Brent Rooker made sure the A’s had one more answer.
Rooker crushed a walk-off three-run homer in the bottom of the 10th on Sunday, lifting the Athletics to a wild 12-10 win over the Astros at Sutter Health Park. His second homer of the afternoon snapped a back-and-forth game that saw the A’s build two leads, lose both, then answer one more time.
The win gave the A’s a split of the four-game set and capped one of their most dramatic games of the young season.
The middle innings changed everything
Houston struck first in the fifth on Yordan Alvarez’s two-run homer and a Cam Smith RBI single. That gave the Astros a 3-0 lead and put pressure on Jacob Lopez, who allowed three runs in 4 1/3 innings while walking five and striking out six.
Then the A’s finally broke through in the bottom half.
Carlos Cortes doubled in Max Muncy for the first run. After Nick Kurtz walked, Tyler Soderstrom ripped a bases-clearing triple to right. Brent Rooker followed with a sacrifice fly, and the Athletics suddenly led 5-3.
The game swung again in the seventh. Christian Walker tied it with a two-run homer off J.T. Ginn. But the A’s answered right away.
Soderstrom walked to open the inning, and Rooker launched a two-run homer to left. Later in the frame, Jeff McNeil and Cortes added RBI singles, pushing the lead to 9-5.
That should have been enough. It was not.
Astros answered, then Rooker answered louder
Houston came charging back in the eighth.
Jake Meyers opened with a solo homer. Jose Altuve doubled home another run, and after Scott Barlow gave way to Mark Leiter Jr., Cam Smith lined a two-run single to center to tie the game at 9-9.
The Astros grabbed a 10-9 lead in the 10th when Carlos Correa singled home the automatic runner. Still, Elvis Alvarado kept it there by stranding the bases loaded.
That gave the A’s one last chance.
Shea Langeliers began the bottom of the 10th at second and moved to third on a wild pitch. Soderstrom then drew a walk. One swing later, Rooker sent Bryan Abreu’s pitch over the wall in left to end it.
Numbers that mattered
Rooker finished 2-for-4 with two homers, six RBIs and a walk. Soderstrom scored three times and drove in three, while Kurtz went 2-for-3 with three walks and a stolen base. The A’s also got two hits apiece from Langeliers, Jacob Wilson, Muncy and Cortes.
Houston had its own stars. Altuve reached four times and scored twice. Alvarez hit a two-run homer. Walker added a two-run shot, and Cam Smith drove in three.
The bullpen line was messy for both clubs. Ginn and Barlow each blew leads for the A’s, while Houston could not finish after building a late comeback. Alvarado picked up the win after recording the final two outs in the 10th.
For most of the afternoon, this looked like a game the Athletics might regret. Instead, Rooker turned it into one they will remember.
Up Next
The Athletics hit the road Tuesday to open a series against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. First pitch is set for 1:05 p.m. PT. Right-hander Aaron Civale is scheduled to start for the A’s against Yankees right-hander Cam Schlittler.
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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.
