Athletics beat Astros, 10-9

OAKLAND, Calif. The late-season competition isn’t quite what the A’s wanted since they won’t be playing in October. But as the final four weeks of the season are upon them, they can only hope their impact on the race plays out the way it happened in Monday’s 10-9 win over the Astros at the Coliseum.

The game featured the first save of the season for A’s closer Sean Doolittle, who eased back into the role over the last few weeks. He hadn’t saved a game since last Sept. 19. He needed five pitches to get the job done, two first-pitch pop flies and a three-pitch strikeout.

There are eight series left to the A’s, and only twice does the opposition not figure to be in the race for either a division title or a wild-card berth. The teams in question are, in addition to the American League West-leading Astros, the second and third teams in the West in the Rangers and Angels, and the Giants, current runners-up in the National League West.

The Astros came into town with a three-game lead in the AL West and the A’s on a five-game losing streak. Even so, Oakland muscled up to get home runs from Mark Canha and Josh Phegley on the warmest day (83 degrees) of the Coliseum season, although the biggest hit was a pinch-hit two-run double from Coco Crisp.

The A’s are reduced to being spoilers, and even at that they didn’t make it easy on themselves Monday, letting 8-2 and 10-6 leads shrivel with the bullpen and the defense problematic.

Crisp’s bases-loaded double broke a 2-all tie in the sixth and was the prime mover in what turned out to be a six-run inning that broke the game open for a bit. Billy Burns added a two-run single as the A’s had four hits with runners in scoring position in the inning. In the previous 12 innings, Oakland batters were 0 for 11 with runners in scoring position.

The win went to lefty Felix Doubront, who allowed single runs in the first and second and left the game with a 6-3 lead and a man on in the seventh. Fernando Rodriguez allowed a three-run homer to Jonathan Villar later in the inning to get Houston within two runs.

They would get no closer, however, with Phegley’s two-run shot getting the lead back to 10-6 in the bottom of the seventh.

Doubront was in a 2-1 hole as late as the fourth inning when Brett Lawrie’s triple to left center, his second hit, scored Danny Valencia from first.

The A’s got back-to-back walks from Houston starter Mike Fiers to start the sixth, and that was the break Oakland needed. With Josh Field on in relief, Billy Butler singled to load the bases, and Crisp came off the bench for this third pinch-hit in four games, a double off the right field wall good for two runs.

Burns’ bases-loaded single came with one out and also was good for two runs. Later in the inning, Canha’s single and a Valencia grounder brought runs home.

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