Oakland A's Beat Rangers in 11 in Game of Solos
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) -- Jed Lowrie hit a tiebreaking RBI single in the 11th inning after an earlier home run and the Oakland Athletics went on to beat the Texas Rangers 8-4 on Saturday.
Lowrie hit a sharp single to right with one out in the 11th off Spencer Patton (0-1), who then threw a wild pitch that allowed another run before Stephen Piscotty added a two-run homer.
After both teams scored a run in the 10th, the A's won for only the third time in their last nine games. They will need to win the rubber game Sunday to avoid going winless in their last seven series before the All-Star break.
J.B. Wendelken (2-1), the sixth Oakland pitcher, worked both extra innings.
There were five solo homers before the game went to extra innings, with both teams having back-to-back shots.
Texas led 2-0 when All-Star sluggers Adolis Garcia and Joey Gallo homered in a span of three pitches in the first. Garcia hit his 22nd homer and Gallo his 24th, the 11th in 12 games for the right fielder who will participate in MLB's Home Run Derby on Monday night.
Sean Murphy and Seth Brown went back-to-back in the A's second. Murphy hit a 438-foot homer into the second deck of seats in left-center, then Brown followed with one that went even farther — 472 feet over the Texas bullpen in right-center, the longest ever hit at Globe Life Field.
The blast by Brown surpassed a 464-footer by Murphy last September, and came three days after Gallo hit one 462 feet for what is now the third-longest in the stadium that opened last season.
Lowrie went deep in the fourth for a 3-2 lead. The Rangers got even in the eighth when Jake Diekman, the third Oakland reliever, walked two batters before Jonah Heim's RBI single.
Elvis Andrus, who started the second extra frame at second base, came home on Lowrie's third hit of the game before Matt Olson, who walked leading off the inning, scored on the wild pitch. Piscotty hit his fifth homer.
Piscotty pinch-hit and reached leading off the 10th, with Murphy going to third, when Nick Solak misplayed a grounder for his first error since April 13. That ended his 71-game errorless streak that was the longest ever by a Rangers second baseman. Ramon Laureano had an two-out RBI infield single.
Texas got even at 4 on an RBI grounder by Heim.
SHORT HOPS
Oakland is 4-3 in extra innings; Texas is 7-6. ... The only runs allowed by the starting pitchers were via solo homers. Oakland rookie right-hander James Kaprielian struck out four and walked four in his five innings and departed with a 3-2 lead. Mike Foltynewicz struck out six without a walk over 6 1/3 innings but all five hits he allowed were for extra bases, the three homers and two doubles.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Athletics: RHP Mike Fiers (sprained right elbow) is still not comfortable throwing and isn't yet playing catch again. "Still having problems," manager Bob Melvin said. Fiers last pitched May 6, and had an injection in his elbow 2 1/2 weeks ago after feeling discomfort when he first tried to resume throwing.
UP NEXT
Oakland right-hander Chris Bassitt (9-2, 3.04 ERA), a first-time All-Star after being added to the AL team Saturday, starts the series finale. He is 9-0 over his last 16 starts for the longest winning streak in the majors this season, and that includes consecutive wins over Texas in late June when he allowed one run over 14 innings. Texas lefty Kolby Allard (2-5, 3.45) is 1-5 in his seven starts since moving into the rotation May 27, and the Rangers have scored a total of five runs in those losses.
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