Oakland Athletics edge Tampa Bay Rays 5-4 – MLB Recap
The Oakland Athletics edge past the Tampa Bay Rays 5-4 in the second game of their three-match regular series encounter on Friday, August 24 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg.
Jonny Gomes two-run homer in the eighth inning proved helpful for the Athletics to ease past the Rays in style.
He also scored two RBIs on his four at-bats while his slugging percentage was also remained consistent at .478.
"That's how close games are won, with a bloop and a blast, I don't get that at-bat without (Chris) Carter's bloop (single)," Gomes said.
Along with Gomes, Athletics’ first baseman Chris Carter also did well on the plate. He scored two runs on his three at-bats and managed to maintain his slugging percentage at .540.
Athletics’ pitchers were also sharp on the mount. They pitched in the right areas and did not allow the Rays’ batters to play freely. They kept them under pressure during the entire game and eventually won the game.
Starter Jarrod Parker pitched six solid innings and received only three runs and seven hits. He retired seven Rays’ batters on his exceptional 3.52 ERA.
"I think we're pretty hot, too, When we're able to come into this game and battle and just face people blow-for-blow, it's fun, Jonny came up with a huge hit. We battled all game just kept at it," said Oakland starter Jarrod Parker.
Later A's manager Bob Melvin said, "I don't know what to say about that one, No one has the green light at third, let's put it that way. It's a play where if you make it, everybody loves you. If not ... there you have it."
His team-mate and relief pitcher Ryan Cook pitched 1.2 innings and retired four hitters on his 2.50 ERA.
Athletics’ closing pitcher Grant Balfour also did well on the mound. He pitched the last important inning and allowed only one run and one hit on his consistent 2.62 ERA.
On the other hand, Rays’ pitchers could not handle the situation well and lost the game with bitter humiliation.
Starter Matt Moore pitched 6.1 innings and received three runs and seven hits on his 3.60 ERA.
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