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Oakland A's lose five straight as Mazzaro strikes out 8
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Oakland Athletics catcher Landon Powell, left, talks with pitcher Vin Mazzaro in the fifth
inning against the Colorado Rockies, Sunday, June 28, 2009, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
OAKLAND, Calif.—Oakland Athletics rookie pitcher Vin Mazzaro looked solid in his sixth start, but the three runs on five hits he gave up to the Colorado Rockies was too much for the Oakland offense as they lost 3-1.
The A’s have now lost five straight games—second time this season, the first being on April 24. Admittedly, the team has struggled with runners in scoring position and it has been one of the key reasons for their lack of success.
“We got to figure out a way to get that extra run, that extra hit, get that guy in,” A's manager Bob Geren said. “It shows when you come up just short.”
The A’s have been coming up short repeatedly and players feel the frustration. Outfielder Ryan Sweeney recognizes the problem and knows the team just needs to maintain concentration to break out of this rut.
“It’s baseball,” Sweeney said. “There’s nothing really to do about it. You just have to go out there and try to focus on every single at-bat and get the runner out of scoring position…Try to drive those runs in as best as possible.”
In today’s game versus the Rockies, Oakland was an embarrassingly frustrating 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position.
“Our pitchers have been throwing great and holding them away for a couple runs,” Sweeney said. “When we get into that situation we just got to capitalize and just get the job done—which we haven’t.”
Mazzaro, despite his early inning struggles, put in another strong showing. Although he lasted only five innings, he struck out a career-high eight batters. While his strikeouts increase as each start passes, he was not always a strikeout pitcher. Mazzaro claims that was not always the case, but having to limit damaging innings brought out that side of his game.
“I wasn’t so good at it the first two seasons., but it’s coming around and damage control is key,” explained Mazzaro. “I was never really a strikeout pitcher, I was more of a contact pitcher. When it comes down to it, when you need to get yourself an out you want to bear down and focus a lot more.”
With such a young pitching staff, it is important for them to keep that thought in mind. Even if Oakland’s performance causes much frustration, Mazzaro has a game plan.
“You just want to go out there and pitch the game,” Mazzaro said. “You don’t want to add any extra pressure on yourself—a lot easier said than done.”
With today’s loss, the A’s complete this year’s Interleague play with 5-13 record and look to change their fortune as they go back to facing the familiar American League.
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