Matt Chapman of the Oakland A’s gets ready to take his hacks against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Tuesday night (@Athletics)
By Jerry Feitelberg
San Francisco- The A’s met the Giants at a deserted Oracle Park Tuesday night. The Giants beat the A’s 4-2 to sweep the two-game series.
The setting was totally surreal. The stands were empty, crowd noise was being piped in to make the players get the sense that fans were in the park. There were no fans and no cutouts in the seats. The Giants said the cutouts will be available on next Tuesday when the Giants return home after playing four games in Los Angeles with the Dodgers. The A’s are off until Friday. They open the 60-game season at home against the Los Angeles Angels.
The A’s manager, Bob Melvin, sent Mike Fiers to the mound to face the Giants. The Giants’ skipper, Gabe Kapler, in his first year as the manager, used nine pitchers. Each pitcher worked just one inning.
The Giants drew first blood in the bottom of the first when Mike Yastrzemski led off with a blast to center field. The A’s tallied their two runs in the top of the second. With the Giants using a four-man outfield and the shift, A’s first baseman laid down a bunt down the third base line.
A’s DH Khris Davis was hit by a pitch and the A’s had two men on with no out. Giants’ pitcher Conner Menez retired Mark Canha and Stephen Piscotty. Chad Pinder, playing second base, Hit a ball that appeared to go into the stands in right centerfield. Two runs scored. The umpires ruled the ball was in play and Pinder stopped at second with a double. Bob Melvin challenged the call.
The replays clearly showed the ball hitting the seats and bouncing back into the field. The review umpire in New York did not overturn the call. The A’s led 2-1. They would not score again.
The Giants tied the game in the bottom of the second on Alex Dickerson’s off-field home run. They added a run in the fourth and one in the sixth. The Giants win 4-2.
The A’s line score was two runs, two hits, and no errors. The Giants’ line was 4 runs, 8 hits, and no errors.
Baseball starts for real for the A’s Friday night. The A’s will be gunning for the AL West title. There will be a preview of the team and predictions on my report on Thursday.
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