|
 Manaea got his first hair cut in a year, going from wild man to
clean-cut, thanks to a stylist in Tampa, Fla.
Then he took the mound Monday night when the A's opened a seven-game
homestand against the Texas Rangers and pitched a gem, earning his
first major league victory.
Manaea gave up one run over 6 2/3 innings, Marcus Semien hit his
10th home run of the season, and the A's defeated the Rangers 3-1 at
the Oakland Coliseum.
"It's a dream come true, you know?" Manaea said. "Getting that first
one, it's huge. I'm really glad I got to do it at home."
Manaea (1-1) came into the game with an 11.37 ERA after giving up 16
earned runs in his first three major league starts. On Monday, he
allowed four hits, struck out three and walked one while sporting
his new hairdo.
"First three starts didn't go as well as I wanted them to, and as a
team, we were kind of struggling. I just felt like it was time for a
change," said Manaea, who came to the A's from the Kansas City
Royals in the Ben Zobrist deal on July 28.
 This was the type of performance that the A's hoped to get from
Manaea this season.
"We thought at some point in time this year we'd see him," A's
manager Bob Melvin said. "We weren't sure how quickly, but he got
here in a hurry. I think as far as his stuff went and command, where
he was throwing the ball, this was by far his best."
Rangers left-hander Derek Holland (3-3) bounced back with a strong
outing after back-to-back poor performances. He gave up two runs on
three hits over six innings, striking out one and walking one.
Holland didn't make it out of the third inning in either of his
previous two starts.
"I kept plugging away," Holland said. "A lot of positives in this
start. I'm encouraged."
The A's took a 2-0 lead in the fourth, but Texas scored a run in the
seventh. Adrian Beltre and Ian Desmond hit back-to-back singles,
then advanced on a groundout. Drew Stubbs brought Beltre home with a
sacrifice fly.
Semien answered with a solo shot with two outs in the bottom of the
inning off right-hander Luke Jackson, who was called up Monday from
Triple-A Round Rock. Semien drilled Jackson's 95 mph fastball over
the 400-foot sign in center.
"I faced him in the past, in the minor leagues," Semien said. "He's
added a little cutter. Try to see it up. He's got a good downer
breaking ball, so I was trying to see the ball up, and I got one
that was a fastball, four-seamer. He supplies the power because he
throws pretty hard."
A's left-hander Sean Doolittle struck out the only batter he faced
to end the seventh. John Axford pitched a scoreless eighth, and Ryan
Madson a perfect ninth for his 11th save in 11 chances.
[to top of second column] |
The A's struck for two runs in the fourth to open the scoring.
With one out, Holland hit Billy Burns with a pitch after getting
ahead 1-2 in the count. Josh Reddick blooped a single to center for
Oakland's first hit of the game, moving Burns to second, and Danny
Valencia walked to load the bases.
Khris Davis hit a sacrifice fly to right in a nine-pitch plate
appearance, bringing Burns home. Billy Butler then lined a single to
center, driving in Reddick.
"His struggle was finding the one out pitch in that inning," Rangers
manager Jeff Banister said of Holland. "It was a long inning, and
that presented a challenge. He left the one pitch up over the zone
for Butler. But he was much better tonight."
So was Manaea, in large part because he commanded his fastball and
his changeup after going back to a grip he used in college.
"It feels a lot better in my hand, and it just feels like it's
coming out like a fastball," Manaea said. "I feel like I'm able to
control it and throw it for strikes. It all came together today."
NOTES: Rangers 2B Rougned Odor said he expects to be suspended "a
couple games" but has no regrets for punching Toronto's Jose
Bautista on Sunday during an eighth-inning brawl. ... Rangers RHP
Tom Wilhelmsen was demoted to Triple-A Round Rock. RHP Luke Jackson
was called up to replace him and gave up one run on one hit over two
innings. Wilhelmsen went 2-2 with a 9.98 ERA in 17 relief
appearances and allowed six home runs and 17 runs. ... A's RHP Jesse
Hahn will be called up from Triple-A Nashville to start against the
Rangers on Tuesday, manager Bob Melvin said. C Josh Phegley (sore
right knee) will go on the disabled list, and LHP Eric Surkamp, who
was scheduled to start Tuesday's game, will go to Nashville and
rejoin that rotation. ... A's RHP Henderson Alvarez had "his first
little setback" in his recovery from July 28 shoulder surgery,
Melvin said. Alvarez experienced some soreness in his shoulder
during his latest rehab start for Nashville, and he might undergo an
MRI exam.
-----------------------------------------------
[© 2016 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2016 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
