Pinder delivers timely hit, A's advance in playoffs at last

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Sure, most of these young Oakland Athletics might barely remember some of the gut-wrenching October losses over the past two decades.

Two recent defeats were plenty fresh enough to motivate manager Bob Melvin’s slugging, happy-go-lucky A’s.

Oakland finally ended 14 years of postseason futility, riding Chad Pinder’s go-ahead, two-run single in the fifth inning and repeated costly walks by Chicago’s relievers to rally past the White Sox 6-4 on Thursday and win the decisive third game of their AL wild-card round series.

“Not everybody's been part of all that,” Melvin said. “We've had a couple of tough ones in the last two years.”

The AL West champions lost the opener, then won on consecutive days at home and advanced to a Division Series against the rival Houston Astros starting Monday at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. The winner of that matchup faces the New York Yankees or Tampa Bay for a spot in the World Series.

Sean Murphy hit a two-run homer in the fourth against Codi Heuer as A's wives and families cheered from suites high above the diamond.

Players held a subdued celebration afterward. No Champagne showers.

"We’re doing what we did all year, and that’s following the protocols,” Melvin said.

Oakland stopped a nine-game losing streak in winner-take-all postseason games, a major league record that dated to the 1973 World Series. The A’s had lost six straight playoff series since sweeping Minnesota in the 2006 Division Series, starting with when Detroit swept Oakland in that year's Championship Series.

And what a humongous relief for a club that won 97 games each of the past two seasons only to lose the division to Houston and then the AL wild card game both years.

This one was never comfortable — even after Chicago...

source https://www.chron.com/sports/article/Pinder-delivers-timely-hit-A-s-advance-in-15614197.php