The Athletics didn’t just beat the Washington Nationals on Saturday night at Sutter Health Park - they buried them early and kept piling on until the scoreboard looked absurd. By the time the dust settled in West Sacramento, the A’s had rolled to a 15-1 win in the second game of this three-game interleague series, a sharp turnaround from Friday night’s opener.
J.T. Ginn set the tone immediately. He struck out the side in the first inning and never let Washington settle in, delivering the kind of outing the A’s have been waiting for from a starter.
The offense backed him right away. Jacob Wilson jumped on Zack Littell’s first pitch of the game and sent it out for his fifth homer of the season, a leadoff blast that also marked the second leadoff home run of his career. Tyler Soderstrom followed with a single, Carlos Cortes doubled him home, and Joshua Kuroda-Grauer kept the line moving with a double down the right-field line that scored another run.
Jonah Heim added an RBI single to center, and Lawrence Butler finished the inning with an RBI fielder’s choice that brought in Donovan Walton and made it 5-0 before the Nationals had even found their footing.
Washington got a brief opening in the second, putting two on with two outs, but Ginn worked out of it. The A’s then pushed across another run in the bottom half when the bases were loaded and Kuroda-Grauer hustled down the line to beat the relay throw on a potential double play, allowing Wilson to score. Heim had a chance to add more, but he popped out with the bases loaded.
Kuroda-Grauer kept flashing the leather, too. In the fourth, he made a diving catch in shallow left field to steal a hit from CJ Abrams, and he backed that up with another strong play in the next inning. Those defensive plays helped Ginn cruise through six scoreless, hitless innings on just 77 pitches.
Soderstrom added more separation in the sixth, launching his second home run in as many games. The two-run shot to right-center was his 16th of the season and stretched the A’s lead to 8-0.
Ginn’s no-hit bid ended with one out in the seventh when Keibert Ruiz singled for Washington’s first hit of the night. Mark Kotsay then went to Hogan Harris, who finished the inning. Ginn’s final line was as clean as the A’s could have hoped for: 6 1/3 innings, one hit, three walks, seven strikeouts, eight groundouts and two fly-outs.
Once the bullpen took over for Washington, the game got even uglier. Carlos Cortes opened the bottom of the seventh against Max Kranick with his seventh homer of the year, a solo shot to left. Walton and Butler walked, Jeff McNeil followed with a two-out RBI single, and Wilson added another RBI single to bring in Butler and push the A’s ahead 11-0.
Then Shea Langeliers delivered the swing that nearly turned into a grand slam. Facing Carson Palmquist, he ripped a bases-clearing double to right field that missed going out by inches. James Wood lost the ball, and instead of an inning-ending catch, three more runs crossed.
The A’s kept pressure on in the eighth. Mark Leiter Jr. escaped a bases-loaded, two-out jam to keep the Nationals off the board, but the A’s added another run when Wood robbed Butler of a home run against position player-turned-pitcher Jorbit Vivas. McNeil then lined a two-out RBI single for his third hit of the night.
Washington finally got on the board in the ninth with a sacrifice fly from Vivas against Luis Medina, but that was the extent of the damage. Medina closed it out, and the A’s walked away with a blowout that snapped their losing streak in style.
The series now comes down to Sunday afternoon’s finale, with left-hander Jacob Lopez set to start for the Athletics against Nationals southpaw Foster Griffin.
In Other News...
A's Suddenly Face A Tough Trade Question In The Outfield
The Athletics suddenly have a familiar deadline problem on their hands: teams are calling about their outfielders, and the asking price is pitching. Jon Morosi of MLB Network reported that several clubs have checked in on Oaklands active-roster outfield group, which puts a spotlight on a position that has become one of the more interesting parts of the roster as the As try to sort out what they have and what they might be willing to move.
Carlos Cortes looks like the clearest name to watch if Oakland decides to turn a bat into arms, while Henry Bolte carries the kind of long-term upside that usually makes front offices pause before dealing. Tyler Soderstrom, Lawrence Butler, Denzel Clarke, Colby Thomas and even the outfield reps from Zack Gelof and Jeff McNeil all add layers to the decision, but the bigger question is whether the As see this as a chance to cash in on depth or as a group worth protecting while the rest of the roster keeps taking shape. [Read more 🡒]
Jacob Lopez Just Gave The A's Rotation A Reason To Hope
Jacob Lopezs first Major League start since May gave the Athletics a little something to work with, even in a 5-2 loss to the Nationals. After being optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas earlier in the season, the left-hander returned with a sharper look, working 4 1/3 innings and showing better execution under a limited pitch count.
Lopez finished with six strikeouts and did enough to keep Oakland in the game before the bullpen took over. Manager Mark Kotsay came away encouraged by the adjustments Lopez made after his time in the minors, and the outing hinted that the As may have found another rotation option worth watching as the season moves on. [Read more 🡒]
A's Just Made Another Roster Move That Could Signal More Coming
The Athletics finally had something to smile about Sunday, but the roster churn around them kept moving anyway. After a 15-1 win over the Nationals snapped a 10-game losing streak, the club followed with another notable transaction, a sign that the front office is still sorting through the edges of a roster that has been under pressure for much of the summer.
Oakland has already been willing to make changes in search of answers, and the latest move adds to that sense of flux. With the pitching staff and bench both in motion, the As are clearly not treating one big win as a reason to stand pat, and there could be more maneuvering ahead as they try to stabilize things around a team that just took a small step forward. [Read more 🡒]