ARLINGTON, Texas—Brent Rooker homered twice to give him 33 this season, JJ Bleday and Shea Langeliers also went deep and the Oakland Athletics beat the Texas Rangers 9–2 on Friday night for their first consecutive winning months in more than three years.
Oakland is 14–11 in August with one game remaining in the month, after going 15–9 in July to snap a franchise-record streak of 11 consecutive full months with losing records. The A’s (59–76) hadn’t had consecutive winning months since May-June 2021.
Bleday broke a 1–1 tie and put the A’s ahead to stay in the third with his 20th homer, lining a three-run shot that just cleared the angled wall in right-center. That came after No. 9 batter Jacob Wilson and Rooker walked against Texas starter Jon Gray (5–6).
Rooker went deep in the first and seventh innings. Langeliers capped a four-run ninth with his 23rd long ball, a two-run shot right after an RBI double by Bleday.
The four homers by the A’s came after they hit 11 at Cincinnati to match their most ever in a three-game series.
Nathaniel Lowe homered for the reigning World Series champion Rangers (63–72), who had their three-game winning streak snapped. Those wins came in a series sweep at the Chicago White Sox.
JP Sears (11–9) allowed one run over seven innings while scattering five hits and striking out one. The lefty is the only A’s pitcher who hasn’t missed a start this season, after making 32 starts while also being in the rotation all of last year.
