The Athletics had the first punch Sunday, but one inning buried the homestand.
New York scored 13 runs in the third and beat the A’s 13-8 at Sutter Health Park. As a result, the Yankees took the series 2-1, while the Athletics fell to 28-31 and dropped 2.5 games behind Seattle in the AL West.
Where it broke
The A’s led 3-0 after the first. Carlos Cortes and Tyler Soderstrom scored on Trent Grisham’s error, and Lawrence Butler followed with an RBI single.
Then the third inning flipped everything. New York sent 17 batters to the plate, scored 13 runs and turned the game into a chase.
Ben Rice did the most damage. He hit a two-run double to tie it, then added a two-run triple later in the inning.
Jacob Lopez took the loss after allowing seven runs on five hits in two innings. Michael Kelly followed and allowed six runs in 2/3 of an inning.
Too much to chase
The Athletics did not fold, but the hole was too deep.
Brent Rooker hit his eighth homer in the seventh. Soon after, Jonah Heim hit a three-run homer to right center, cutting the deficit to 13-7.
Next, Nick Kurtz doubled in Darell Hernaiz in the eighth. However, the A’s left two on in the ninth and could not finish the comeback.
Numbers that mattered
The Athletics had 12 hits, but went 3-for-15 with runners in scoring position.
Kurtz went 2-for-3 with a double, an RBI and two walks. Rooker, Zack Gelof and Heim also had multi-hit games.
Still, the pitching line told the story. The Athletics allowed 47 runs during a 1-5 homestand that started with a three-game sweep by Seattle.
Road reset
The A’s have Monday off before starting a six-game road trip Tuesday in Chicago.
Gage Jump is scheduled to start against the Cubs at Wrigley Field. He enters 0-1 with a 7.20 ERA and five strikeouts. Chicago is set to counter with Jameson Taillon, who is 2-4 with a 5.37 ERA and 51 strikeouts.
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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.
