SEATTLE _ The spectacular month of April put together by Oakland A's Sean Manaea did not carry over into his first start of May.
After a string of dominance to begin the season that led him earning American League Pitcher of the Month honors, Manaea looked human for the first time as he allowed four runs on six hits with no walks and five strikeouts over six innings of work in Thursday's 4-1 loss to the Seattle Mariners. It was the first time Manaea has allowed more than two runs in his seven starts so far.
Speedy outfielder Dee Gordon had been a nightmare for A's pitchers throughout the series, and he wreaked havoc again with Manaea on the hill. Gordon led off the first and third with hits, scoring both innings on singles by Robinson Cano. The run in the first to give the Mariners a 1-0 lead snapped a streak of 18 consecutive innings in which Manaea had not allowed an earned run.
The A's will be relieved to be free of Gordon for a while, as he finished the three-game series going 10 for 14 with four stolen bases.
But the run scored by Gordon in the third wasn't the biggest blow of the night to Manaea. That came later in the inning against Nelson Cruz, when Manaea's 1-0 changeup was crushed over the wall in center for a two-run homer to make it a three-run inning and dig the A's in an early 4-0 hole.
The A's got a run on a solo home run by Stephen Piscotty to lead off the fifth, but it was another quiet night at the plate as they were held to less than four runs for the fifth consecutive game.
