OAKLAND — The A's made quick work of Vallejo native CC Sabathia. Oakland knocked the Yankees starter around for five runs (four earned) on seven hits in 3 1/3 innings, and took the first game of a three-game series, 6-3.
Mark Canha crushed his 16th home run of the season, Matt Chapman, Jed Lowrie, and Stephen Piscotty all recorded multi-hit games, and Khris Davis and Matt Olson also drove in runs. Trevor Cahill pitched five strong innings to earn his sixth win of the year and Blake Treinen pitched a scoreless ninth inning for his 36th save.
Oakland improved to 83-56, and is still 2 1/2 games behind Houston for first place in the AL West. But, the A's are now just 3 1/2 games behind the Yankees for the top Wild Card spot in the American League. They also moved six games ahead of Seattle for the second Wild Card position, pending the Mariners' result against Baltimore Monday night.
Here's what else you need to know from Monday's victory...
--- After a bumpy start, Cahill settled in nicely, allowing two earned runs on four hits in five innings, with a walk and three strikeouts. Cahill was on the ropes in the second inning after allowing a two-run home run to Luke Voit to tie the game. Cory Gearrin began warming up in the A's bullpen, but Cahill righted the ship, retiring nine of the final 10 batters he faced. He improved to 6-3 on the season, with a 3.60 ERA.
--- Lou Trivino dazzled in the sixth inning, striking out Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Hicks, and Miguel Andújar, the Yankees' 2-3-4 hitters. After a slight rough patch, Trivino hasn't allowed a run in his last four appearances, lowering his ERA to 2.15. The bullpen allowed no hits in four innings, walking three batters and striking out eight.
--- Canha's 16th home run tied his career high. It was his second straight game going deep. If Canha reaches 20 homers, he would be the sixth Athletic to do so, setting a franchise record. The Cal product is slashing .246/.323/.445 this season.
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--- Piscotty stayed hot with a 2-for-4 performance, which included a double. In his last four games, Piscotty is 7-for-16 with three home runs and seven runs batted in. He is slashing .264/.320/.475 for the season with 21 home runs, one shy of his career high.
