Sutter Health Park, the Athletics’ temporary home in West Sacramento, Calif., quickly has developed a reputation for being a hitter-friendly MLB venue.
The Pittsburgh Pirates, beginning a three-game road series vs. the Athletics Monday, arrived one day removed from the Rockies and Athletics combining for 32 runs.
In an 11-2 Athletics win, the offensive production was a one-sided affair as the Pirates (36-37) dropped under .500 for the first time since March 31.
“We’ve just got to keep going and find a way,” manager Don Kelly said on the SportsNet Pittsburgh postgame show. “It’s frustrating, man. When you’re going through something like this, having a close game (Sunday), we had some guys on-base early today – everybody feels it. Pitchers feel it, staff feels it, hitters feel it.”
Jared Jones, making his fourth start since returning from InternalBrace surgery, allowed five earned runs over four innings on eight hits.
Taking the loss, Jones (1-1, 6.23 ERA) struck out four with one walk, allowing two homers while throwing 43 of his 75 pitches for strikes.
Keeping with the recent trend, Carmen Mlodzinski piggybacked off of Jones for another bulk relief outing.
Mlodzinski pitched three innings, allowing six runs, only one of which was earned. He gave up seven hits, walked one and struck out two.
Offensively, the Pirates were out-hit 15-8. Endy Rodriguez was a bright spot, though, going 3 for 3 with a home run.
“Endy had great at-bats tonight,” Kelly said. “ … He’s been swinging the bat well.”
Athletics (36-36) starter JT Ginn (5-3, 2.91 ERA) allowed one unearned run on six hits over six innings, striking out three with a pair of walks.
Jones’ got off to a shaky start, as he allowed three straight singles to Nick Kurtz, Shea Langeliers and Tyler Soderstrom, loading the bases with no outs.
But Jones responded by striking out the next three men he faced, Jacob Wilson, Carlos Cortes and Zack Gelof — all on heaters at least 99 mph — to avoid any damage in the bottom of the first.
The Athletics got on the board in the second, when Jeff McNeil followed a Henry Bolte double with an RBI single to make it 1-0. Kurtz then cleared the bases by connecting on a Jones slider for a two-run, opposite-field homer, putting the Athletics up 3-0.
In the top of the fourth, Nick Gonzales (error) and Rodriguez (single) got aboard before Tyler Callihan moved them up a bag with a groundout.
Jake Mangum then made it 3-1 with a bloop single into left field.
Jones let up another homer in the bottom of the fourth, this time to McNeil, who went down the right-field line for a two-run shot to put the Athletics in front 5-1.
“First inning, bases loaded and being able to get out of that inning with the three punchouts to keep it 0-0, as the game went on, they put up the three-spot and then the home run by McNeil got out and we were down 5-1,” Kelly said when asked about Jones’ start.
Mlodzinski came on in the fifth and quickly, Soderstrom got aboard on a sharply hit ball past Spencer Horwitz at first base. Wilson then hit a ground-rule double, Ryan O’Hearn in right field having failed to make a sliding catch.
That set up Gelof, whose RBI single made it 6-1, scoring Soderstrom.
The Athletics took an 11-1 lead in the bottom of the seventh, capitalizing on a series of Pirates defensive lapses.
Lawrence Butler began with an RBI double off the center-field wall to score Gelof, who got on base after an error by Brandon Lowe with two outs.
Callihan then couldn’t throw out Bolte on a routine grounder, and McNeil followed with a base hit.
That brought Kurtz to the plate, who hit his second home run of the game to give the Athletics a 10-run lead.
Rodriguez hit a solo home run in the eighth, his third of the year, to make it 11-2.