Ryan Dull’s streak ends, but he helps A’s, Graveman get win

HOUSTON - Ryan Dull’s record-setting streak of stranding inherited runners came to an end Saturday, but Dull wasn’t even remotely upset about it.

Dull sacrificed a run to get a grounder, a near double-play ball, and to preserve the win for Kendall Graveman, who’d made one of the best starts of his career in the A’s 3-2 victory over the Astros.

“You knew it was going to eventually happen, and especially in that situation, I was going to do anything,” the rookie reliever said after earning his first save of the season and second of his career.

Dull had stranded each of the first 36 runners he inherited this season, the longest known streak in major-league history (complete records go back to 1961).

Graveman struggled with consistency last season and early this season, but he is becoming ever-more steady, and Saturday, he retired the first 14 batters of the game and worked into the ninth inning for the first time in his career.

Graveman allowed just five hits and he didn’t walk a batter; he was at 90 pitches going into the ninth inning and appeared on track to earn the A’s first complete game and first shutout of the season until giving up hits to Marisnick and Marwin Gonzalez to open the inning and giving way to Dull.

Only once in his past six starts has Graveman allowed more than two runs, giving the A’s a glimpse of the pitcher that so excited the team during his lights-out spring training in 2015, just after coming over from Toronto in the Josh Donaldson deal.

Vogt, heading for his second All-Star Game, homered off Houston starter Lance McCullers in the second inning and provided a two-out RBI single in the third inning.