Athletics vs Mariners final score: Oakland wins series finale 4-0
By Hayden Kane
There were a lot of slumped shoulders when the Oakland Athletics lost to the Seattle Mariners on Friday night and temporarily surrendered their possession of the lead in the American League Wild Card race.
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It was no insignificant accomplishment, then, when the A’s went on to win Saturday and Sunday to take a series on the road against the Mariners and give themselves a bit of a cushion in the Wild Card standings.
Ace starting pitcher Jon Lester, acquired at the trade deadline, came through for Oakland the way that an ace is supposed to in a key game on Sunday. A high pitch count lampooned his efforts in terms of efficiency, but Lester still managed to pitch six innings and allow no earned runs. He struck out seven hitters and issued four walks.
The A’s then handed the ball to the bullpen, and that unit came through as Oakland held onto a slim lead and won this game. It was clear that offense was going to be hard to come by in this game, so for the Oakland pitching staff to make a four-run lead hold up by pitching a shutout was huge. Dan Otero, Luke Gregerson, and Sean Doolittle combined to put the clamps down on this game for Oakland.
There is still a long way to go as the A’s try to avoid a historic collapse; with that in mind, these wins over the Mariners represent two of the biggest so far for this team as the 2014 season winds down.
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