OAKLAND — The Athletics awoke in the ninth inning, but a four-run rally wasn’t enough in a 12-11 loss to the Texas Rangers in a doubleheader split Wednesday at the Coliseum.
The Athletics won the first game 9-4 with Shea Langeliers hitting a home run, double and single for five RBIs and starting pitcher J.P. Sears getting the win with 5 2/3 innings of work. It snapped a three-game losing streak.
Langeliers also homered and drove in three runs in the second game, setting an Oakland franchise record for RBIs in a doubleheader with eight.
Paid attendance over the two games was 8,230, although it appeared a few thousand fans or more didn’t stick around for the second game.
Manager Mark Kotsay thought his team showed its character with the first-game result and the ninth-inning rally in the second game.
“That’s the World Series champions over there, and today I think we showed up and played and gave them everything that we could give ’em,” Kotsay said. “I couldn’t be more proud of the team in the second game the way they fought. There’s just no quit in this group.”
In losing three of four to the Rangers, the Athletics fall to 18-21 to finish a 6-4 homestand. Texas improves to 22-17. The A’s get Thursday off before a 10-game road trip to Seattle, Houston and Kansas City.
Langeliers homered for the A’s in the second inning, his ninth of the season and second of the day. Tyler Soderstrom, who arrived from Las Vegas Wednesday, added a two-run home shot in the fourth — his first.
Soderstrom’s two-run home run off Leiter, which drove in Max Schuemann, brought the Athletics within 7-6 in the fourth inning.
It stayed that way until the eighth, when Texas scored three times against Kyle Muller on an RBI double from Adolis Garcia and run-scoring singles from Josh Smith and Jonah Heim.
The A’s got a run in the eighth on a fielders choice by J.J. Bleday against Jose LeClerc, but it came opening the inning with runners at second and third and none out after a walk by Brett Harris and a double by Abraham Toro.
Texas had two more add-on runs in the ninth against Easton Lucas, recalled from Las Vegas, on run-scoring singles by Evan Carter and Nathaniel Lowe.
It was a death by paper cuts attack for the Rangers, who 15 singles and one double in the second game.
“They’re putting the ball in play, giving themselves a chance and finding holes,” Kotsay said.
In the ninth, the A’s loaded the bases in the ninth on three singles against Owen White (Langeliers, J.D. Davis, Max Schuemann), who was removed in favor of Kirby Yates. Yates balked home one run and gave up a sacrifice fly to Harris and a run-scoring single to Toro bring the A’s within two runs. J.J. Bleday followed with a double to left, driving Toro, and it was 12-11.
With pinch runners Esteury Ruiz and Lawrence Butler aboard, Yates finally got Tyler Nevin on a fly to right to end the game.
“It was just a crazy day,” Langeliers said. “Being down five in the ninth we didn’t think feel like we were out of it. Something crazy could happen. We started the inning bases loaded, no outs. and it was like, `all right, here we go.’ This team right now, we don’t feel like we’re out of anything.”
Texas pushed its lead to 7-4 in the fourth when Lowe bounced a single that deflected off the foot off pitcher T.J. McFarland and into the outfield, scoring Leody Tavares and Marcus Semien, who had reached against reliever Michael Kelly.
HAVE A DAY SHEA 😤
Shea Langeliers’ seven RBIs so far today ties Reggie Jackson (Aug. 24, 1969) for the most RBIs in a doubleheader in A’s history! pic.twitter.com/NSCocobAlG
— Oakland A’s (@Athletics) May 8, 2024
The Athletics closed within 5-4 on a pair of unearned runs courtesy of a throwing error from Lowe, with Brent Rooker scoring on the throw from first base to left field attempting to get a force and a second run coming in when Langeliers beat a throw to first base to avoid a double play and allow a run to score from third.
That gave Langeliers eight RBIs in the doubleheader, breaking a club record set by Reggie Jackson against Baltimore on Aug. 24, 1969.
“I saw the ball really well today,” Langeliers said. “I thought I put good swings on good pitches to hit. It was one of those days where I got some RBIs for the team.”
Earlier this season, Langeliers had a three-homer game — also against Texas.
“It’s weird how that keeps lining up,” Langeliers said. “I was laughing with Nick Lowe at first base. I’m getting all my hits against the Rangers right now.
Osvaldo Bido (0-1), promoted as the 27th man on the roster specifically to start the second game of the doubleheader, departed in the third inning with a right middle finger blister when the Rangers were in the process of scoring five times to take a 5-2.
“He had blood on his pants when (pitching coach Scott Emerson) went out there,” Kotsay said. “He was trying to pitch through it, gut it out, but the blood blister became a real issue and we had to get him out of the game.”
Semien walked to lead off the inning, and after a fly out, Bido walked Lowe and struck out Adolis Garcia. He then hit Josh Smith to load the bases but left the game.
Kelly came on and got Jonah Heim to hit a ground ball, but it had eyes and scooted past Toro to bring in two runs. Travis Jankowski followed with another ground ball single to drive in a run, with the fourth run of the inning scoring on a passed ball by catcher Kyle McCann.
Bido wound up being charged with four unearned runs, giving up three hits with two walks and four strikeouts in 2 2/3 innings.
Picking up where he left off after Game 1, Langeliers hit the first pitch he saw for a two-run home run and a 2-1 lead in the second inning against Jack Leiter.
Texas reached Bido for a run in the second inning on a two-out walk and back to back singles from Travis Jankowski and Jonah Heim.
NOTABLE
— Kotsay said shortstop Darell Harnaiz won’t need surgery on his sprained ankle but it’s a long-term prognosis with timetable as yet.
— Langelier’s second-game home run traveled 454 feet, the longest of his career.
— Rooker singled and doubled and his hitting .462 in May.
— Semien was 10-for-20 against his former team in the series with two home runs and six RBIs. He had three singles.