Freiman Guides A’s to Sweep of Astros

May 3, 2013; Bronx, NY, USA; Oakland Athletics first baseman Nate Freiman (7) hits a single against the New York Yankees during the fifth inning of a game at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Six months from now, the Houston Astros may be receiving a Christmas card from the Oakland A’s.

Oakland remained undefeated against the Astros with a 6-2 win. Nate Freiman knocked in three runs and hit a home run, and he helped the A’s improve to 9-0 against the last-place Astros. Bartolo Colon twirled a gem, as he pitched seven innings without giving up a run. The A’s averaged 7.7 runs per game against the Astros in this three-game sweep, and they improved to 28-23 with their eighth win in their last nine games.

Freiman registered two hits, and he crushed a Dallas Keuchel mistake in the sixth inning. Keuchel’s ERA jumped to 5.09 with a mediocre performance today, and he lost his second game of the year. Keuchel surrendered four earned runs in six innings, and he surrendered six runs overall. Carlos Corporan and Jose Altuve made errors for the Astros, and Altuve’s was costly.

Keuchel started the game by tossing three sharp innings, but he fell apart in the fourth inning. A throwing error by Altuve allowed Cespedes to open the inning at second, and Josh Donaldson plated him with a single to center field. The hit parade continued with a single by Jed Lowrie and a double by Seth Smith, which brought Cespedes home. After Smith’s two-bagger, Freiman came up to the plate and delivered with a double of his own.

Coco Crisp brought Freiman home with an RBI single, which marked the end of Oakland’s offensive onslaught in the fourth inning. However, Freiman wasn’t done with Keuchel. He stepped up to the plate in the sixth inning and took advantage of a mistake from Keuchel, taking it deep to left field for a home run.

Colon shut down the Astros’ offense all day, as no one scored a run off of him. Ryan Cook surrendered two runs in the eighth, but the A’s still led comfortably. Sean Doolittle closed out the game with ease for the A’s, and Oakland was able to win 6-2. Now, the A’s have a four-game series with the San Francisco Giants, where they will have more trouble winning.

Despite Oakland’s hot streak, it’s five games behind the 32-17 Rangers. To catch up to Texas, the A’s will have to keep winning. They won’t be playing the 14-36 Astros every day, which definitely makes an impact. Houston has had no luck against the A’s this year, as you can see from its miserable record against the A’s.

Dan Straily, who carved up the Rangers in his last outing, will pitch tomorrow, and unfortunately for him, he won’t be facing the Astros. Even though the A’s won’t be playing Houston, if Oakland’s red-hot offense can keep rolling, the A’s will continue winning.