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Phillies come up short in 3-1 loss to A's

OAKLAND, Calif. - The Phillies arrived at this decaying football stadium that doubles as a baseball mausoleum 60 years to the day the Athletics bolted Philadelphia never to return home. The Philadelphia A's moved in 1954 to Kansas City, then Oakland 10 years later, and never before have they encountered a season like this.

Oakland Athletics catcher Derek Norris, right, tags out Philadelphia Phillies' Freddy Galvis during the eighth inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 19, 2014, in Oakland, Calif. Galvis was attempting to score on a ball hit by Carlos Ruiz. (Ben Margot.AP)
Oakland Athletics catcher Derek Norris, right, tags out Philadelphia Phillies' Freddy Galvis during the eighth inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 19, 2014, in Oakland, Calif. Galvis was attempting to score on a ball hit by Carlos Ruiz. (Ben Margot.AP)Read more

OAKLAND, Calif. - The Phillies arrived at this decaying football stadium that doubles as a baseball mausoleum 60 years to the day the Athletics bolted Philadelphia never to return home. The Philadelphia A's moved in 1954 to Kansas City, then Oakland 10 years later, and never before have they encountered a season like this.

These A's cruised to the all-star break with the best record in baseball. They will spend the final week trying to avoid one of the worst collapses in baseball history. A 3-1 win Friday helped. The Phillies, as potential spoilers, will come no closer to the postseason than this weekend's games.

"Let's see if we can make it rough on them," Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg said.

There were positives to gain, Sandberg said, from playing in an evironment like the one at O.co Coliseum. These, of course, are mere platitudes for a losing team that faces an arduous climb back to contention.

It starts with developing some young talent, most of which has not been exposed to a winning ambience. The Phillies started David Buchanan, a 25-year-old rookie righthander unprotected in last winter's Rule 5 draft, in Friday's opener. Buchanan unraveled in a singles-filled second inning, but he adjusted.

He threw 62/3 solid innings to extend his streak of starts with three earned runs or fewer to 15 straight. Sandberg lifted him at 92 pitches, and Buchanan appeared more than frustrated. Still, he provided his teammates a chance to win.

The Phillies dinged Oakland lefthanded ace Jon Lester just once, a Ryan Howard solo blast to deep center. Howard has 12 homers against righties this season and 10 against lefties in 247 fewer at-bats.

The left side of Sandberg's infield was a 24-year-old shortstop (Freddy Galvis) and 22-year-old third baseman (Maikel Franco). Darin Ruf, 28, notched his third double in as many days.

"Some of our younger players, it should be good for them," Sandberg said. "It's a good atmosphere in meaningful games."

Oakland's collapse could be the worst ever, considering there are two wild-card slots to fill. The A's were 72-44 on Aug. 9, their high-water mark, and 11-25 since. They have a half-game lead over Kansas City for the first wild-card berth.

Sandberg expected his players to embrace their role.

"We've actually played some of our best baseball in the last month under those circumstances," Sandberg said. "We do have a core group of veteran guys who understand that. So the younger guys follow their lead."

The timing of this series offered a fun coincidence. The Philadelphia A's played their last game at Shibe Park on Sept. 19, 1954. There were 1,715 fans in attendance. The A's, a 103-loss team, trained to Boston after the game for a season-ending road trip. They moved to Kansas City in November.

Philadelphia was never a two-team town again.

Watson suspended

Shane Watson, the Phillies' first pick in the 2012 draft, was suspended 50 games Friday by Major League Baseball after a second positive test for drug abuse.

His suspension will cover the start of the 2015 season. Watson missed the entire minor-league season because of shoulder surgery, and his future is unclear. The 21-year-old righthander could serve his time while on the disabled list.

The Phillies paid Watson a $1.29 million signing bonus.

"I think he's still in that phase of his rehab that we don't exactly know how he's going to come out the other end of it," Joe Jordan, the Phillies' director of player development, said last month. "We believe the guy is going to pitch again."

Extra bases

Domonic Brown was scratched less than two hours before first pitch. He attempted to take batting practice, but his right wrist was sore from a diving catch Thursday. Grady Sizemore replaced him in left field. . . . Alameda native Jimmy Rollins had yet to run sprints, the final test for his strained left hamstring. He may not play this weekend.

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