Athletics - The Golden Bay Times

West Sacramento, CA - The Sacramento Athletics spent the rest of the game trying to climb out of a first-inning hole that turned into a canyon, falling 8-2 to the New York Yankees after one costly mistake opened the door for four unearned runs. Luis Severino never settled in against his former club, allowing Aaron Judge’s run-scoring single before Paul Goldschmidt crushed a three-run homer that made Sacramento pay for Nick Kurtz’s throwing error. Kurtz answered right back with a solo shot in the bottom half, giving the A’s a quick pulse, but Severino left before the second inning with right arm soreness, forcing the bullpen into emergency duty. The Yankees kept leaning on the long ball, with Ryan McMahon and Ben Rice adding homers while Carlos Rodón held Sacramento to one run on four hits over six innings. Henry Bolte was one bright spot, collecting a career-best three hits, and Zack Gelof added a ninth-inning RBI single. Still, the A’s could not turn scattered contact into a real rally, leaving a rough first inning to tell most of the story.. - By Mauricio Segura

West Sacramento, CA - The Athletics’ grip on first place in the American League West looked shakier after Seattle turned early mistakes and steady pressure into a 9-1 win over Sacramento. The trouble started in the first inning, when J.P. Crawford singled, Josh Naylor reached on Jeff McNeil’s throwing error, and Rob Refsnyder punished the miscue with a three-run homer off Jeffrey Springs. Springs settled briefly, but Seattle struck again in the fourth after two outs, as Cole Young singled, Jhonny Pereda drew a free pass, and Colt Emerson drove both home with a two-run triple to right. Logan Gilbert kept the A’s quiet through six scoreless innings, allowing five hits while striking out six and shutting down Sacramento’s best threat after Shea Langeliers and Tyler Soderstrom reached to start the fourth. Seattle added another run in the sixth, then Julio Rodríguez removed any late doubt with a three-run homer in the eighth after an ABS challenge overturned a ball call. The A’s avoided a shutout in the ninth when Jonah Heim scored on McNeil’s double-play grounder, and there were small positives from Carlos Cortes, Soderstrom, Zack Gelof, and Henry Bolte. Still, the afternoon belonged to Seattle, leaving Sacramento with a quiet lineup, costly defense, and a thinner division cushion as the Mariners pulled closer and made the race feel a little less comfortable overall.. - By Mauricio Segura

West Sacramento, CA - The Athletics could not find enough answers against Emerson Hancock, and Seattle turned a handful of early chances into a 4-1 win that left the Green and Gold searching for traction at the plate. Gage Jump battled through five innings, striking out five, but the Mariners kept nudging him into trouble. Mitch Garver opened the scoring with an RBI ground-rule double in the second, Cole Young added a sacrifice fly in the third, and J.P. Crawford followed with another sacrifice fly to make it 3-0. Julio Rodríguez stretched the lead with an RBI single in the fourth, giving Hancock more than enough room to work. The Athletics’ best news came late, when Tyler Soderstrom broke through with a solo homer in the ninth to prevent the shutout, but the offense managed only limited damage before then. Nick Kurtz, who had been one of Sacramento’s steadiest sparks, saw his 48-game on-base streak end, a rare quiet note in an otherwise impressive stretch. It was a frustrating loss, not because the A’s folded, but because Seattle grabbed the margins first and never gave them back. - By Mauricio Segura

West Sacramento, CA - Seattle turned one rough inning into a long night for the Athletics, riding a six-run third and four home runs to a 9-2 win that left Sacramento chasing shadows almost from the start. Aaron Civale ran into trouble quickly, with Luke Raley and Dominic Canzone each blasting two-run homers in the third while Randy Arozarena added an RBI double to help Seattle break the game open. J.P. Crawford later added a solo shot, and Arozarena delivered the final thump with a two-run homer in the ninth, finishing 3-for-5 with three RBIs. The Athletics did not go quietly, but Luis Castillo kept them scoreless through four innings before Bryce Miller handled the final five, allowing only Shea Langeliers’ 13th homer and a late run when Tyler Soderstrom scored on Jeff McNeil’s double-play grounder. Nick Kurtz still gave Sacramento a meaningful silver lining, reaching base in the third to extend his on-base streak to 48 games, tying Mark McGwire’s single-season franchise record. Civale took the loss after seven earned runs in four innings, and the Athletics were left with one historic streak to celebrate and one lopsided score to forget. - By Mauricio Segura

San Diego, CA - Carlos Cortes gave the Athletics the fast start they had been missing, opening the game with a home run to right center and setting the tone after two frustrating losses in San Diego. The A’s added two more in the second when Zack Gelof walked, Henry Bolte doubled him home, and Alika Williams singled in Bolte for a 3-0 lead. Their defense helped protect it, especially in the fifth, when Tyler Soderstrom, Williams, and Jonah Heim combined on a sharp relay to cut down Ty France at the plate after Fernando Tatis Jr.’s double. Heim later scored on a wild pitch in the fourth, stretching the lead to 4-0. San Diego answered with Miguel Andujar scoring on Manny Machado’s sacrifice fly in the sixth and France homering in the seventh, trimming the margin to 4-2. The A’s found breathing room in the ninth when Cortes singled, Lawrence Butler pinch-ran, Nick Kurtz added a bunt single, and Soderstrom drove Butler home. Kurtz also extended his on-base streak to 47 games, passing Rickey Henderson for third in Athletics history. Hogan Harris created late tension with two walks, but Scott Barlow struck out Nick Castellanos and retired Tatis to seal a tough 5-2 win before the A’s return to Sacramento. - By Mauricio Segura

San Diego, CA - The Athletics let a winnable one slip away in San Diego, falling 2-0 to the Padres on a night when the box score felt less like domination and more like death by missed opportunity. Sacramento opened with real pressure against Lucas Giolito, as Carlos Cortes singled and Nick Kurtz followed with a hit to put runners at the corners, but Shea Langeliers, Brent Rooker, and Tyler Soderstrom could not cash it in. J.T. Ginn, fresh off his near no-hit bid against the Angels, battled traffic from the start and escaped the first, but the Padres scratched out a run in the second when Jackson Merrill stole second and later scored after Fernando Tatis Jr. was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. San Diego added another in the third when Nick Castellanos reached, Merrill doubled, and Ty France grounded him home. The A’s bullpen did its job, with José Suarez, Joel Kuhnel, and Scott Barlow keeping the game close, but the lineup kept stepping on rakes. The biggest gut punch came in the fourth, when Rooker, Soderstrom, and Henry Bolte loaded the bases before Jeff McNeil hit into a double play. Kurtz extended his on-base tear with two hits, and Langeliers doubled in the eighth, but Jason Adam and Mason Miller slammed every remaining door with cold, ruthless efficiency late. - By Mauricio Segura