A’s torched by Rangers’ eighth-inning eruption in loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
The Athletics opened the eighth inning of Sunday’s four-game series finale against the Texas Rangers all tied at three, but it didn’t take long for all of that to change completely.
Rangers outfielder Adolis García started and capped off an eight-run eighth-inning explosion, leading off with a double and later blasting a grand slam to hand the A's an 11-3 loss Sunday afternoon at the Oakland Coliseum.
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On top of a strong offensive effort by Texas, self-inflicted wounds were costly for the A’s. Errors haunted them in the loss, committing four in the eight-run loss -- the most in a game since May 30, 2018 vs. the Tampa Bay Rays (h/t MLB’s Martín Gallegos). Jesus Aguilar (1), Esteury Ruiz (2) and Nick Allen (1) made up Oakland’s errors.
“We talked before the game, pregame, about things that we need to improve, and I thought our defense was playing better, but today was a rough day,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay told reporters postgame. “Ruiz is a young kid, he's a center fielder and he hasn't had a ton of time out there.
“Today was a day we can learn from. We can talk to him. I'm sure he's going to beat himself up because that's the type of kid he is, he strives for perfection, he's hardworking and I know he'll get back out there tomorrow and we'll continue to work on those fundamentals.”
Kotsay was ejected in the eighth inning for arguing over a previous ball-strike call, and bench coach Darren Bush took over as acting manager.
“In my opinion, he missed a pitch that was crucial in the at-bat,” Kotsay said. “Probably let my emotions get the best of me today.”
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JP Sears allowed three runs -- two earned -- and five hits in 5 1/3 innings. Rangers leadoff hitter and former A's star infielder Marcus Semien was hit by a pitch to start the game, and then Robbie Grossman followed with a 371-foot homer for a quick 2-0 lead.
Sears wasn't happy with how he started, but said he felt better after.
"After that I felt good," he told reporters after the loss. "Felt like I controlled the zone really well. I used my changeup really well today to kind of get those guys off my slider so I felt good out there."
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The A’s dropped the series and fell to an MLB-worst 9-33 record.
They'll get a chance to bounce back Monday against the Arizona Diamondbacks, who are riding a three-game win streak.
