The Athletics received more bad news Monday before another difficult night on the field.
All-Star catcher Shea Langeliers will undergo season-ending surgery Tuesday to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee. Then the A’s opened their series against Boston with a 4-2 loss at Sutter Health Park.
Ceddanne Rafaela’s sixth-inning grand slam erased an early Athletics lead. As a result, the A’s fell to 44-62 and sat only 2½ games ahead of the last-place Angels in the AL West.
Another major loss
Langeliers had been one of the Athletics’ most productive players before the injury.
The 28-year-old was hitting .263 with 23 home runs and 51 RBIs in 93 games. He also became the first A’s catcher to start an All-Star Game since Terry Steinbach in 1989.
Now his season is over.
Right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. will also undergo season-ending surgery Tuesday. Leiter needs a procedure to repair a right hip impingement.
The injuries continue to pile up for the Athletics. Brent Rooker is already out for the season after knee surgery, while J.T. Ginn recently landed on the injured list with a blister.
Joshua Kuroda-Grauer, Luis Severino, Denzel Clarke, Zack Gelof and Justin Sterner are also sidelined. Jeffrey Springs is considered day to day with a hip issue.
One swing changes it
Tyler Soderstrom gave the Athletics a quick lead in the first inning.
Soderstrom drove a solo home run to left-center off Boston starter Payton Tolle. It was his 17th homer of the season and gave the A’s a 1-0 advantage.
Meanwhile, Jack Perkins kept Boston quiet.
Perkins allowed only one hit through five scoreless innings. However, the game turned quickly in the sixth.
Connor Wong opened the inning with a double. After two outs, Willson Contreras walked, and José Suarez entered for Perkins.
Suarez then walked Wilyer Abreu to load the bases. Rafaela followed with a grand slam to left-center, putting Boston ahead 4-1.
Perkins took the loss after allowing two runs on one hit in 5 2/3 innings. He walked three and struck out four.
Suarez was charged with two runs and a blown save. Both inherited runners also scored.
Too little offense
Jonah Heim answered in the bottom of the sixth with his 10th home run. The solo shot cut Boston’s lead to 4-2.
Still, the Athletics could not complete the comeback.
Colby Thomas went 2-for-4, while Soderstrom, Heim, Jeff McNeil and Alika Williams added one hit each.
The A’s finished with six hits but went 0-for-3 with runners in scoring position. They also struck out 13 times.
Nick Kurtz, recently reinstated from the reserve list, appeared as a pinch hitter in the ninth. He reached on a fielder’s choice after a Boston error before Donovan Walton replaced him as a pinch runner.
However, Aroldis Chapman struck out Henry Bolte and Williams to end the game.
A downward trend
The Athletics have lost three straight games.
They also continue to lose ground in the AL West. At 44-62, the A’s sit 10 games behind first-place Texas and only 2½ games ahead of last-place Los Angeles.
Langeliers leads the club with a .263 batting average and 23 home runs. He also drove in 51 runs across 93 games.
For a club already struggling to generate consistent offense, replacing that production will be difficult.
Up next
The Athletics continue the series Tuesday at Sutter Health Park. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. PDT.
Left-hander Gage Jump starts for the A’s. He enters at 3-6 with a 4.42 ERA and 61 strikeouts.
Boston counters with left-hander Shane Bennett, who is 6-3 with a 2.58 ERA and 42 strikeouts.
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Dice City Sports editor Mark Hebert covers the Las Vegas Aces, 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.
