OAKLAND, Calif. — J.D. Martinez’s best Kiké Hernández impression went to waste in a crushing Red Sox loss Saturday afternoon in Oakland.
One night after Hernández threw out the would-be tying run at the plate in the 10th inning to preserve a Red Sox win, Martinez gunned down the potential winning run Saturday afternoon, throwing out Sean Murphy to end the 10th. The Red Sox took a 6-4 lead in the top of the 12th, but the A’s plated three runs off Matt Andriese in the bottom half of the inning to snap the Sox’ eight-game winning streak and win, 7-6.
With Matt Barnes and Garrett Whitlock both unavailable, the Sox were forced to reshuffle their bullpen — and paid dearly for it. Yacksel Ríos, in a rare high-leverage situation, gave up two runs as Oakland tied the game in the eighth. Andriese recorded only one out — Tony Kemp’s game-winning sacrifice fly that followed three consecutive hits to start the inning — as his ERA rose to 5.70.
Both teams wasted chances early in extra innings before Boston finally broke through with two runs in the top of the 12th. After Christian Vázquez singled with one out, Marwin Gonzalez hit an opposite-field RBI single to give the Sox a 5-4 lead. Two batters later, Kiké Hernández added an insurance run with an RBI single of his own.
Andriese — the last man available in Boston’s bullpen — allowed back-to-back singles to Seth Brown and Sean Murphy that brought the A’s with a run before Jed Lowrie tied the game with an RBI double. Kemp then hit a deep fly ball to Hernández that plated Brown for the game-winning run.
Oakland drew first blood in the second, when Brown put his club up 1-0 with an RBI triple that plated Murphy. The Sox then took advantage of some sloppy A’s defense in the fourth, plating the tying run on a Murphy throwing error before taking a 2-1 lead on a Hunter Renfroe sacrifice fly later in the inning.
Martinez made it 3-1 with an RBI single in the fifth, but Oakland climbed back within a run on a Frank Schwindel RBI double an inning later. Kiké Hernández, who was the extra-innings hero Friday night, took A’s starter Cole Irvin deep for his 10th homer of the year and made it 4-2 in the seventh.
In an attempt to save Adam Ottavino for the ninth, the Sox turned to Ríos up 4-2 in the eighth. After Murphy singled and Brown made it a one-run game with an RBI single, Sox manager Alex Cora turned to lefty Darwinzon Hernandez. With two outs, Elvis Andrus drove in Brown to tie the game, 4-4.
In the top of the 10th, Danny Santana was thrown out trying to steal third for the second out of the inning while A’s reliever Sergio Romo struck out both batters he faced. In the bottom half, Workman intentionally walked Brown and caught a Tony Kemp bunt attempt before Elvis Andrus lined into the 7-2 double play to end the inning.
In the 12th, Marwin Gonzalez and Hernández each knocked in runs with RBI singles as the Sox took a 6-4 lead.
Garrett Richards, who entered with a 10.32 ERA in his last three starts, posted his best outing since June 1, allowing five hits while recording two strikeouts in five frames.
Pivetta goes for seres win
Righty Nick Pivetta (6-3, 4.43 ERA) will look to bounce back from his worst start of the season in Sunday’s series finale opposite A’s righty James Kaprielian (4-2, 3.06 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 4:07 p.m. ET.
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