Ross Stripling earns his first win since 2022 as Athletics blank Pirates 4

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Ross Stripling threw six strong scoreless innings to earn his first win in nearly two years, and the Oakland Athletics hit two home runs to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-0 on Wednesday to complete their first series sweep of the season.

Abraham Toro and Tyler Nevin both went deep to help the A’s to their fourth straight victory in front of another sparse crowd of 4,679 at the Coliseum. Kyle McCann added two hits and an RBI.

Stripling (1-5), acquired from San Francisco in the offseason, had lost 10 consecutive decisions for the A’s and Giants before putting the clamps on the Pirates offense. The veteran right-hander allowed three hits, had two strikeouts and retired the final seven batters he faced to gain his first win since Oct. 1, 2022.

“Last year ... I felt like I had no room for error,” Stripling said. “I felt like if I missed with anything, especially fastballs over the plate, it was damage every time. I feel like I’ve thrown the ball well this year. Some outings I haven’t been able to finish as strong as I would have liked, but today was a good one.”