OAKLAND, Calif. _ The Oakland Athletics figure to play much better in the coming days and considering the way they're stepping up in terms of competition, they'll need to if they hope to become an American League West contender.
The defending world champion Houston Astros jumped the A's early and often Monday night en route to a 16-2 win at the Coliseum before a paid attendance of 7,360, the smallest crowd of the season.
The A's hitting difficulties of late continued, although this time the pitching was unable to bail them out as starter Brett Anderson was pounded for 10 hits and nine runs (seven earned) in three innings.
Things don't get much easier in the immediate future for the A's, who face the Astros twice more on the homestand before departing on a road trip to New York, Boston and Toronto.
Beginning with the Houston series, the A's next six opponents (Astros, Yankees, Red Sox, Blue Jays, Mariners and Diamondbacks) have a combined 131-75 record.
The A's, 18-17, came in having won four of their last five games following a three-game sweep of the Baltimore Orioles, who left town with an 8-25 record. Houston improved to 22-15.
George Springer hit the second pitch of the game for a double down the left field line, Marwin Gonzalez had a two-out, two-run single later in inning, and the Astros kept building on that lead until it was 11-0 after the top of the fourth inning
In the second inning, Springer, who finished 6-for-6, hit a three-run home run off Anderson, and if there was any doubt about the end result, it was removed in the fourth inning.
Anderson didn't record an out, the Astros batted around, and at one point first baseman Matt Olson took a potential double play ground ball and threw it into left field for an error.
Max Stassi doubled home a run for Houston, Jose Altvuve had an RBI single, and after Chris Hatcher was called in to replace Anderson, the Astros got one run on a double play and two more when Gonzalez hit a two-run home run to cap a six-run inning.
The A's didn't score until the sixth inning when they were 11 runs down, with Khris Davis scoring Chad Pinder with a ground out. Houston starter Dallas Keuchel, roughed up for three home runs when he lost 8-1 to the A's in Houston on April 27, improved to 2-5 by giving up five hits in eight innings.
The 16 runs surrendered were the most given up by the Athletics since a 16-2 loss to the Boston Red Sox on Sept. 2, 2016.
_ The A's played amid the somber backdrop of the death of Gretchen Piscotty, mother of A's outfielder Stephen Piscotty. A moment of silence was observed for Gretchen Piscotty before the game started.
Stephen Piscotty was not with the A's Monday night.
