The Athletics got pushed around early, never found a real answer, and walked out of Detroit with another familiar result: a 6-1 loss that left them ten games under .500 and dropped the series to the Tigers.
Jeffrey Springs never got comfortable, and the Tigers made him pay for it right away. Detroit put pressure on him in the first inning after Dillon Dingler reached on an infield single and Zack Gelof’s throwing error.
Springs then issued back-to-back walks to load the bases with one out, and Riley Greene followed with an RBI single to open the scoring. Springs escaped further damage, but it took 34 pitches to survive the inning.
The A’s had a chance to answer in the second. Lawrence Butler doubled with two outs, then moved to third when Joshua Kuroda-Grauer punched an infield single into play. But Carlos Cortes couldn’t extend the inning, striking out to end the threat.
Detroit added to the lead in the bottom half, and the inning also brought a lineup change for the A’s. Jeff McNeil replaced Nick Kurtz at first base after Kurtz left the game because of illness, marking the second straight day the club had a player exit early.
That’s a rough sign for a team already trying to keep itself afloat. Then Jake Rogers, batting for the injured Dingler, launched his second homer of the season, a two-run shot to left-center that made it 3-0.
The A’s finally got on the board in the fourth, but even that came with a gift. Tyler Soderstrom doubled with one out and scored when Zach McKinstry threw the ball away. Once again, Kuroda-Grauer chipped in with an infield single that moved a runner 90 feet, but Cortes struck out again to shut the door on the inning.
Springs’ night really unraveled in the fifth. After two scoreless innings kept the A’s within reach, Detroit stacked back-to-back singles to put runners on the corners with one out. Then Spencer Torkelson turned the game into a rout with a three-run homer to left, his 15th of the season, pushing the Tigers ahead 6-1.
Mark Kotsay went to Justin Sterner after that, and Sterner finished the inning with the final two outs. Springs’ final line was ugly: six runs on six hits and four walks in 4 1/3 innings.
The bigger issue is that this has become a pattern. Springs has been surrendering home runs at a pace that stands out even in A’s history, and his ERA is north of 6.00.
The source of the problem seems obvious enough that a move to the bullpen has to be on the table. A trade could be another path if the club doesn’t see him in its plans, though it’s not clear the A’s have a ready internal answer before his next scheduled start after the All-Star break.
For now, the A’s are using an MLB-high 4.2 pitchers per game, which tells you plenty about how often their starters are failing to go deep.
Melton, by contrast, looked like exactly the kind of arm the A’s wish they had more of. Troy Melton was sharp from the jump, needing just eight pitches to retire the side in the first.
He worked 5 1/3 innings, allowed one unearned run on four hits, walked one and struck out nine. His stuff was loud all night, and the A’s never really solved him.
The bullpen didn’t give Oakland much of a chance to climb back in, either. Keider Montero came in for Detroit and walked Jacob Wilson before getting the next two hitters on groundouts. The A’s stranded two more runners in scoring position, then came up empty again in the seventh with another chance gone.
Mason Barnett and Jose Suarez handled the final three innings for the A’s without changing the score, but the offense never made it matter. Kuroda-Grauer was the one bright spot, adding his third hit in the ninth for his third three-hit game in just eight MLB appearances.
Outside of that, Oakland’s lineup was mostly quiet. The A’s finished 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position and left nine on base.
Now the free-falling A’s are trying to avoid getting swept again. They’ll be back at it tomorrow afternoon with Jack Perkins set to face longtime A’s nemesis Framber Valdez. The former Houston Astros standout has not fared as well in his first year with Detroit.
In Other News...
The Next 30 Days Could Change Everything For The As
The next month could end up feeling like a pivot point for the Athletics, who have been stuck in a losing streak since July 1 while the calendar starts to stack up with events that can shape a franchises direction. The draft gives clubs a chance to restock the farm system, and for a team trying to build toward something more sustainable, that matters as much as anything happening on the field right now.
The trade deadline adds another layer, because Oakland could use it to clear veteran contracts and make room for younger players who need big-league reps. There is also a broader leaguewide unease hanging over the stretch run, with plenty of players already thinking about what comes after the season, which only adds to the sense that the As are heading into a period where nearly every decision could echo well beyond this summer. [Read more 🡒]
As Fans Just Got Another Zack Gelof Injury Scare
Another health scare hit the Athletics when Zack Gelof went down in a game against the Detroit Tigers after a sliding catch sent him crashing into the side wall. The left fielder initially stayed in the game, but the concern lingered after he was later removed and walked off with assistance, leaving Oakland to wonder how much more it can absorb on the injury front.
The timing is especially rough for a club already trying to navigate a season full of setbacks, including Brent Rookers season-ending left knee injury. Gelof has become too important to the lineup for the As to take any more damage lightly, and any extended absence would only deepen the strain on a roster that has already been tested in too many ways. [Read more 🡒]
As Just Made A Surprising Opening Day Infield Decision
The Athletics are finally starting to get a little healthier, and that has forced a quick rethink of the infield picture just as the roster begins to settle into its opening-day shape. Tyler Soderstrom is coming off the injured list after missing a couple of weeks with a hip impingement, and his return arrives as Jacob Wilson and Zack Gelof are also back in the mix, giving Oakland more options than it has had for much of the spring.
That kind of turnover usually means someones role is about to change, and in this case the As are leaning on younger talent to fill out key spots while they sort out the alignment. Joshua Kuroda-Grauers emergence has helped create that flexibility, and the next question is how the club balances the returning pieces with the players who have already carved out a place in the lineup. [Read more 🡒]