The Athletics kept the offense moving Monday.
Oakland beat the Reds 9-7 at Goodyear Ballpark, building an early four-run cushion, getting a big day from Jeff McNeil and doing it on a day the club also trimmed its spring roster by 15 players. The cuts left the A’s with 46 players in camp.
McNeil went 3-for-3 with a two-run homer and two runs scored, lifting his spring average to .368. The veteran has quietly become one of the steadiest bats in camp, and Monday only added to it.
Fast start sets the tone
The A’s wasted no time jumping on Cincinnati starter Rhett Lowder.
McNeil opened the game with a single, Max Muncy doubled and Brian Serven reached on an error that brought home the first run. Cade Marlowe followed with an RBI single, Zack Gelof added an RBI double and Tommy White capped the inning with a sacrifice fly for a 4-0 lead.
Cincinnati answered with JJ Bleday’s two-run homer in the bottom half, but Oakland stretched the margin again in the fourth. Cameron Leary doubled, then McNeil drove a two-run shot to right-center to make it 6-2.
Insurance mattered
That extra offense turned out to be necessary.
After the Reds trimmed it to 6-3 in the fifth, the A’s put together a three-run seventh. Michael Stefanic singled, Jared Dickey delivered an RBI single and then the A’s leaned on patience. Jared Sprague-Lott drew a bases-loaded walk, and Leary followed with another to force in a run and push the lead to 9-3.
Stefanic had two hits off the bench, while Gelof added two hits and an RBI. Drew Swift also chipped in a hit and a walk after entering later.
McNeil’s three-hit day kept him among the hotter bats in camp. Henry Bolte did not play Monday, but he still leads the club with 12 spring hits. Tyler Soderstrom remains the team RBI leader with eight.
Late wobble, but enough to finish
Cincinnati made it interesting in the eighth when Rece Hinds launched a three-run homer off Domingo Robles, cutting the lead to 9-7. Still, Oakland got the final four outs and closed it out behind Micah Dallas and Colton Johnson.
Jack Perkins earned the win after allowing two runs in 2 2/3 innings.
Cuts reshape camp
Earlier in the day, the Athletics cut 15 players from camp and reduced the roster to 46.
The club optioned left-handers Brady Basso and right-handers Mason Barnett, Braden Nett and Chen Zhong-Ao Zhuang, along with infielder Brett Harris and outfielder Junior Perez, to Triple-A Las Vegas.
The A’s also reassigned left-handers Jamie Arnold and Ben Bowden, right-handers Geoff Hartlieb and Cade Morris, catcher Bryan Lavastida, infielders Euribiel Angeles and Joshua Kuroda-Grauer, and outfielders Clark Elliott and Ryan Lasko to minor league camp.
Up next
The A’s continue Cactus League play Tuesday against the Guardians at 1:05 p.m. PT.
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Dice City Sports editor Mark Hebert covers the Vegas Golden Knights, Las Vegas Raiders, Athletics, and UNLV baseball and softball. He has 24 years of journalism experience, is also a senior reporter at Exhibit City News, and previously covered the Dallas Stars and Texas Rangers. Follow him on X or connect on LinkedIn.
