Zack Gelof homered, JJ Bleday collected three doubles and the Oakland Athletics snapped a nine-game losing streak with a 7-5 victory over the visiting Kansas City Royals on Tuesday night in the opener of a three-game series.
Scott Alexander and Mason Miller retired the last four Royals in order after the visitors had gotten within two, helping the A’s exact a small measure of revenge after being swept in a three-game set in Kansas City last month.
After Royals second baseman Nick Loftin’s first big-league homer erased a two-run deficit in the second inning, the A’s scored the next five runs in two batches to take the lead for good.
Bleday’s second double of the night and Miguel Andujar’s single each drove in a run in the third, giving the hosts a 4-2 lead. In the fourth, Tyler Nevin walked and Lawrence Butler doubled. Gelof followed with a three-run homer off Royals starter Alec Marsh.
Marsh (5-4) was charged with seven runs on seven hits in three-plus innings. He walked two and struck out four.
Oakland starter Hogan Harris (1-0) made it through five innings, allowing three runs, just one of which was earned. He gave up four hits and two walks while striking out three.
The Royals made things interesting in the eighth when groundouts by Freddy Fermin and Loftin each produced a run, cutting Kansas City’s deficit to 7-5. But Alexander came on and retired Adam Frazier, who was representing the potential tying run, on a deep flyout to left-center field to end the inning.
Miller, the Oakland closer, followed with a 1-2-3 ninth for his 13th save of the year.
Gelof finished with two hits and two runs to complement his three RBIs for the A’s, who outhit the Royals 11-7. Andujar also had two hits, while Max Schuemann also scored twice.
Salvador Perez had a pair of singles for the Royals, who lost for the seventh time in their past nine games.
–Field Level Media
