” to deliver swings.

“There are a few times, a few at-bats, where I’m a little late. I’m not in a strong position the way I want,” Andrus said. “But it’s a lot less than earlier in the year. I think that’s where you can see the difference with the results.”

Briefly: The A’s will skip the fifth rotation spot, vacant since Zach Logue was optioned to Triple-A, because of Thursday’s off day. They’ll start

James Kaprielian, Paul Blackburn and Frankie Montas in their weekend series against the Red Sox. … Injured pitchers Brent Honeywell Jr. and Daulton Jefferies both played catch. Jefferies hasn’t received a second opinion on his diagnosis of thoracic outlet syndrome; Kotsay said the A’s are waiting for a specialist to return from a trip. … Right fielder Stephen Piscotty (calf ) ran on the field and did plyometric work on the field.