Field Level Media
Sep 10, 2019
Matt Olson and Sean Murphy recorded multi-homer games, and the Oakland Athletics made amends for a blowout loss in the opener of a four-game series at Houston with a 21-7 dismantling of the Astros on Tuesday.
Olson set a single-season high with his 30th home run and then added his 31st as well, while Murphy ran his career and season totals to three. The Athletics (85-60) slugged six homers, including three two-run blasts off Astros right-hander Joe Biagini in the fourth inning.
The Athletics were already comfortably ahead 11-2 before they teed off against Biagini. They tagged Astros left-hander Wade Miley (13-5) for seven runs in the top of the first, stringing together six consecutive one-out singles after Marcus Semien opened the game with a single and Olson walked two batters later.
Mark Canha, Chad Pinder and Khris Davis posted RBI singles in succession, and one out later, Murphy singled in another run. Robbie Grossman then chased Miley with a two-run hit for a 6-0 lead.
Miley had his seven-game win streak abruptly snapped and extended his stretch of concerning performances to three starts. Miley has allowed 13 runs (12 earned) on 14 hits and seven walks while lasting only four total innings over his past three outings.
The Astros (95-51) rallied from a 7-0 deficit for an 11-9 victory after Miley failed to record an out against the Seattle Mariners on Thursday.
The Athletics, who dropped the series opener 15-0 Monday, continued their onslaught against Astros reliever Cy Sneed, touching him for four runs on six hits, including two homers, over 2 2/3 innings.
Davis stretched the lead to 9-1 with a 442-foot, two-run blast to left-center in the second before Olson drove home Matt Chapman with his two-run shot in the third. Murphy homered in the fourth and fifth, the former dinger coming before Semien and Olson also took Biagini deep.
Every Oakland starter posted a multi-hit game, with Semien, Canha, Pinder, Davis, Murphy and Grossman each producing three of the team's 25 hits.
Athletics right-hander Tanner Roark (10-8) allowed five runs on eight hits and one walk with three strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings. He surrendered three home runs, two to Astros center fielder George Springer, whose second homer of the night and 33rd on the season was the Astros' club-record 250th of 2019.
Martin Maldonado later added two home runs for Houston.
--Field Level Media