Globe iconLogin iconRecap iconSearch iconTickets icon

Fuld finds spark filling in at leadoff spot for A's

OAKLAND -- With Billy Burns out of the lineup again, A's manager Bob Melvin needed someone to fill in at the leadoff spot.

On Friday he went with Eric Sogard, but in Saturday's 3-2 loss at the Coliseum, he went with Sam Fuld.

"Part of it's his history against Chris Young," Melvin said before the game. "He's 4-for-7 with a couple homers, so we'll get him up there a little earlier today."

In fact, two of Fuld's 10 career homers have come against Young.

Fuld was a bright spot in the loss, finishing 1-for-3 with a leadoff double, a steal, a run and a walk. He didn't homer, but he contributed in many other ways.

Fuld led off the bottom of the first with a double to right. Leading from second, he waited for Young's back to be facing him and then zoomed toward third.

"It's obviously more instinct than anything," Fuld said. "I saw [third baseman Mike] Moustakas off just enough, and I felt like I had a good jump."

Young threw the ball away, and Fuld scored easily. He didn't go immediately, though, because he wasn't sure whether Moustakas had the ball at third.

Third-base coach Mike Gallego implored him to get up and go, which he eventually did once Moustakas got off him.

"The last thing you want to do is get up and run when Moustakas has the ball in his glove," Fuld said.

Fuld is 11-for-35 (.314) over his last 15 games after going 7-for-76 (.092) over his previous 33 contests.

He and his teammates know every baseball season has its ups and downs. Fuld has returned to form, and he believes the A's offense can do the same despite a sluggish two-game stretch.

"We're not panicking as a group offensively," Fuld said. "We realize against a staff like this it's tough getting runs."

Trevor Hass is an associate reporter for MLB.com.
Read More: Oakland Athletics, Sam Fuld