Melvin’s caution proves correct as A’s bats go quiet

Before Tuesday’s game against the Texas Rangers, manager Bob Melvin cautioned that the A’s lineup is “not going to have nights like we did last night every night.”

In the season opener, the A’s collected 11 hits and scored five of their eight runs on two home runs – a facet of their offense the team’s detractors this spring feared would be sorely lacking in 2015.

Monday’s offensive output was not entirely surprising: The A’s scored the most runs in the majors during spring games, and tied for the third-most homers (33) in the American League. But Melvin was proved right as the A’s lost 3-1 to the Rangers on Tuesday, while being held to a Sam Fuld triple and four singles. Their task this season will be to prove that Tuesday, and not the impressive opener, was the exception to the rule.

Rangers starter Colby Lewis, a veteran right-hander who amassed a 5.18 ERA last season and led the league with 14 losses, held the A’s to one run over six innings. The A’s first two batters reached on a single and a walk, and after Lewis threw a pitch to No. 3 hitter Ben Zobrist, he was visited briefly by the Rangers’ trainer.

Lewis stayed in the game, got Zobrist to pop out and Billy Butler to ground into a double play, and did not allow another hit until Ike Davis led off the fifth with a single. Fuld hit his second triple in two games with one out in the sixth and scored on an Eric Sogard groundout to give the A’s their only run off Lewis, who beat Oakland for the ninth time in his career.

“He’s not going to give in, and the counts that he gets behind he’s not going to throw you fastballs,” Melvin said of Lewis. “It seemed like he was on the corners the whole night with his cutter.”

By driving up Lewis’ pitch count, the A’s did get to the Texas bullpen to start the seventh inning, and the offense showed signs of life against 21-year-old right-hander Keone Kela, making his major-league debut. Billy Butler singled, Davis walked and Stephen Vogt singled to load the bases with one out. But Marcus Semien hit a soft grounder to short for an inning-ending double play.

The A’s grounded into three double plays and left five runners on base. Third baseman Brett Lawrie had the roughest night, striking out four times on a total of 12 pitches and going down swinging against Neftali Feliz for the game’s final out.

“One of those games,” Lawrie said.

Spoiled was the A’s debut of right-hander Jesse Hahn, who sported the same high green-and-yellow striped socks that Sonny Gray wore Monday night but had neither the clean outing of Gray nor the run support. Hahn’s only perfect inning was his last, the sixth. He allowed six Rangers to reach base in the first four innings, though only one scored – Rougned Odor, who was hit by a pitch in the third and scored on a single from Prince Fielder.

Hahn was less elusive in the fifth. Leonys Martin singled with one out and took third base as Elvis Andrus chopped a hit-and-run grounder into left field. Fielder then lined a single to right field, where Craig Gentry let the ball scoot under his glove, allowing both runners to score and Fielder to coast into second base with Texas leading 3-0.

Hahn retired his final five hitters before being replaced by Eric O’Flaherty in the seventh.

This story was originally published April 7, 2015 at 11:31 PM with the headline "Melvin’s caution proves correct as A’s bats go quiet."