The Braves capitalized on Oakland miscues to beat the A’s, 4-3, Saturday afternoon and take the series at the Coliseum.
Dansby Swanson went 2-for-4 with two RBI doubles, including one to left in the ninth inning after Danny Santana reached on an error from A’s shortstop Franklin Barreto. Swanson also doubled home Santana in the seventh after Santana reached when Barreto collided with left fielder Matt Joyce.
Earlier, Santana kicked off the scoring with an RBI double in the second, scoring catcher Tyler Flowers after he reached on a Barreto throwing error. The Braves tacked on one more run in the eighth on a Matt Adams sacrifice fly.
The A’s tied the game in the eighth when slugger Khris Davis turned around a 97-mph fastball from Braves reliever Arodys Vizcaino and blasted it to center for his 22nd homer of the season. The two-run shot went 458 feet, his longest of 2017 according to Statcast™.
The A’s lone damage off of Braves starter R.A. Dickey came in the fourth, when third baseman Ryon Healy singled home Davis. Dickey finished the day with six hits and three walks allowed in six innings, striking out four.
In his Major League debut, local kid Paul Blackburn was excellent for the A’s, giving up one unearned run on three hits and a walk across six innings. The right-hander from Antioch struck out four and left the game to a standing ovation in front of family and friends.
The A’s were on the doorstep of taking the lead in the fourth and the fifth, but Dickey was able to escape each inning with the game tied. Oakland tied it in the fourth with four straight one-out baserunners, drawing a walk and getting three singles. With the bases loaded, Dickey got a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning. Then, in the fifth, the A’s had runners on first and third with two outs, but Dickey froze Davis with a knuckleball and struck him out looking.
When Santana popped a ball to shallow left with one out in the seventh, Barreto and Joyce both raced to the ball. Barreto caught the ball, but the two collided, jarring the ball loose from the shortstop’s glove. Santana reached safely and scored the go-ahead run on Swanson’s double.
