MILWAUKEE (AP) — Ramón Laureano hit a two-run triple, Jonah Bride also drove in a pair of runs and the Oakland Athletics beat the Milwaukee Brewers 5-2 on Friday night for their first three-game winning streak of the season.
The Athletics (15-50) entered the day having put together the worst 64-game start by any team since the 1982 Minnesota Twins also went 14-50, but they’ve won their last three games by a combined score of 25-9.
All three of those wins have come away from home. The Athletics — planning to move to Las Vegas — had lost 15 straight road games before this streak.
After winning 11-2 and 9-5 in the final two games of a series at Pittsburgh, the Athletics carried that momentum into Milwaukee and took a 3-0 lead off Adrian Houser (2-2) in the first inning.
The rally started when Esteury Ruiz singled, took off for second for his major league-leading 30th steal and advanced to third on catcher William Contreras' errant throw. Ryan Noda's walk put runners on the corners.
Laureano then hit a one-out triple into the right-field corner to bring home both Ruiz and Noda. Milwaukee’s Blake Perkins made a diving attempt but couldn’t snare the ball before it came down near the foul line.
The throw from second baseman Andruw Monasterio beat Noda home, but Noda made an outstanding slide and touched the plate with his left hand before catcher William Contreras tagged him around the chest.
Laureano scored the Athletics' third run on Bride's two-out single.
Oakland made it 4-0 in the second when Esteury Ruiz singled home Shea Langeliers, who had reached on a leadoff double.
Milwaukee got on the board in the bottom of the second as Joey Wiemer walked, stole second and scored when Blake Perkins’ blooper fell into shallow left for a double. Luis Urías, who had been in an 0-for-14 slump to start his season, then ripped a shot off the top of the wall in right-center for an RBI double.
The A's extended the lead to 5-2 in the fifth on Bride’s bases-loaded sacrifice fly.
Oakland made this a bullpen game by giving left-hander Sam Moll his first start out of 100 career appearances and having him pitch only one inning. Moll held the Brewers scoreless in his brief stint before Luis Medina (1-5) allowed two runs over the next five innings.
Moll, Medina, Lucas Erceg and Trevor May combined to allow Milwaukee just four hits. May worked the ninth to earn his second save in four opportunities.
Houser gave up five runs and six hits in four innings. He struck out five and walked four.
RHP Paul Blackburn (0-0, 6.00) was set to start for Oakland on Saturdauy against RHP Julio Teheran (1-2, 1.56).
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