Jared Koenig accomplished his unbelievable journey to the key leagues on Wednesday evening in Atlanta, and the 28-year-old Aptos Excessive grad confirmed why he could possibly be round for awhile.
However Koenig’s inspiring main league debut wasn’t sufficient to maintain the A’s from seeing their shedding streak prolonged to eight with an 13-2 loss to the Atlanta Braves.
Koenig held the defending World Sequence champions scoreless into the fourth inning and took a 2-1 lead into the fifth. However the 6-foot-5 left-hander did not get an out within the inning, which noticed the Braves rating 4 occasions and finally flip the ultimate recreation of the two-game collection right into a rout.
In the long run, Koenig’s line was 4 earned runs allowed on 5 hits, with three strikeouts and two walks. However after a dominating begin to the season at Triple-A Las Vegas and an encouraging debut, Koenig regarded like a viable possibility for an A’s rotation that has misplaced Daulton Jefferies to a season-ending damage and shortly figures to lose ace Frankie Montas to a commerce.
On the very least, Koenig’s arrival within the majors is likely one of the finest feel-good tales of the season.
Koenig was drafted within the thirty fifth spherical by the White Sox in 2014, however after signing their prime picks, together with present Giants pitcher Carlos Rodon, Chicago opted to not signal a handful of the late-round guys, together with Koenig.
He went again to varsity – three extra in all, together with Cal State Monterey Bay – then bounced round with the San Rafael Pacifics and different impartial league groups for a pair years earlier than touchdown within the Australian Baseball League for what figured to be his final likelihood to get seen.
Koenig acquired the eye of an A’s worldwide scout and signed his first contract with a significant league group in 2020. Once more, Koenig’s persistence was examined. He didn’t play that season due to the pandemic, however lastly made his affiliated debut final season at Double-A Midland, the place he went 7-5 with a 3.26 earned run common.
He was even higher this season at Las Vegas, the place he was 4-2 with a 2.21 ERA in 9 video games and was averaging greater than a strikeout per inning.
The A’s introduced over the weekend that Koenig was being promoted for Wednesday’s begin, and for essentially the most half, he delivered.
Koenig allowed a single to the primary batter he confronted, Ronald Acuna Jr., however the Braves star was thrown out making an attempt to steal second base.
The Braves made Koenig work out of bother, getting leadoff batters on base in 4 of the 5 innings, however he was capable of work out of the jams till the fourth when former All-Star Ozzie Albies lower the A’s result in 2-1 when he capped a 10-pitch at-bat with a sacrifice fly.
Koenig didn’t get an out within the fateful fifth, strolling Marcell Ozuna earlier than yielding a double to Adam Duvall. Braves rookie Michael Harris II cleared the bases with a pointy grounder simply inside the primary base bag for a triple, placing the Braves up 3-2 and ending Koenig’s outing. Austin Riley then added a two-run homer off reliever Domingo Acevedo.
The A’s gave Koenig a lead within the prime of the fourth inning when, with one out, Ramon Laureano blasted a double off the wall in right-center however wound up on third when the Braves mishandled the ball because it bounced again into play. Laureano scored on a wild pitch two pitches later.
Sean Murphy made it 2-0 with a two-out RBI single later within the inning.
It was the second recreation in two nights the A’s let a 2-0 lead over the Braves escape. Oakland continues the nine-game, three-city journey on Thursday in Cleveland seeking to keep away from their second nine-game shedding streak of the season.
Former A’s All-Star first baseman Matt Olson had two hits Wednesday and three within the collection to assist the Braves win their seventh in a row.
– Proper-hander Jefferies has thoracic outlet syndrome, a situation through which blood vessels or nerves within the house between the collarbone and first rib are compressed. The process usually requires eradicating a portion of the rib.
The A’s took Jefferies out of Cal with the thirty seventh general decide within the 2016 draft. Jefferies, 26, made his large league debutt in 2020, however opened this season within the A’s rotation. He didn’t permit an earned run in two of his first three begins of the season however was tagged for 23 runs in 24 innings over his earlier 5 begins, elevating his ERA from 1.17 to five.72.
– The A’s misplaced reliever Parker Markel to a waiver declare by the Chicago White Sox.
Markel, 31, was promoted final week after a dominating begin of the season at Triple-A and appeared in three video games with the A’s, permitting only one hit and no runs in three innings. However he additionally walked 5 of the 13 batters he confronted.
Markel was designated for task Tuesday when the A’s bought the contract of veteran infielder Matt Davidson.
– The Atlanta Journal-Structure famous that A’s middle fielder Cristian Pache remains to be very fashionable with Braves followers. Pache, a part of the haul of prospects the A’s acquired for Matt Olson, may be very energetic on social media like Twitter.
“I used to be stunned to proceed to obtain that a lot love from the followers,” Pache instructed the Journal-Structure. “It makes me very completely happy.”
He added, “I really feel like I’m along with them (the followers). I really like speaking with them on social media. It makes me really feel like we're shut.”