KANSAS CITY, Mo. - With the series already in hand, the A’s craved the sweep at Kauffman Stadium, too, especially after a long streak of wins against the Royals.
A’s vanquisher Jason Vargas was the opposing starter, though, and he was matching up against Oakland’s as yet unreliable fifth-starter spot. The upshot: Kansas City beat the A’s 3-1 to end a string of eight consecutive Oakland wins against the Royals.
Jesse Hahn, who’d pitched well in relief of initial No. 5 starter Raul Alcantara last week, gave up hits to four of the first five Royals batters Thursday night, allowing two runs in the process on singles by Lorenzo Cain and Salvador Perez.