OAKLAND — Life without Khris Davis continues to be a struggle for the A’s offense.
The A’s continued to have trouble scoring at home as they were shut out for the fourth time this season in Monday’s 1-0 loss in 13 innings to the Tampa Bay Rays in front of 10,881 fans at the Coliseum.
Through seven games of their 10-game homestand, the A’s (28-26) have scored just 12 runs in 64 innings. All of those games have been played without Davis, who is still on the disabled list with a right groin strain.
“I think we feel it’s no excuse,” A’s outfielder Stephen Piscotty said of Davis’ absence. “We just gotta keep grinding. We’re a good offense, just gotta believe in ourselves.”
The anemic offensive display wasted a brilliant outing by Trevor Cahill.
Cahill gave the A’s eight shutout innings, allowing just four hits and no walks with six strikeouts. It was his first time completing eight innings in a game since May 27, 2013, then a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
“He’s been great, but unfortunately he’s the guy we don’t score a whole lot for,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said. “Every time he’s out there, he either comes out with a tie or something like that. He pitched great and is pitching as well as he did the first time he was here.”
Something about the Oakland Coliseum just seems to bring out the best in the right-hander, who continued to improve his dominant numbers at home.
Cahill lowered his ERA at home to 0.64, having allowed just two earned runs over 28 innings, in four starts at the Coliseum this season. He now has the lowest home ERA of any starter in the majors.
“I guess you’re just comfortable with the mound,” Cahill said of pitching at home. “Everything from the mound, the rubber, the rosin back. It’s kind of what you’re used to, so it just makes it a little easier.”
Cahill did not get the win, but he did lower his overall ERA to 2.25 as he continues to be one of the more reliable starters in the A’s starting rotation.
After throwing a season-high 102 pitches in his previous start, Melvin gave Cahill an extra day of rest by electing to start him Monday instead. Entering the day with a career 3.48 ERA in 62 starts on five days rest, the 30-year-old right-hander appreciated the extra time off.
“It helps out a lot,” said Cahill, now in his 10th season in the majors. “I used to be a guy that hated extra days. I liked to set my routine. But now I’ll take the extra days when I can get them.”
Chris Archer did his best to keep up with Cahill. He didn’t go as many innings, but Archer kept the A’s off the board through six innings, allowing just four hits and two walks with seven strikeouts before Sergio Romo took over to begin to start the bottom half of the seventh.
The Rays (26-26) failed to record a hit from the sixth to the 12th inning, but Mallex Smith delivered the gut punch in the 13th inning with a two-out single to right off Chris Hatcher to bring home Johnny Field and give the Rays the lead and the only run of the game.
The A’s went 0 for 6 with runners in scoring positon, leaving ten runners on base.
A situation Davis was really missed in came in the sixth inning. With the bases loaded and one out, Matt Olson, who has been batting clean up in Davis’ absence, grounded into an inning-ending double play.
“I think with any team, once you get a little deeper into games, guys are trying to do a little too much,” Melvin said.
The A’s also had a golden opportunity in the ninth with no outs and runners on second and third for Chad Pinder. Pinder laid down a hard bunt that bounced out in front of home plate for catcher Jesus Sucre, who picked the ball up and threw out Jed Lowrie on a close play at third base. Matt Chapman followed up by popping out in foul ground and Piscotty struck out to end the threat.
“I had him bunt,” Melvin said of the play. “I was gonna go pitch to pitch with it, but the way that game was going, I wasn’t gonna sit around and wait for hits. We felt like if we could get a guy to third, we have a chance to bring him in.”
MONTAS LIKELY TO START AGAIN
A’s manager Bob Melvin confirmed that Frankie Montas likely bought himself a couple more starts in the big leagues after taking a no-hitter into the sixth inning of Sunday’s victory over the Diamondbacks to earn his first big league win as a starter.
“That was pretty good. We knew he had it in him,” Melvin said. “To go out there in his first start opportunity for us this year and pitch in the fashion he did against a guy like (Zack) Greinke where you know you can’t give up too many runs, that was an impressive outing.”
Montas out-dueled Greinke by allowing just one run on three hits and two walks with seven strikeouts over six innings of work. His next turn in the rotation would come Friday for the opener of a three-game series in Kansas City.
DAVIS ON TRACK TO RETURN
A’s slugger Khris Davis took part in running and agility drills before Monday’s game. Melvin said Davis “looked great” moving around and appears to be ready to come off the disabled list when eligible on Thursday.
