A's Swept by Angels in 7-1 Loss, Brandon McCarthy Exits Game

 It was a disappointing loss for Oakland today, for a few reasons.  Not only did they score just 1 run in today’s game, but were stifled to just 5 runs through the whole series with the L.A. Angels.  Another concerning factor was Brandon McCarthy leaving the game in the top of the 4th inning after being struck in the head off a line drive.  Another sad fact is that they were swept

But hey, teams are going to get swept, right?  Oakland certainly knows about this, as they came into this series with the Angels after completing two series sweeps in a row against Cleveland and Boston (whom they accumulated the most wins they ever have in a season against the BoSox), respectively, and were standing tall.


Unfortunately for Oakland, Angels co-ace Dan Haren pitched a 6 innings gem, allowing only 1 run off of 3 hits.  He did walk 3, giving Oakland a few chances to score, but also had a healthy 7 punch-outs.

It was the top of the 3rd, and after a leadoff single by Alberto Callaspo, McCarthy was able to get the next two outs via sacrifice, moving Callaspo to third in the process.  Torii Hunter would get the first run on the board by knocking Callaspo in.  Pujols doubles to left sending Hunter to third base.  Kendrys Morales steps to the plate and takes an intentional walk, bases now loaded.  It was a bad move, as Howie Kendrick would knock a single in to right field to score Pujols and Hunter.  More damage could have been done, but Morales was thrown out at third, getting greedy.

In the bottom of the same inning, it was looking as though Oakland would answer right back after getting two walks and a throwing error, but had to settle for a lone run thanks to Seth Smith bringing Derek Norris home.  3-1 Angels.

The next few innings were pretty evenly matched, as both teams went down just about in order until the bottom of the 7th inning when Oakland was able to put two men on with only one out.  It would be for naught, as reliever Nick Morande proceeded to strike out the next two batters to end the inning.

Jump ahead to the top of the 9th, when things got completely out of control for the A’s.  With the bases loaded, thanks to Grant Balfour, reliever Jim Miller would walk Maicer Izturis to score Peter Bourjos, 4-1 Angels.  Aybar and Callspo came in to score off a single to center from Torii Hunter.  Izturis would then steal home to put the score where it would stand at the end, 7-1 Angels.

So it was a bad day for Oakland.  They failed to hit with bases loaded multiple times throughout the series, and, as fate would have it, failed to score first in any of the games against the Angels. 

Brandon McCarthy going down right now is not something the team can afford to gut, as this stretch run will be very important, especially with the Rangers really picking it up.  Brandon Inge going down for the rest of the season was also a tough blow, but not one the A’s can’t overcome, as this is a very special and talented team.

The Athletics now stand 4.5 games behind Texas in their division, and are now a half game out in the AL Wild Card standings.

A.J. Griffin (4-0 with a 2.26 ERA), who was phenomenal in his last outing, will take the mound on Friday at 7:10PM against the Seattle Mariners.

Posted in: A.J. Griffin,Alberto Callaspo,Brandon Inge,Brandon McCarthy,dan haren,Grant Balfour,Los Angeles Angels,Oakland Athletics,torii hunter