Gray area: 8 Ks, 1 bad inning as A’s win 6-3 at Rangers

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Sonny Gray had a season-high eight strikeouts and overcame one volatile inning, Josh Reddick drove in three runs and the Oakland Athletics beat the Texas Rangers 6-3 on Tuesday night.

Reddick’s two-run homer in the fourth was one of three homers by the A’s. Coco Crisp and Marcus Semien also went deep.

Gray (5-9) pitched six innings, retiring 12 of the first 13 batters he faced without giving up a hit through four and striking out the last two batters he faced in the game. The five hits he allowed came against consecutive Texas batters to start the fifth, when top prospect Joey Gallo homered in his first start this season for the Rangers.

The A’s won for the fourth time in five games. AL West-leading Texas had its three-game winning streak snapped.

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Crisp led off the fourth with his eighth homer of the season, and Reddick homered after Jed Lowrie’s single. Semien’s 21st homer started the fifth off Nick Martinez (1-3) before Reddick added a run-scoring single for a 5-0 lead.

Gray struck out all three batters in the first and had five Ks through two innings. In the third, he had a nifty defensive play, bouncing off the mound toward the third-base line to field a high chopper. He made a backhanded catch and then an off-balance throw falling toward the line to get Robinson Chirinos out at first.

The no-hit bid ended when Rougned Odor singled on the first pitch of the fifth, though he was easily thrown out trying to stretch a routine single to right into a double.

Gallo then homered, a 448-foot opposite-field blast over the A’s bullpen in left-center. Ryan Rua singled before Mitch Moreland also went the opposite way over that bullpen, a 423-foot homer to get Texas within 5-3. Chirinos doubled to make it five consecutive hits.

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Martinez gave up five runs and six hits while pitching into the fifth after being recalled to start in place of Kyle Lohse, the 37-year-old right-hander designated for assignment with a 12.54 ERA after losing both of his Texas starts.

With Prince Fielder expected to have season-ending neck surgery, the Rangers recalled Gallo on Tuesday to give them a left-hander with potential power. Gallo hit six homers in 36 games last season in his MLB debut, but had just one at-bat this year for the Rangers before Tuesday night.

SHORT HOPS

The start of the game was delayed 62 minutes because of rain. … Gray has allowed 17 homers, matching his career high set last season. The right-hander had been 1-8 with a 6.45 ERA his previous 14 starts. … Oakland C Stephen Vogt returned after missing three games while on family medical leave.

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TRAINER’S ROOM

Athletics: LHP Rich Hill, who hasn’t started since July 17 because of a persistent blister, hopes to return Sunday. He threw a bullpen session with tape over the blister Tuesday after playing catch with it uncovered.

Rangers: SS Elvis Andrus was out of the lineup for the second time in a nine-day stretch that also included an off day for the team. Manager Jeff Banister said Andrus “was a little banged up” but would play Wednesday. … OF Drew Stubbs (sprained left toe), out since May 23, was transferred on his injury rehabilitation assignment from the Arizona League to Triple-A Round Rock.

UP NEXT

Athletics: Lefty Sean Manaea (3-5, 4.61 ERA) has allowed only two runs in 20 innings his last three starts — and the A’s have scored only once while he was pitching in that span.

Rangers: Yu Darvish (2-2, 3.12) is winless in his two starts since returning from the disabled list, but the Rangers have scored only two runs total for him in those games. The right-hander struck out 11 in six innings at Kansas City last Friday.