For the third time in five games this home opener, the Oakland A’s won by walk-off victory. Seth Brown played the hero twice Friday night, hitting a two-run shot to tie the game in the bottom of the 11th inning and a game-tying single down the right field line in the bottom of the 13th inning.
The win seemed inevitable after the A’s and Detroit Tigers went into overtime tied 2-2, then traded runs in the 10th, 11th and 12th innings and Brown finally pulled out the win in front of 14,669 fans. Shortstop Jacob Wilson said after the game, “We kept up with those ones and twos, and then we made the zero and thought, ‘OK, now it’s our time.’ Once we made the zero, it was pretty electric in the dugout.”
A’s manager Mark Kotsay was a big fan of the atmosphere at the Coliseum throughout the game. “Great atmosphere tonight. I’m not saying it won’t be the same atmosphere next year (in Sacramento) because we just don’t know. There’s something special about this place when (the fans) come and support us. Tonight was one of those nights. You just felt the energy keep building. They didn’t leave when we were down two in extra innings. They kept believing in us and that’s one of our better wins this year.”
The A’s had to face one of the favorites for the AL Cy Young, left-hander Tarik Skubal. Coming off a four-game series against the Seattle Mariners and the best rotation in baseball, Oakland was once again faced with the task of facing one of the best starters in the game and they held firm, collecting two runs on nine hits and forcing the Tigers ace off the mound before he could finish six innings. The nine hits allowed are the second-most by Skubal this season, who allowed 10 hits against the Cleveland Guardians in July.
Right fielder Lawrence Butler not only got the start against the strong left-hander, but he also went 2-for-3. JJ Bleday, the only other left-hander in the starting lineup, technically went 1-for-3 in the game, although a ball fell in and caused him to land on base, but a baserunning error occurred in front of him that made it a 9-6 put-out in the playbook.
This A’s team is building something, and late wins against teams with playoff aspirations are a great sign of what’s to come as they continue to grow.
Jacob Wilson also posted his first multi-hit performance as a major league player, going 2-for-4 with a triple and an RBI. He dropped a ball down the right field line and hit a triple that scored Zack Gelof in the fifth inning, which was hit by Skubal.
