Ramon Laureano ran his way into the difference-making score in the eighth inning, rookie Hogan Harris limited the Tampa Bay Rays to one run in seven innings, and the Oakland Athletics thrilled their largest home crowd of the season on a “reverse boycott” night with a 2-1 victory and a seventh straight win Tuesday.
With 27,759 mostly green-and-gold-clad fans — many donning “SELL” T-shirts as a message to owner John Fisher, who plans on moving the team to Las Vegas — creating a postseason-type ruckus, the A’s rallied from a 1-0 hole with single runs in the seventh and eighth innings to stun the team with the best record in baseball for the second consecutive night.
The crowd surpassed the A’s previous high this season of 26,805, which attended Opening Day against the Los Angeles Angels.
Laureano singled to open the eighth against Colin Poche (4-2) and took second on a sacrifice bunt by Jonah Bride. Laureano then stole third and scored when pinch-hitter Carlos Perez’s grounder bounced off the glove of third baseman Isaac Paredes.
With the infield in, shortstop Wander Franco fielded the carom but had a play on only Perez at first base as Laureano sprinted home.
The A’s were held scoreless on four hits by three Rays pitchers, including opener Jalen Beeks, before Jace Pederson led off the seventh with a walk from Robert Stevenson.
Three batters later, Brent Rooker’s double into the left-field corner tied the game.
Harris (2-0) replaced opener Shintaro Fujinami after the latter’s scoreless first inning and allowed just four hits in seven innings, striking out two without walking a batter.
The only Tampa Bay run scored in the fourth when Jose Siri doubled, took third on a fly ball by Taylor Walls and jogged home on a single to left field by Manuel Margot.
Protecting the 2-1 lead, Trevor May walked two batters in the ninth. But catcher Shea Langeliers eliminated the first — Randy Arozarena — on a steal attempt, before May stranded the other — pinch runner Josh Lowe — by striking out Siri to wrap up his third save of the season.
Yonny Chirinos did a majority of the pitching for the Rays, taking over after Beeks recorded the first five outs. Chirinos carried the shutout into the sixth inning with 3 2/3 innings of two-hit ball.
Rooker and Ryan Noda had two hits apiece for the A’s, whose longest winning streak of the season had been two games before the current seven-game run.
Margot and Harold Ramirez had two hits each for the Rays.
–Field Level Media
