Angels see streaks come to an end with 10-1 loss to Oakland
Reporting from Oakland — It was streak-busting night in the Oakland Coliseum on Tuesday.
First to go was Jered Weaver’s string of 16 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run. Next was Weaver’s string of 32 straight innings without giving up a home run.
Finally, it was the Angels’ six-game win streak that came to a crashing halt in a 10-1 loss to the Oakland Athletics, a game A’s catcher Kurt Suzuki broke open with a three-run home run in the seventh inning.
Suzuki’s line drive over the left-field wall, Weaver’s first homer allowed since May 18 at Texas, turned a 3-1 Oakland lead into a 6-1 advantage and was one of a career-high tying four hits for the former Cal State Fullerton star.
Suzuki added an RBI single in the eighth off reliever Trevor Bell, and Jack Cust added a two-run homer to left-center for a 10-1 lead.
“From where he was when he came into the league a few years ago, he’s definitely the most improved catcher, and he might be the most improved player in our league,” Angels Manager Mike Scioscia said of Suzuki, who is batting .275 with eight homers and 28 runs batted in. “From throwing and defense to the offensive side, he’s definitely playing well.”
It wasn’t Weaver’s worst start of the season, but it was close — the right-hander went six innings, giving up six runs and 12 hits, matching a career-high for most hits allowed, which he set at Seattle on Aug. 1, 2007. The A’s had 18 hits in all, 16 of them singles.
“I thought I made some good pitches early on, and the ball had eyes on it for a couple of those hits,” Weaver said. “I made one bad pitch, and it happened to be a three-run homer.”
That home run pitch to Suzuki was a two-seam fastball that came back over the plate.
“It wasn’t too smart of a pitch,” Weaver said. “Nap [catcher Mike Napoli] called a slider, and I called him off. I didn’t put the ball where I wanted.”
Weaver (5-3) gave up runs in each of the first three innings, on Cust’s single in the first, Eric Patterson’s single in the second and Gabe Gross’ single in the third.
The Angels’ only real threat against A’s starter Vin Mazzaro came in the fifth, when Juan Rivera led off with a single and took third on Michael Ryan’s double off the right-center field wall.
Rivera scored on Kevin Frandsen’s slow roller to third, but Ryan held at second and was stranded there when Erick Aybar grounded out and Maicer Izturis flied to left.
Four relievers — Craig Breslow, Brad Ziegler, Jerry Blevins and Tyson Ross — combined to throw four shutout innings for the A’s.
“They have terrific arms all the way through their pitching staff,” Scioscia said of the A’s. “That’s why they’re contending.”
Indeed, the A’s bullpen is so deep they could afford to send right-hander Henry Rodriguez, whose fastball was clocked at 101 mph in his two-inning scoreless stint against the Angels on Monday night, to triple-A Sacramento on Tuesday.
There was an embarrassing moment for the Angels in the fourth, but it didn’t cost them.
With one out, Patterson lifted a popup between home and first. Napoli appeared to have a bead on it, and Ryan, the first baseman, appeared to have a play.
Frandsen, racing in from his third-base spot, called off both players but misjudged the ball. His diving attempt came up short, and the ball dropped near the first-base line for a hit. Weaver got Daric Barton and Ryan Sweeney to fly out, ending the inning.
“Frandsen called it late,” Scioscia said. “We had a little inexperience out there at first. The wind currents can knock balls down here. Ryan could have got to it. Kevin thought he had a shot. That was a long way to run for that ball.”
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