Reddick gives A's first walk-off win in '15
OAKLAND -- The A's entered Wednesday's game as the only team in the Majors without a last at-bat win, but that changed when Josh Reddick drove in Sam Fuld with a fielder's choice grounder to cap a 5-4 comeback victory at the Coliseum. Fuld singled and stole second, Billy Burns moved him to third, and Reddick did the rest, as Fuld slid into home to seize the walkoff win.
Reddick got both a pie to the face and a Gatorade shower immediately after recording his fifth career walk-off.
"It's a long time coming," Reddick said. "We've lost a lot of one-run ballgames, and for us to be on the winning side it's something to feel good about."
The A's, who trailed, 4-1, at one point, avoided their fifth straight loss, improving to 10-7 in their last 17 games and to 4-16 in one-run games. Texas scored three in the third and one in the fourth, but the A's rallied to tie things up in the eighth before winning it in the ninth.
"I got beat; it was as simple as that," said Keone Kela, who took the loss and fell to 4-3. "I made the pitches I wanted, and they put them in play. Things didn't go my way."
Mitch Moreland drove in a pair of runs for the Rangers, who have still won eight of their last 11. Prince Fielder and Leonys Martin also had RBIs.
"It got a little tough for us," Rangers manager Jeff Banister said. "We put ourselves in a couple of tight spots. We ran into some outs on the bases, we got picked off, we missed a cutoff. It wasn't the cleanest game but it was still one I thought we had a chance to win. More than anything, it was missed opportunities to add on."
Video: TEX@OAK: Reddick comes home on Rangers' error
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Butler delivers when it mattered: Designated hitter Billy Butler busted out of a slump (5-for-32 to start June) with a base hit through the left side to tie the game in the eighth. The A's had already clawed to within one when Ben Zobrist singled to right, which plated Reddick thanks on a throwing error from Rangers third baseman Joey Gallo. Butler then singled into the hole to score Zobrist and knot the game.
"I've been putting solid contact on it and getting some tough luck for a while now," Butler said. "Figure you've just got to keep grinding and you'll bust out of it. I came up in a big spot and hit it where they weren't. This game is all about placement."
Video: TEX@OAK: Butler ties the game with single in 8th
More for Moreland: Moreland delivered run-scoring singles in both the third and fourth innings, helping his team extend its early lead.
Video: TEX@OAK: Moreland records his second RBI single
Low five: A's starter Jesse Hahn didn't make it through the fifth for the first time this season. By the time he was bounced, he had tied a team record by hitting three batters in one game -- the ninth time that's happened in franchise history. The right-hander surrendered four earned runs in 3 2/3, and is now 2-5 in his last eight starts and 0-2 against the Rangers this year. His roughest inning was the third, when Texas sent nine runners to the plate and scored three runs.
"I just didn't have my stuff," Hahn said. "One of those weird outings, a weird day for me."
Video: TEX@OAK: Martin drives in run on HBP, shaken up
A gem in Oakland: Rangers starter Yovani Gallardo didn't get the win, but he turned in a more-than-quality start. His night ended with a flourish: He retired the final 10 batters he faced, seven by strikeouts. In total, Gallardo allowed just two runs on five hits in seven innings, striking out a season-high 10 on 110 pitches.
"I threw a lot of pitches in the first inning and had to figure out a way to stop that," Gallardo said. "I told myself to make them put the ball in play, and I was able to get ahead of guys and pitch the way I wanted."
Video: TEX@OAK: Gallardo goes seven innings, strikes out 10
QUOTABLE
"We were long overdue for a walk-off. Those are the best kinds of wins. Good teams get a lot of walk-off wins. Hopefully this is the time where it turns around a little bit." -- Fuld
Video: TEX@OAK: Fuld catches fly ball, doubles off Martin
SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
Reddick has hit safety in each of his last eight games against the Rangers dating back to last year and is 16-for-32 with three home runs and 14 RBIs over that stretch.
Video: TEX@OAK: Reddick on walk-off, gets pied and soaked
WHAT'S NEXT
Rangers: Right-hander Chi Chi Gonzalez (2-0, 0.00) hopes to continue a hot start to his Major League career when he starts Thursday's matinee against the A's. He's yet to allow a run in his first 14 2/3 innings, a franchise record, and has given up just five hits. He'll be facing his first AL West team after pitching against the Royals and Red Sox in his first two outings.
A's: Scott Kazmir (2-4, 3.14) is 0-4 with a 4.85 ERA and .299 opponents batting average over his last six starts. The left-hander gave up three earned runs in 4 2/3 innings in his last start, a 4-2 loss to the Red Sox. One bright spot for Kazmir is that he has only allowed one home run in his last five starts.
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