The Oakland A’s and Texas Rangers entered the series with identical 15-10 records, tied for first place in the AL West.  After being swept by the Rangers in Oakland last week, the Athletics returned the favor in dominant fashion.  The three game sweep in Arlington puts the A’s at 18-10 and gives the team a three game cushion in the division. 

Here is a brief recap of each game.  

Game 1 final score: Athletics 4, Rangers 0

Monday’s series opener can be described with two words: Sonny Gray.  While he has competition in the starting rotation, the A’s ace was dominant giving up only three hits and striking out six in his first CG SO of his career.  Josh Donaldson and Josh Reddick have officially broken out of their slumps as the two combined for three of the four RBI’s in the game.  The A’s lineup worked Yu Darvish deep and forced him to throw 83 pitches in just 3.1 IP.  Darvish gave up 6 hits and all 4 runs were earned. 

Game 2 final score: Athletics 9, Rangers 3

Oakland’s bats produced early and often on Tuesday night, putting up runs in first, second, third, and fifth innings.  It was the five runs in the 5th inning that knocked Martin Perez out of game and put enough padding on the scoreboard. 

Derek Norris’ hot bat continued as the Catcher hit two doubles in his first two plate appearances, driving in three runs.  The A’s 5th inning really came to a culmination when Reddick hit a bases loaded clearing single.  SP Scott Kazmir went the necessary five innings to get the win, while the A’s bullpen took care of business the rest of the way with little to no drama. 

Game 3 final score: Athletics 12, Rangers 1

After a quiet two innings of play, the A’s bats quickly woke up and put up a seven spot on Rangers SP Robbie Ross in the 3rd inning.  Everyone in the A’s starting lineup had at least two hits Wednesday night, excluding Reddick (two walks) and Nick Punto – who took an 0-5 on the evening.  With the added bonus of the Rangers looking completely disinterested in Wednesday’s game (four errors), the A’s were able to walk over the Rangers to complete the sweep. 

A’s SP Jesse Chavez continued his impressive start to the season going 7 innings with 8 strikeouts and just 1 walk.  The performance moved his ERA down to 1.89 and gives him a 2-0 record on the season. 

What's Next?

Oakland has an off day on Thursday before opening up a weekend series in Boston to take on the Red Sox.  The A’s announced during their stay in Texas that SP AJ Griffin will in fact have Tommy John surgery and will miss the remainder of the season.