Wow. It took an extra inning for it to be decided but the A’s came out on top thanks to some late-game heroics from an unexpected hero. The Athletics took the first game of the series against the Mariners, walking them off en route to a 6-5 victory. Seattle’s playoff hopes are on life support.
Springs solid again
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The A’s had veteran southpaw Jeffrey Springs on the bump tonight. It’s no secret he’s in the final month donning the Green & Gold but there’s no reason his tenure has to end on a low note.
Springs had literally just seen these guys, pitching against them within the past week. That start was in Seattle though and he’s been much better on the road. How would he do against them in the hitters ballpark that is the Athletics’ current home?
Seattle struck first tonight, going small-ball to bring in a run in the first against Springs to give the M’s a quick lead. They’d go small-ball again in the second for their second run, pushing across that baserunner off a groundout. That was all the damage Seattle could muster tonight against the lefty though as he would toss three more innings without allowing another run.
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Jeffrey Springs: 5 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, 94 pitches
The veteran did his job tonight and departed with a chance at a victory. His bullpen would let him down yet again but he did what he needed to do, which is impressive considering his year in Sacramento. He’s lined up to take on the Rays next time out, a much tougher opponent.
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Offense musters just enough
On the other side of the ball, the Athletics’ offense was going up against Mariners righty George Kirby, a familiar foe for the A’s in the past few years. While Seattle was able to get a quick run against Springs, the A’s pushed across two against Kirby in the first inning. Rookie outfielder Henry Bolte got things started with a single then promptly stole second base (his 20th of the year). Veteran Jeff McNeil followed him up with an RBI double, and that was soon followed by an RBI single off the bat of Max Muncy:
After just two batters the A’s had tied this game, and a couple more and we’d take the lead (briefly). Seattle tied it up but that was only for a short time.
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A couple innings later, Lawrence Butler stepped to the plate with a runner on and delivered the big blast of the game, a two-run shot to make it a 4-2 A’s lead:
That was home run #14 on the year for Butler, and one that the A’s desperately needed. That’d power the offense for the next few frames as the rest of the lineup struggled to add on.
Mariners fight back
After Springs’ night was done, manager Mark Kotsay turned to right-hander Scott Blewett. Just like his name would suggest, tonight he blew it as he’d allow Seattle to tie this game right back up with a two-run home run in the sixth. It was now 4-4 with just a few more innings to go.
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A couple of uneventful innings took this one to extras, giving Seattle an advantage to get that go-ahead run. The A’s almost got out of the top of the tenth without allowing the ghost runner to score but a two-out hit brought him home to give Seattle their first lead since the first. The A’s were down and they only had three outs to make some magic happen.
Time to go home!
Down a run. Down to their last three outs. The A’s needed a big hit to at least keep this game going. Well, Donovan Walton wanted to get home early it seems. Leading off the bottom of the tenth with a man on second the journeyman connected on a walk-off two-run home run, sending the A’s home winners:
Now that’s how you play spoiler. Tonight might have been the stake through Seattle’s heart and we’re all about it. Two wins in a row for the A’s and we’re now a full 3 1/2 games over the Angels in the AL West. The little wins.
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The series continues tomorrow night, same time same place. It’ll be left-hander Gage Jump taking the ball for the home squad while the M’s will counter with Bay Area native Bryan Woo. Should be a good one!
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