A's rookie Parker extends his hot start at expense of Red Sox
OAKLAND, Calif. -- Rookie Jarrod Parker has been a bright spot of the young Oakland Athletics pitching staff.
Parker was sharp again Monday, pitching 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball as the A's beat the Boston Red Sox 6-1 Monday in the opener of a three-game series.
Parker (5-3) has won four of his last five decisions and has allowed one run or fewer in seven of his last eight starts, posting a 1.71 ERA in that span.
"It's fun, and I think Dino (catcher Derek Norris) did a great job behind the plate," said Parker, who gave up six hits and three walks while striking out three. "We just attacked. I pitched with my fastball down in the zone, and that was pretty much it."
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Parker is the first pitcher to allow one run or none in 10 of his first 14 career starts since Ferdie Schupp for the New York Giants from 1913-1917.
"It's cool, but something I never really thought of," Parker said. "Obviously didn't think it was possible at all, but it's fun to look at and (I'm) honored to be compared. ... It's awesome. I try to do less than one run every time."
Hard-throwing lefty Sean Doolittle retired all seven batters he faced to close out the victory. He struck out three.
Brandon Moss' three-run homer highlighted Oakland's four-run second inning, giving Parker more than enough support.
"They're fun, especially when they're early in the game to increase the lead like that," Moss said of hitting homers, which he has done nine times in 22 games with Oakland. "Early in the game, it kind of takes the wind right out of them, and it definitely felt good."
Boston's Daisuke Matsuzaka (0-3) made his fifth start since his return from Tommy John surgery and had his worst outing of the season. He lasted only one-plus inning and allowed four hits and five runs.
"He didn't have his good stuff tonight," Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine said. "He went out with a crink in his neck, and we were hoping he was going to work through it. As is turned out, he didn't work through it, but luckily Morty (Clayton Mortensen) came in and saved our 'pen. The bad news is Dice didn't pitch very well, and the good news is Mortensen saved the bullpen."
Oakland's Josh Reddick homered to right field on the first pitch he saw against his former team. He was originally drafted by Boston but traded to the A's with two other players in the offseason in exchange for closer Andrew Bailey and outfielder Ryan Sweeney. Reddick leads the A's with 19 home runs and 41 RBI but was not chosen to participate in the All-Star Game.
"It was great, coming off a rough series loss to the Rangers and to come out here against another good team in the league and obviously a win no matter how you get it is good," Reddick said. "We know we compete with these good teams. We're three out of four (wins) against these guys, and it's only going to boost our confidence going home tonight and coming back here tomorrow."
Matsuzaka did not record an out in the second inning, as the A's batted around. Seth Smith doubled to left-center. The ball was briefly in center fielder Ryan Kalish's glove, but he couldn't hold on. Norris walked, and Moss hit a line drive just over the out-of-town scoreboard in right field to put the Athletics ahead 4-1.
After Brandon Inge singled to left, Matsuzaka was replaced by Clayton Mortensen, who issued two walks. With the bases loaded, Reddick hit a sacrifice fly to center to make it a four-run cushion. Mortensen went five innings in relief, allowing only a run in the sixth to give Oakland a 6-1 advantage.
"It's always nice to go out and pick our team up," Mortensen said. "When something like (Matsuzaka's early exit) happens, it's huge to go out and soak up some innings so our bullpen can be fresh for the rest of the series we've got against these guys. They play us tough, so we're going to need all the pitching we can have."
The Red Sox jumped in front in the first inning. Daniel Nava doubled to right and scored on a single to right by Dustin Pedroia. Parker recovered by getting David Ortiz to ground into a double play.
Pedroia had two of Boston's six hits.
NOTES: This was the third time in Matsuzaka's career that he pitched only one inning. His previous one-inning stint was April 14, 2009, also at Oakland. His next win will be the 50th of his major league career. ... Boston center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury, out since mid-April due to a partial right shoulder dislocation, homered Monday on his rehab assignment with the Red Sox's rookie-level Gulf Coast League affiliate. Through three rehab games, he is 2-for-6 with four walks and two strikeouts. He is likely to move up to Class AA Portland (Maine) this week. ... Norris swiped second base for his first career steal in the sixth inning. ... Although the Red Sox are a marquee opponent, the attendance was only 17,434. The Athletics have the third-worst attendance in the major leagues. Only the Tampa Bay Rays and Cleveland Indians average fewer fans per home game. ... Oakland has hit at least one home run in 13 consecutive games, the A's longest stretch since homering in 14 straight from April 27-May 12, 2004.
