Brandon Moss goes deep, gives Oakland 2-0 lead in AL Wild Card game
By Hayden Kane
Kansas City Royals fans were going absolutely bonkers when the first inning of the American League Wild Card game got underway on Tuesday night. Their ace James Shields was on the mound and they were ready to overwhelm the Oakland Athletics and give their team home field advantage.
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Brandon Moss had other plans, and he put a quick hush on the rabid Kansas City crowd with a two-run home run in the first inning.
Moss came up with Coco Crisp on first. He got a meaty change-up from Shields and hit a no-doubt home run over the right field fence.
For Shields, his change-up is usually a weapon, especially against left-handed hitters. He just dealt a bad one in this case, and Moss didn’t miss the mistake.
Moss did not exactly enter the postseason on a hot streak: he batted .173 during the second half of the season, hitting just four of his 25 home runs after the All-Star game. First and second half performance don’t matter in the playoffs, however, and Moss showed how much of an impact his power can have on any given game by giving his team this early lead in the Wild Card game.
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