The A's 6-3 loss to the Texas Rangers Sunday kicked off one of the most arduous stretches the A's will experience this season.
Piled on top of the gut-punch injuries _ Matt Chapman and Chad Pinder to follow _ the A's will play four games in three different cities in three different time zones. Here are some takeaways.
The A's need Frankie Montas to fall into a groove. A groove exists _ they saw it in 2019 when Montas was mowing through any and all teams with his high-90s fastball and devastating splitter.
With a back injury and the quirks of a short season battling against him, Montas has flipped back and forth between dominant streaks and low points.
Montas' start Sunday showed some promise that Montas is finding himself. He gave up four runs, including two home runs, in the A's loss. But, his stuff _ particularly his slider and, later, his splitter _ looked up to his usual standard. Derek Dietrich's home run in the second inning came on a decent sinker. And Montas struck out five straight batters between the fourth and fifth innings.
But a first pitch sinker to Rougned Odor after giving up back-to-back singles in the sixth inning did him in. Odor's three-run home run put the game out of reach. Montas struck out seven batters and one walk.
Tommy La Stella hit his first home run as an Athletic, his fifth of the season. Mark Canha tripled with two outs in the ninth inning and Ramon Laureano walked, allowing Jonah Heim to knock a dribbler far enough down the third base line to score Canha for the A's third and final run.
