The Athletics survived a dramatic late rally to defeat the Rangers 6-5 at Sutter Health Park, holding on after Texas nearly erased a four-run deficit in the eighth inning.
Shea Langeliers anchored Oakland's offense with a 2-for-5 performance that included a two-run homer and two RBIs. The catcher is hitting .304 with six home runs and 12 RBIs this season. Jacob Wilson added a crucial two-run blast of his own, going 2-for-4 with his first home run of the year.
The Athletics built their lead methodically through the first seven innings. Tyler Soderstrom doubled to left in the first, scoring Carlos Cortes for a 1-0 advantage. Denzel Clarke's single in the second brought home Max Muncy to make it 2-0. After Corey Seager homered to right center in the third, bringing Nimmo around to tie the game 2-2, Oakland pulled away with back-to-back home run innings. Langeliers homered to left center in the sixth, scoring Lawrence Butler for a 4-2 lead. Wilson's blast to left in the seventh extended the margin to 6-2.
Texas nearly completed a stunning comeback in the eighth when Jake Burger homered to left, a three-run shot that scored Seager and Wyatt Langford to cut the deficit to 6-5. Burger finished 1-for-2 with three RBIs, while Seager went 1-for-3 with a walk and two runs scored. J.T. Ginn worked 5.1 innings for Oakland, allowing two runs on two hits with four walks and three strikeouts, carrying a 3.31 ERA.
Oakland improved to 9-8 and moved into second place in their division. Texas fell to 9-8 after the loss.