By Stephen Hawkins
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Brent Rooker homered twice to give him 33 this season, JJ Bleday and Shea Langeliers also went deep and the Oakland Athletics beat the Texas Rangers 9-2 on Friday night for their first consecutive winning months in more than three years.
Oakland is 14-11 in August with one game remaining in the month, after going 15-9 in July to snap a franchise-record streak of 11 consecutive full months with losing records. The A’s (59-76) hadn’t had consecutive winning months since May-June 2021.
Bleday broke a 1-1 tie and put the A’s ahead to stay in the third with his 20th homer, lining a three-run shot that just cleared the angled wall in right-center. That came after No. 9 batter Jacob Wilson and Rooker walked against Texas starter Jon Gray (5-6).
Rooker went deep in the first and seventh innings. Langeliers capped a four-run ninth with his 23rd long ball, a two-run shot right after an RBI double by Bleday.
The four homers by the A’s came after they hit 11 at Cincinnati to match their most ever in a three-game series.
Nathaniel Lowe homered for the reigning World Series champion Rangers (63-72), who had their three-game winning streak snapped. Those wins came in a series sweep at the Chicago White Sox.
JP Sears (11-9) allowed one run over seven innings while scattering five hits and striking out one. The lefty is the only A’s pitcher who hasn’t missed a start this season, after making 32 starts while also being in the rotation all of last year.
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Rooker hit a 416-drive deep into the seats in left-center field on Gray’s third pitch of the game. Rooker notched his third multihomer game this season when his 397-foot drive in the same direction in the seventh off Dane Dunning, the third Texas reliever and who finished the game.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Athletics: LHP Scott Alexander (left rotator cuff tendonitis) threw about 20 pitches in the bullpen. Manager Mark Kotsay, who stood in as a left-handed hitter during the session, said Alexander looked good and that they will see how he recovers before determining the next step. Alexander’s last game was Aug. 17. … 1B Tyler Soderstrom (stress reaction in left wrist), out since July 9, is still going through his hitting progression. Kotsay said he could possibly hit foam balls off a machine this weekend.
Rangers: Three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (right shoulder fatigue), who last pitched July 30, threw a bullpen session. … Two-time Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom (elbow surgery) is scheduled to make his third rehab start Sunday with plans to throw four innings for Triple-A Round Rock. Manager Bruce Bochy said there would be one more rehab start after that, on Saturday, Sept. 7.
UP NEXT
Rookie right-hander Joey Estes (6-6, 4.37 ERA) starts for the A’s in the middle game of the series Saturday night. Rangers lefty Cody Bradford (4-2, 3.31) has lost back-to-back starts — Texas scored a combined three runs in those games.
