The Athletics emerged victorious for the third straight game on Wednesday night, defeating the Cincinnati Reds in the second of three games to earn a chance at a sweep in tomorrow’s series finale.
Three home runs give Oakland an early lead
It didn’t take long for the action to get going in this game. Leadoff man Lawrence Butler got a handle on Reds starter Fernando Cruz’s third pitch and sent it over the right center field fence for his 16th home run of the season:
I can’t let Law have the ball in the middle! Early lead: check.
Next up to get in on the action was left-hander Seth Brown, who followed up Butler’s hit with his own solo hit a few innings later, doubling Oakland’s lead over the Reds with his 11th hit of the season:
And against a left-hander, too! Overall, it’s been a rough season for Brownie, and who knows if he’ll be on the roster next year. Unlikely, but who knows? He’s been getting hot at the plate in recent weeks, and he’s improved even more in the last week, with a batting average of .278/.435/.444 and a home run. Even more impressive is the fact that he had almost as many walks (5) as strikeouts (6). And he wasn’t even done today! Would a hot September make the A’s reconsider trading the 32-year-old this offseason?
But that wasn’t all the A’s offense did tonight! With only a 2-run lead and in the hitter-friendly Great American Ballpark, a 2-run lead isn’t a sure thing, and the Reds have some stars in their lineup, so an extra run wouldn’t hurt. Enter (snubbed All-Star) Brent Rooker, who sets some personal records:
That’s a personal record of 31 home runs for the former waiver claimer. It’s still a mystery why one of the best hitters in all of baseball wasn’t selected for the All-Star game, but lost to a guy like David Fry (no offense if you’re reading this, Mr. Fry). Anyway, baseball loses. Now the question will be how close can Rooker get to 40 bombs? Or better yet, can he actually reach that 40 mark?
Bido keeps rolling
Oakland’s starter in tonight’s game was right-handed rookie Osvaldo Bido, making just his 8th start for the club here in 2024. He’s been absolutely on fire in recent starts and seems to be getting more and more comfortable as a major league pitcher. Well, he continued that tonight against the Reds, shutting down Cincy’s offense for six full innings. During those six innings, Bido allowed just one hit, a 1-out single in the bottom of the fifth that ultimately went unused. He also collected five strikeouts and did not allow a walk, an incredibly impressive performance from the 28-year-old right-hander. And at that point, he had only thrown 80 pitches, so another inning or two for Bido in his latest stellar outing wasn’t out of the question, even though he’d never pitched that long in a major league game before.
Additional insurance for athletics
Despite a three-run lead and Bido dominating the opposing offense, the club took nothing for granted. Oakland picked up a few extra runs in the seventh inning thanks to an RBI sacrifice fly by Max Shuemann for the first run, and Butler got the second run with a groundout that brought in second baseman Zack Gelof from third base. The score was 5-0 and with just nine outs left, the game seemed ever closer to being decided.
And speaking of Gelof, the second-year second baseman now has 16 home runs and 17 stolen bases. A strong September could make him the first 20-20 athlete since Coco Crisp did it in 2013. It’s been too long.
Bido falters late, bullpen implodes
Shutting down a major league offense is always a difficult task. Since he still had only 80 pitches and was still going strong, manager Mark Kotsay decided to let Bido play at least one more inning. He had never pitched until the seventh inning, so now was a good time to give Bido the experience of facing the lineup a third time. Well, that decision backfired for the good guys in a major way. The first two Reds batters of the bottom of the seventh collected Cincy’s second and third hits of the night, ultimately chasing Bido out of that game.
–Osvaldo Bido: 6 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0BB, 5 K, 84 pitches
If his manager had taken him out of the game just two batters earlier, his stats from today’s start would look even better. Unfortunately, both runners would score and put Cincy on the scoreboard. Bido’s season ERA currently stands at 2.89, but the right-hander has an even better mark of 1.17 here in August. He has objectively been one of the best pitchers in baseball over the past month.
Veteran left-hander TJ McFarland took over for Bido. He came out of the bullpen firing, getting groundouts and popouts from the first two batters he faced. For a moment, it looked like the Reds would sink both of their first hits, but the third batter McFarland faced gave him trouble. A 2-run double chased him, turning a 5-0 game that was on the verge of a blowout into a suddenly close 5-3 game at the end. Right-hander Michel Otañez followed McFarland and had a tough time. Two singles and a 3-run home run put the finishing touches on Cincinnati’s comeback. By the end, the Reds had scored six points and taken the lead. Yuck.
Resistance
You could be forgiven for feeling downcast about the situation. The club had just blown a huge lead and had just six outs to play. This A’s team is resilient, though. Now facing a loss, the club caught up and nearly tied the Reds’ seventh inning lead with a four-run rally of their own in the eighth inning. Center fielder JJ Bleday opened the rally with a leadoff single, catcher Shea Langeliers followed with a ground-rule double and then it was Seth Brown’s chance to give the A’s the lead. And for the second time tonight, Brownie delivered a great performance, hitting his second home run of the night to reclaim the lead for the Athletics:
Don’t let him get hot!!! That’s Brownie’s number 12 of the year. It’s going to be hard to take him out in September and look at younger players if he keeps hitting like he has lately. Oakland got another run later in the period when Jacob Wilson got his first career RBI on a sacrifice fly that brought in Gelof for the second time tonight.
With another chance, the bullpen pays off
Back in front, the eighth inning belonged to rookie right-hander Tyler Ferguson, who pitched a perfect frame and a strikeout. That allowed for the save opportunity, but who would it be? Star closer Mason Miller had just thrown 31 pitches the day before, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if Kotsay chose someone else for the save opportunity.
No. Not tonight. Miller came in for the ninth inning looking like the guy we’ve seen sweeping batters all season. The right-handed rookie earned the club’s save, securing Oakland’s 58th win of the season and Miller’s 23rd career save.
Phew! What a game! Five home runs, 15 runs and 21 hits later, the A’s emerged victorious. Bido continues to look like a steal, Butler continues to show his strengths in the second half and Brownie has put himself back in the spotlight with a couple of crucial home runs that the team needed to win.
Now we have a chance to score our first sweep since we won three straight against the Angels in early July. Oakland will have a newcomer tomorrow, as rookie JT Ginn gets the ball for his first career start after only two appearances as a relief pitcher. Cincy will counter with its own rookie, who Also has only made two major league appearances in his career, in Julian Aguilar. What a coincidence!
