A’s 10, Brewers 6
Brewers now 68-49 (1st by 4.0 games)
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OAKLAND — For the first time since July 7, Brewers pitchers allowed double digit runs. And well… when that happens, you’re typically going to lose.
You wouldn’t expect the Brewers to allow double digit runs to the A’s, a team that hit .210 through the first four games of their current homestand. But in the series opener with the Brewers, it happened.
This loss falls on starter Moose Haas and reliever Jerry Augustine. Haas never had it. He allowed two runs on a Tony Armas home run in the first. He escaped the second after allowing the A’s to load the bases. And in the third, he allowed three more runs on four hits. He allowed 11 baserunners in all.
Haas was awful. But Jerry Augustine may have been worse. He took the mound to start the fourth and could retire only one batter. He walked three, allowed one hit and threw a wild pitch. Dwight Bernard eventually cleaned up the mess (or attempted to), but when all was said and done Augustine had allowed four runs in one third of an inning.
By the end of the fourth inning, the Brewers were already down 9-2. These may be “Harvey’s Wallbangers,” but that’s a deficit even this mythical bunch can’t overcome.
Sure, they tried. Robin Yount, steadily making his case as the American League Most Valuable Player, had three hits including his 21st and 22nd home runs. Cecil Cooper went 3-for-3 and knocked out his 24th before leaving with a slight hamstring pull in the sixth inning. The Brewers scored four runs in the final two innings, but it would be too late.
Milwaukee has now lost three straight, but luckily for them the Red Sox lost again, falling 10-2 to the Angels. The Red Sox have lost 12 of 18 games, allowing the Brewers some breathing room.
Game Notes: Oakland’s Rickey Henderson stole his 110th base of the season, pulling him to within eight of the record set by Lou Brock.