Athletics 12, Rangers 1
Jesse Chavez allowed one hit and struck out eight in seven shutout innings, and Eric Sogard recorded three RBIs - including a two-run single to cap a seven-run third inning - as visiting Oakland swept the three-game series from Texas.
Chavez (2-0) allowed only a single to Prince Fielder in the first and walked the Rangers slugger in the fourth. Yoenis Cespedes drove in a pair of runs for the Athletics, who batted around twice in totaling 17 hits and outscored Texas 25-4 after getting swept in a three-game series by the Rangers last week.
Red-hot Derek Norris and Alberto Callaspo each had three hits and drove in a run while Coco Crisp (home run) and Josh Donaldson had two hits and an RBI apiece for Oakland. Robbie Ross (1-2) yielded 10 runs (six earned) and 11 hits in 3 1/3 innings for Texas, which committed four errors in losing its fourth straight game.
The Athletics matched their highest-scoring inning of the season when they sent 11 men to the plate in the third, with Donaldson starting the uprising with an RBI single and Cespedes' two-run double with one out giving Oakland a 3-0 lead. Sogard's two-out single to left was the sixth hit of the frame and made it 7-0.
The Athletics also batted around in the fourth, with two of their three runs coming on a play that summed up Texas' night. Norris hit a grounder to third which handcuffed Adrian Beltre, who threw wild to first allowing Craig Gentry to score; when Alex Rios retrieved the ball and threw it past catcher J.P. Arencibia, Cespedes trotted home.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Oakland's overall record (18-10) and road mark (12-4) are the best in the American League. ... Norris is 13-for-22 with six RBIs during his seven-game hitting streak. ... The Rangers' Dan Robertson recorded his first major-league hit in the ninth when Callaspo let his slow roller try to go foul, but it struck third base.