Tampa Bay Rays beat Oakland A's in AL wild card game

Yandy Diaz

The Oakland A's have lost nine consecutive winner-take-all games, dating back to the 2000 season. In fact, the A's have lost the past 10 times they've played in an elimination playoff game.

Longtime Oakland executive Billy Beane famously said after a 2002 playoff loss to the Minnesota Twins that his "shit doesn't work in the playoffs," but you would think after all this time, his "shit" would work on accident for once.

Alas, the A's added to their tortured postseason history Wednesday with a 5-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL wild card game.

With the victory, the Rays advance to the American League Division Series, where they will face the best team in baseball and the World Series favorite -- the 107-win Houston Astros.

Tampa Bay had the fewest home runs (217) of all the playoff qualifiers this season, but you never would have known that by watching this game. Leadoff hitter Yandy Diaz clubbed the first of his two solo home runs to start the game, and former White Sox outfielder Avisail Garcia added a two-run blast in the top of the second inning.

Diaz's second home run off Oakland starter Sean Manaea staked the Rays to a 4-0 lead in the third inning, and they maintained control for the rest of the night.

Manaea was removed after giving up his third home run of the start. The two home runs by Diaz were almost carbon copies. The right-handed hitter got two fastballs up and out over the plate, and both times he drove them over the fence to the opposite field. Garcia's homer was to center field, but it also was a fastball up and over the outer half.

I think we know what pitch and what location the Rays were looking for against Manaea, don't we?

Meanwhile, Tampa Bay starter Charlie Morton worked five innings of one-run ball. I get the sense the Rays signed Morton as a free agent last offseason specifically to pitch this game. They knew they probably weren't going to win the AL East this season, and that their path to the division series would need to include a wild card win.

A veteran pitcher such as Morton, who has World Series experience from his time in Houston, is just the sort of guy you need to prevail in a winner-take-all game on the road. Morton didn't even have his best stuff -- his curveball wasn't working -- but he protected the lead he was handed and put the game in the hands of the deep Tampa Bay bullpen.

Tommy Pham hit a solo home run in the fifth inning to give the Rays a little more breathing room, and relievers Diego Castillo, Nick Anderson and Emilio Pagan combined for eight strikeouts over four scoreless innings.

Tampa Bay has a tall order in the next round against the Astros, but in the playoffs, everyone has a puncher's chance. You never know.