Two solo home runs were all the Oakland Athletics could muster against Toronto Blue Jays starter José Soriano, whose absolute gem carried the visitors to a 4-2 victory and evened up their three-game series. It was a tough night in Sacramento, where the A’s offense just could not get it going when it mattered most.
Wasted Chances and Early Bombs
The A’s actually had a prime chance to jump on Soriano early. Henry Bolte led off the bottom of the first inning with an infield single, his sixth straight at-bat reaching base. Then Zack Gelof walked, putting two runners on with only one out. But what happened? Nothing. Soriano slammed the door shut, retiring the next two hitters and leaving those runners stranded. That’s how you kill momentum, folks. A’s starter Jack Perkins, after a scoreless first, immediately ran into trouble in the second. Blue Jays left fielder Josh Smith absolutely hammered his sixth home run of the season, a solo shot to right. And then, just to rub salt in the wound, rookie third baseman Kazuma Okamoto followed that up with his 30th long ball of his debut season. Thirty dingers as a rookie, are you kidding me? Those two blasts weren’t just a tough moment for Perkins, they pushed the A’s pitching staff’s total to a staggering 217 home runs allowed, which is the second-most in all of MLB. You can’t win like that! Perkins did bounce back with a scoreless third, thanks to some nice defensive plays from shortstop Alika Williams and center fielder Henry Bolte, but the offense remained silent through three.
Momentum Shift, Then More Trouble
The A’s finally got on the board in the bottom of the fourth. With two outs, left fielder Carlos Cortes launched his ninth home run of the season, a solo shot that cut the Blue Jays’ lead in half, making it 2-1. Perkins seemed to feed off that energy, delivering another scoreless inning in the fifth, his third straight clean frame. You thought maybe, just maybe, the A’s had found their rhythm. But then the sixth inning rolled around. Perkins allowed two straight singles to start the frame, ending his night after five innings where he gave up four runs on seven hits, struck out three, and, credit where it’s due, walked none. Right-hander Chris Roycroft entered from the bullpen and immediately failed to strand those inherited runners. Toronto catcher Alejandro Kirk hit an RBI single, pushing the lead to 3-1. Then Josh Smith grounded into a double play with runners on the corners, bringing home a fourth run for the Blue Jays. Just like that, the deficit was three runs again.
Soriano Shuts It Down
The A’s tried to rally in the bottom of the sixth. Bolte and Jeff McNeil started the inning with singles against Soriano. You’re thinking, “Okay, THIS is the chance!” But Soriano, for the second time in the game, showed why he was dealing. He induced ground balls, escaping the jam completely unscathed and maintaining Toronto’s three-run advantage. The A’s offense just couldn’t solve him. With the series now tied, the A’s have to come back tomorrow and figure out how to scratch across more than two runs if they want to win this series. This game was a tough one, but they’ve got to regroup for the rubber match.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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