A's get payback with road sweep of Rangers

ARLINGTON -- In seeking payback against the Rangers, the A's absolutely outdid themselves.

Just a week after being swept in their home park by Texas, the A's marched into Globe Life Park and manhandled the Rangers' rotation, completing their own three-game sweep with a 12-1 victory Wednesday evening.

"You never want to get swept at home," said Jesse Chavez, who did his part with seven scoreless innings. "It kind of leaves a bad taste in your mouth. We just came in here with a little added fire, that's all."

The 12 runs are a season high for the American League-best 18-10 A's, who posted seven in the third inning.

In all, Oakland outscored the Rangers, 25-4, in the three-game set, embarrassing a trio of starters who entered the week among the American League ERA leaders: Yu Darvish, Martin Perez and Robbie Ross.

Darvish was sent packing after a career-low 3 1/3 innings. Perez was tagged for a career-high eight runs. And yet it was Ross who endured the worst of it all Wednesday, with the A's knocking him around for 10 runs (six earned) on 11 hits and a walk over 3 1/3 innings.

Together, Rangers starters worked just 11 1/3 innings total and were responsible for 22 runs and 25 hits.

"Do you expect to put that many runs on the board? Probably not," said manager Bob Melvin. "When you're getting good at-bats across the board and making guys work, I've often used the analogy of a boxer getting body blow after body blow, to where you soften someone up, and that's what we do well. It doesn't always happen, but it did this time and against good pitching."

Said Rangers skipper Ron Washington: "They beat us. They beat us soundly."

Oakland's 17 hits in Wednesday's beating marked a season high. In contrast, the Rangers managed only four hits and committed four errors.

They were shut down by a dominant Chavez, who featured an improved cutter and allowed just one hit -- a first-inning single to Prince Fielder -- and struck out eight with one walk on 96 pitches, lowering his ERA to 1.89, which ranks second in the AL only to teammate Sonny Gray's 1.76. Scott Kazmir ranks sixth at 2.11.

"We've seen that game a few times already this year," said Melvin.

Of his tremendous first month in the A's rotation, after toiling in the bullpen in each of the past two years, Chavez said, "I don't know. It's kind of OK. There's still a lot of room for improvement."

His teammates aren't such tough critics.

"He's been unbelievable," said Eric Sogard.

Texas' lone run came in the eighth off righty Luke Gregerson, long after the A's had done their damage.

Their seven-run third inning featured consecutive hits from Coco Crisp, Craig Gentry, Josh Donaldson, Yoenis Cespedes and Derek Norris, with Cespedes collecting a two-run double. Eric Sogard also brought in two runs in the inning with a base hit.

Norris' second hit of the night in the fourth led to two more runs, and Sogard again contributed with another RBI hit.

Alberto Callaspo's run-scoring single in the fifth extended Oakland's lead to 11 runs, and Coco Crisp added on with a solo shot to right field off Shawn Tolleson in the sixth.

"It seems like there's carryover every game to the quality of our at-bats throughout the whole lineup," said Melvin. "Everyone contributed, and some of the guys who weren't getting the hits were walking and making their guys work. That's when we're at our best."