OAKLAND, Calif. -- Marcus Semien had three hits and a career-high five RBI, Stephen Piscotty homered and drove in four runs and the Oakland Athletics hammered the Los Angeles Angels 21-3 on Thursday.
The Athletics reduced their magic number for clinching a playoff berth to five, setting season highs for runs (21) and hits (22). Since June 15, Oakland is a major league- best 58-25.
Going into Thursday, Oakland trailed Houston by four games in the AL West, led Tampa Bay by 5 1/2 games for the second wild card, and was 2 1/2 games behind the New York Yankees for the first wild card.