Even winnable wins are difficult for the 2024 Oakland Athletics.
Leading the A’s, Paul Blackburn pitched like he was the Opening Day starter — *cough cough Mark Kotsay* — spinning 7 scoreless innings against a team that scored 26 runs in the series’ first three games. Cleveland batters weren’t able to string any baserunners against the 2022 All-Star, only getting 3 hits and 1 walk.
Oakland’s lineup, aka future MVP JJ Bleday, fared better against the Guardians’ starter, Carlos Carrasco. The center fielder hopped on him quick with a triple in the bottom of the 1st that scored Esteury Ruiz, who was doing Esteury Ruiz things when he off the game with a single and immediately stole second.