The A’s bullpen has been arguably their most consistent component in the first half of this season — even as the exact mix of relievers might vary.
On Sunday, manager Bob Melvin said Yusmeiro Petit and T.J. McFarland were unavailable because of workload. Minus two key relievers, the A’s bullpen then had to cover the final 5 ⅓ innings of a 10-inning game against the Angels. J.B. Wendelken, Jake Diekman, Joakim Soria and Liam Hendriks combined to allow no runs and two hits in a 5-4 A’s win.
“I really wasn’t going to use Hendriks until he came and said, ‘Look, in a save situation or extra innings, I can pitch,’” Melvin said. “We had some guys down, and J.B. and Diekman both came up big for us and gave us multiple innings.”
Oakland’s bullpen has a 2.01 ERA, second best in the majors to the Dodgers’ 1.82, and leads MLB with 12 saves in 14 chances. A’s relievers have a 17-inning scoreless streak dating to the ninth inning Wednesday against Arizona and rank third in the majors in opponents’ batting average (.203) and seventh in innings pitched (121).
Those numbers have helped the A’s thrive in close games: They are 7-2 in games decided in the last at-bat and 11-4 in games decided by one or two runs.
Before Sunday’s game, McFarland said the bullpen’s first half has been “one of those snowball effects where if everyone’s having success and doing well, we kind of feed off each other.
“I think the main thing is (Melvin) knowing how to fit every one of us into a game,” McFarland said. “Every situation that any one of us comes into, we have the most confidence because we know BoMel trusts that this is a situation where we know you can get outs.”
Hendriks’ 15 appearances are tied for second most in the majors with Petit. Hendriks leads the majors with nine saves and has a 1.17 ERA with eight hits allowed in 15 ⅓ innings.
“I think just the more you solidify yourself in a role … it just makes it that much easier,” Melvin said of Hendriks, who became the A’s closer in mid-2019. “And his performance on top of that would suggest he’s doing exactly what he should do.”
Murphy’s day: A’s catcher Sean Murphy drove in the tying run with a sixth-inning single and blocked two pitches in the dirt with an Angels runner on third. Melvin termed the blocked pitches “things that don’t show up in a game like this where it’s the difference.”
“He’s such a leader now as a young kid behind the plate,” Melvin said. “The pitching staff has full confidence in him. He understands the opponent. And his offense is going to get better and better.”
After hitting .167 over his first 13 games, Murphy is 9-for-30 with four extra-base hits and six walks in his past 11 games. On his RBI single Sunday, Melvin said Murphy was “trying not to do too much, stay in the middle of the field. ... He didn’t crush it, but did just enough to find a hole and that was a big one for us.”
Matt Kawahara covers the A’s for The San Francisco Chronicle.
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A’s bullpen comes up big again in win over Angels - San Francisco Chronicle
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