OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Matt Olson, Aramís García and Mark Canha each homered and the Oakland Athletics shut out the Detroit Tigers for a second straight game, 7-0 on Saturday for their seventh win in a row.
After Oakland’s 3-0 victory Friday, Cole Irvin (1-2) struck out six, didn’t walk a batter and allowed four hits over six innings to earn his first victory since joining the A’s. The left-hander, tagged for eight runs on 12 hits over 9 2/3 innings in his initial two starts, hung tough against a Tigers lineup featuring five switch-hitters.
The last time the A’s blanked the Tigers on back-to-back days was in June 1973 when Ken Holtzman and Catfish Hunter did it on Oakland’s way to the second of three straight World Series championships.
These Athletics have won 21 of their last 22 matchups against Detroit.
Oakland’s previous pair of consecutive shutouts was last Sept. 18-19 against the Giants.
During this impressive unbeaten stretch, A’s starters are 5-0 with a 2.63 ERA compared to 0-7 with a 7.91 ERA over the initial eight games. Oakland (8-7) won for the eighth time in nine games to move above .500 for the first time this year.
Olson hit a solo drive in the first on a full count for his third home run of 2021, García connected for a two-run shot with two outs in the second and Canha immediately followed by clearing the fences.
Casey Mize (1-1) had surrendered only one run over 11 innings with nine strikeouts in his first two starts before running into a hot A’s lineup this time out. He gave up five runs on seven hits in five innings.
DOMINATING DETROIT
Oakland improved to 27-6 versus Detroit dating to June 2, 2015.
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