OAKLAND – Normally, a day off could disrupt the mojo of a club going through a stretch as impressive as A.’s. But even an unexpected day of rest couldn’t cool the best team in the world. base-ball.
Returning to action after the postponement of the game on Monday, the A continued their domination race by sweeping a double head against the twins with a pair of closures. A jewel thrown by Sean Manaea in a 7-0 win in Game 1 was followed by a strong exit from Jesús Luzardo in a 1-0 victory in Game 2, scoring only the third time in Oakland A’s history. kept an opponent without a score in both double-header games and the first time since September 9, 1974, when Vida Blue and Catfish Hunter combined to empty the Royals with two closures. Of course, those games were nine-round contests, as opposed to the seven-round double rule this season.
The victory in the second game extended A’s winning streak to 10 games, which is now the longest series in the major rankings this season. During that span of 10 games, the starting players shone, reaching 7-0 with an ERA 2.09 in 56 innings.
“I would say we are motivated to look at each other,” Luzardo said. “I see that all these guys are doing well and I just said, ‘Iron sharpens iron.’ When they’re doing well, you don’t want to be a weak link. You have to go out there and do your job. We all feel the same and have a lot of fun doing it. ”
Luzardo has not yet reached the status of an ace that A. had hoped for. The 23-year-old left-hander is struggling with the inconsistencies faced by the youngest players of his caliber at the beginning of their career. But outings like the one he attended on Tuesday night are what keep Oakland’s confidence that Luzardo could be in line for a discovery this season.
Facing the minimum in four innings, Luzardo did a quick job of the twins, allowing only two shots and a walk with six shots in 5 1/3 innings. His electric arm was fully displayed, and his final pitch was 96.7 mph, which Ryan Jeffers spun to hit three.
Many things were different at Luzardo on Tuesday and not just with his pitching. Coming out of the shortest start of his career, in which he allowed five runs in 2 innings 2/3 against the D-backs last week, Luzardo decided to change it. He abandoned his contacts and returned to wearing glasses on the mound, which he had done for all his appearances before this season, dating back to his days in the Little League. He also changed his opening song to “WOW” by Bryant Myers – the song he used in 2020 before playing a few different songs earlier this season.
“I felt like I was moving away from myself,” Luzardo said. “It simply came to our notice then. Now, I’m back to myself. ”
Luzardo’s fast balloon can be a beautiful thing when it works for him. Feeling his good control against the twins, he took full advantage, throwing him for 60% of his pitches and generating nine whiffs, the most he had on any of his pitches.
Seth Brown – who offered the only offense needed for A with an RBI single against José Berrios in the fourth – saw Luzardo at his best, while the two made their way to the organizational system together in the minor leagues. From his point of view as a right-wing player on Tuesday night, the left-hander looked the same as the promising future star he announced in recent years.
“She is OK. When he does his job there, it’s just fun to watch, “said Brown. “As you get into his role and pace, it’s just fun to be a part of him.”
The dazzling heater – which peaked at 99.1 mph – to highlight an impressive four-step mix is just one part of the equation that makes Luzardo so special. It has another quality that cannot be learned: endurance.
The spread of Luzardo from a tough exit last week was not the first instance in which he showed this feature. Two of his four scoreless outings last season came after rough outings in which he allowed four runs and six runs.
“He is very talented and very confident,” said A manager Bob Melvin. “She had to go through some hard work. But it seems that when he has a tough game, he comes back and answers ”.
Luzardo even defended some external adversities. During the fifth inning with an out and a runner, Luzardo and his teammates were asked to leave the field by the referees after a light tower came out on the upper deck of the Colosseum, similar to the problem that occurred on May 7, 2019, when the lights went out before Mike Fiers threw a player who didn’t hit later that night.
Keeping his arm warm by throwing 12 pitches in the bullpen, Luzardo overcame a 25-minute delay and withdrew three of his last four strokes, two by shot.
“It simply came to our notice then. It has never happened to me before, “said Luzardo. I heard it happened in 2019, and Fiers threw a “no hit”, so it was a joke. I’m glad I got in the game. ”