With Sean Manaea at his best and Olson moonshot, A’s take four-of-five against rival Houston Astros
Oakland Athletics vs Houston Astros: Sean Manaea delivers his best start and A's move 6.5 games up in AL West.
The Oakland A’s have to be pleased with how they’ve fared at this mid-September point.
With a 3-1 win over the Houston Astros Thursday afternoon, the A’s layered another cushion onto their 6.5 game lead atop the American League West. They took four-of-five in this home series, claiming 7-of-10 from the Astros overall. They’re 27-15, just a win away from becoming the American League win leaders, currently held by the Tampa Bay Rays (28-15).
Yes, once cleared of some unexpected twists and turns, the A’s have done well for themselves so far this 60-game season. They’ve carried over elements that brought them success last season — a never-say-die knack for comebacks, timely pitching performances, the kind of collective talent that makes each game’s hero unpredictable. Consistency, of the good and bad variety, that elevates their play in the aggregate.
Just 18 games remain in the regular season. Postponements aside, the road they’ve already traveled went almost nearly without a hitch. Some recent developments could be key to ensuring their final steps into the postseason are maximized.
We got a taste of one crucial development Thursday. Sean Manaea looks to be at his best, post-shoulder surgery.
Manaea was perfect through his first five innings before Josh Reddick interrupted with a double down the first base line to lead off the sixth. Aledmys Diaz followed with another single, and the Astros scored their only run off Manaea on a Martín Maldonado double play ball.
Helped by consistently brief innings, Manaea departed after a scoreless seventh having thrown just 61 pitches with two hits allowed and four strikeouts. No walks. Manaea didn’t have to throw more than 12 pitches in any of those seven innings. The Astros’ consistent aggressive approach throughout the series allowed him to attack the zone with conviction.
His 61 pitch outing is the fewest by an A’s pitcher in a start of seven innings or more, beating out Todd Burns’ 68-pitch, seven-inning outing in 1990, according to the A’s.
Despite breaking an efficiency record, Manaea wouldn’t finish out the game. He didn’t petition for it, either. He knew the stakes at play. The A’s held a two-run lead and the Astros would be salivating at another opportunity to get to Manaea. Jake Diekman, the most dominant left-handed reliever, rocked the the Astros back into a slumber and Liam Hendriks finished them off for his 12th save of the season.
“They’re pretty free swinging,” Manaea said. “I wanted to throw strikes and let my pitches work. That was pretty much what happened today.”
It’s important that Manaea is in a place where he can simply let his pitches work.
Trust in his stuff lacked as Manaea stumbled into a 9.00 ERA, unable to get through lineups a second time through in his first four starts.
After his start against the San Diego Padres last weekend, manager Bob Melvin spoke of Manaea’s improved arm speed as a factor behind his 95 mph and improved secondary offerings. That all blended into a five-inning, one-run outing.
Thursday, Manaea’s velocity maxed out at 93 mph and averaged at 90 mph, but he was getting plenty of fruitless swings off his changeup and he had good command of his fastball. He worked down in the zone, generating the type of soft contact he needs to with a volatile fastball.
Manaea looks like himself because he feels like himself again.
“I pretty much just starting believing in myself,” Manaea said. “I knew I could go out there and pitch for those first, however many games that was. Those were tough, but those were lessons in themselves. Taking those and having the confidence to go out there and battle through whatever I was going through is what I had to do. I think it was just about believing in myself
Manaea’s start almost fell to waste, though, when the A’s offense stalled, too. They’d get their first hit until Mark Canha’s single to lead off the fifth inning off Astros right-handed starter Jose Urquidy.
Matt Olson flipped the game in the A’s favor with one swing in the sixth. Ramón Laureano drew a walk, and Olson mashed a moonshot through the hazy Coliseum air into the right field seats. He hit it with a 45 degree launch angle. According to ESPN, only four A’s home runs tracked by Statcast since 2015 have had a higher launch angle. It is, of course, Olson’s highest launch angle on a home run in his career.
Chad Pinder’s RBI single in the seventh inning scored Canha, who’d walked and stolen second base, for the A’s insurance run.
Injury update
Matt Chapman told reporters Tuesday that he would try to take some ground balls on the field pregame Wednesday. Melvin said he didn’t do any pregame work and there are no plans in the works to get him into baseball activities. Chapman has been sidelined since mid-game Sunday against the Padres with right hip tendinitis.
A.J. Puk is dealing with a left shoulder injury that’s sidelined him three times this season. He is scheduled to see Dr. Neil ElAttrache and could begin throwing this weekend. The timeline doesn’t look bright for Puk to rejoin the team for the regular season.