Lawrence Butler just absolutely crushed a two-run walk-off homer in the bottom of the ninth against our Mariners, sealing an 8-7 loss to the A’s in Sacramento. It was the kind of gut-punch defeat that makes you question everything, especially when the M’s looked so evenly matched with the Athletics all day. Seriously, evenly matched with *them*? That’s not what we signed up for.
Miller’s Rough Start & Randy’s Bomb
Things started rough, like, first-inning rough. The A’s got two quick ones on back-to-back dingers off Bryce Miller. First, Zack Gelof, who’s been quietly tearing it up in MLB, took a 96-mph heater 405 feet. Okay, sometimes you tip your cap, but then Miller followed it up with a first-pitch cutter to Lawrence Butler that was so middle-middle, Miller’s probably getting calls for next year’s Home Run Derby. Just like that, we were down 2-0. But you can’t count out this team, not with Randy Arozarena on the squad. Jhonny Pereda led off the third with a sharp double, then Arozarena stepped up and got a little under a top-rail pitch. Didn’t matter. He hit it so hard, it cleared the fence for his 24th bomb of the year! Tied game, 2-2, and honestly, Randy looked a little bored with his trident celebration, that’s how often he’s going yard.
Chaos, Runs, and a Manager’s Call
The A’s wheels totally came off in the fourth inning, and the Mariners capitalized hard. Michael Arroyo, who walked three times today, drew one that got sandwiched between a Josh Naylor single and a Weston Wilson “water balloon” into no man’s land, loading the bases. Pereda hit a sac fly to shallow left, and somehow Naylor took off from third and scored because the A’s moved too slowly for Naylor’s foot speed. That put us up 3-2. The damage should’ve stopped there, but J.P. Crawford hit a soft liner that tragically hit the pitcher in the tush and died in the infield for another run. Even better, it brought up Randy again, who blasted one up the middle with authority to bring home a third run of the inning. After tacking on another run in the fifth, Bryce Miller had a four-run cushion, making his first attempt to go five full innings in a month. He nearly didn’t make it. He walked a batter for the fourth time the third time through the lineup, and it felt like time for a hook, but manager Dan stuck with Miller. A perfect pickoff move and a groundout followed, but the A’s nearly blew it open right there.
The awful symmetry of the whole dang day saw each team take a late lead thanks to a player’s second home run. And then, in the bottom of the ninth, Lawrence Butler did it again, crushing that two-run walk-off homer that sealed the 8-7 loss. This team needs to figure out how to close. We’ll be watching every pitch, every play to see how they respond. Go M’s!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Lookout Landing.
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