The Athletics did plenty right early on Saturday, but once the Rangers punched back, the game slipped away fast. After carrying a lead for most of the afternoon, the A’s couldn’t find an answer when Texas moved ahead again, turning what had been a promising setup into another rough finish.
Henry Bolte gave Oakland the kind of jump-start it has been leaning on lately. His three-run home run helped the Athletics hold the lead from the second through the sixth inning, and it continued a stretch in which the leadoff spot has been delivering real production. Jeff McNeil had already turned in a big outing recently, and now Bolte has joined him in giving Oakland early momentum.
That front-end spark mattered, because the rest of the offense never quite recovered once the Rangers took control. The Athletics were hoping to build off Friday’s strong performance and turn it into a series win, but Saturday’s result left them with the same old problem: getting enough early offense without the pitching to back it up.
Alika Williams was one of the brighter individual stories for Oakland. With Jacob Wilson leaving Friday’s game early after getting hit by a pitch and sitting out Saturday, Williams looks like he could see a lot more action as the season winds down.
He backed that up with a 2-for-4 day that included a single and a double. He also doubled in the series opener, giving him a four-game hitting streak and pushing his season average to .273.
The question now is what the Athletics want to do with him going forward. Williams has shown enough with the bat to make himself part of the conversation, and his speed and defense only strengthen the case.
J.T. Ginn, though, had a tougher night.
He worked 6.0 innings and gave up eight hits and four runs while striking out seven. The Rangers did most of their damage in the fifth and sixth innings, but the bigger issue was the volume of hits.
That eight-hit total stands out, especially after Ginn struck out only two batters against the Red Sox. It raises the concern that a slide may be starting.
And that matters because when Ginn takes the ball, the Athletics are not walking into an easy win. As a key piece of the staff, he needs to steady things soon, particularly with the rest of the rotation still showing inconsistencies.
For Oakland, the formula is clear enough. McNeil and Bolte have been giving the lineup a real shot at fast starts, but until the pitching settles in, those early leads may keep disappearing.
In Other News...
Luke Mann Is Giving The A's A Farm System Story To Watch
Luke Mann kept making noise for Midland on a night when the RockHounds came up short, launching two home runs in a 9-7 loss to Amarillo. Devin Taylor and Bobby Boser also chipped in offensively, but the A's affiliate never quite recovered after starter Corey Avant allowed three runs over four innings and Diego Barrera was hit hard in relief, taking the loss.
Even so, Mann's surge is turning into one of the more interesting developments in Oakland's system. He has been the type of bat who can change a game in a hurry, and his recent run has given the A's something worth tracking closely as Midland keeps grinding through the Texas League schedule. [Read more 🡒]
Jeff McNeil And Carlos Cortes Just Gave A's Fans A Reason
The Athletics have spent much of the stretch trying to climb out of a rough patch, with the bullpens struggles hanging over just about everything else. But recent games have at least given them a few signs to point to on offense, where Jeff McNeil and Carlos Cortes have helped steady the lineup and keep the club within striking distance more often than it has been lately.
For a team with little margin for error, any hint of momentum matters, especially with only 40 games left to shape the seasons finish. Oakland still has plenty to sort through, and the relief work remains a major concern, but the recent production from McNeil and Cortes offers a reminder that the As can still put together competitive stretches if the bats keep carrying some of the load. [Read more 🡒]
Athletics Let Early Surge Slip Away In Another Costly Loss
The Athletics got a lift from Henry Bolte, who went 3-for-5 and launched a three-run homer, and J.T. Ginn gave them a chance by working six innings in his start. Even so, the early push was not enough in a 5-3 loss to the Texas Rangers, a result that kept Oakland from stringing together back-to-back wins and left the club with the worst record in the sport.
Oakland has shown flashes in spots, but the larger pattern keeps coming back around in the same frustrating way. The Rangers leaned on MacKenzie Gore to get into the sixth inning, then turned it over to a bullpen that finished with 3 1/3 scoreless frames, and now the series heads to its finale with Jacob Lopez lined up for the Athletics against Cody Bradford for Texas. [Read more 🡒]