HOUSTON - The difference between an assured, accomplished team such as the champion Astros and the young up-and-coming A’s is that the wheels can still come off in a disastrous inning for Oakland.
And so it was Sunday at Minute Maid Park, where a tie game quickly turned into an 8-4 Houston win thanks to a series of Oakland mistakes in the seventh inning that led to the A’s first series loss in two weeks.
The A’s got another quality start from Trevor Cahill, who went six innings and allowed four runs, three earned. But Cahill’s last act before leaving was a no-no - he walked the leadoff man in the seventh, a key mistake.