I wasn’t sure what was going to happen in the Battle of the Bay between the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants. Yet, the A’s were denied a four-game sweep at the Coliseum, as the Giants won 12-6 in Game 4 Thursday night.
Oakland Athletics rookie left-hander Dillon Overton made his Bay Bridge debut against Giants ace Madison Bumgarner. In a series that exposed the strengths and weaknesses of both teams, the fact Bumgarner was allowed to hit as a result of the Giants forgoing the DH was an eye-opener. You have to admit Bumgarner is a pitcher who could rake.
Neither team has swept the other in Bay Bridge history minus the 1989 World Series. The A’s had a chance to sweep the Giants at home to generate a new factoid, but things didn’t go as planned. Injuries have been catching up to the Giants, however, the A’s played sloppy baseball in the finale.
The A’s got on the board first, as Marcus Semien homered on a fly ball to left center for an early 1-0 lead. However, the A’s lead didn’t last long.
The Giants came alive with six runs in the third inning. Brandon Belt hit a ground-rule double to score Bumgarner. Buster Posey homered to left center to score Angel Pagan and Belt. Brandon Crawford launched a line-drive homer to right. The Giants led 6-1 after three innings.
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The Giants continued pouring in the runs in the fourth inning. Denard Span scored on Pagan’s RBI double to make it a 7-1 game. Crawford singled for an 8-1 lead. The A’s reduced the deficit 8-2 on Jake Smolinski‘s ground ball single, but the score was out of reach. The A’s had two options and those were to sink or swim.
The Giants scored four runs (two walks, one single) for a comfortable 12-4 lead in the top of the ninth. The A’s tried their best to get back into the game. Yonder Alonso blasted a two-run homer to right, bringing the A’s within four and knocked out Bumgarner. Suddenly, Giants right-hander Derek Law was on the mound to get the three outs necessary to end the game.
Coco Crisp ended the scoring with a double to center that scored Smolinski and Billy Burns, but the score was seemingly out of reach a long time ago. The A’s fell to the Giants 12-6 in the series finale. All good things have to come to an end, but every day is a fresh start.
Next: A's Need To Be Consistent
The A’s host the Pittsburgh Pirates in a three-game series this weekend.