Rangers 10 - 1 Athletics
Final
  for this game

A's give ball to Graveman in finale with Rangers

Apr 9, 2015 - 11:38 AM (SportsNetwork.com) - Oakland right-hander Kendall Graveman makes his first major league start on Thursday when the Athletics wrap up their four-game series with the Texas Rangers at the Coliseum.

Graveman, 24, shot through four levels of the Toronto Blue Jays minor league system last season and made five relief appearances for them at the big league level. Considered a longshot to make the A's out of camp, Graveman forced the issue, compiling a 0.36 ERA in 25 1/3 spring innings

"When you watch him pitch out there, hes pretty unemotional," Oakland skipper Bob Melvin told the Sacramento Bee. "He reads swings really well, he thinks the game really well out there on the mound. You see him pitch, you don think hes that young."

Texas, meanwhile, will turn to a 24-year-old righty of its own in Nick Martinez, who begins his second year with the Rangers. Martinez appeared in 29 games (24 starts) for the Rangers last season and was 5-12 with a 4.55 ERA.

Martinez faced the A's four times (3 starts) and is 1-1 with a 2.53 ERA.

Oakland gained the upper hand in the season-opening set on Wednesday, as Mark Canha and Tyler Ladendorf were impressive in their MLB debuts, and Scott Kazmir was strong on the mound in the Athletics' 10-0 win.

Canha finished 3-for-5 with two doubles, four RBI and a run scored, while Ladendorf hit an RBI triple, brought in another with a fielder's choice and scored twice.

Cody Ross, who was signed by Oakland prior to the game, brought in two runs. Kazmir (1-0) earned the win after surrendering just one hit and two walks with a career-high 10 strikeouts over seven scoreless innings.

"Everyone stepped up, swing the bats well, and of course (Kazmir) threw outstanding," Ross said. "It was a nice ice-breaker for me and some of the rookies."

Ross Detwiler (0-1), making his first start with Texas after being acquired from Washington during the offseason, was tagged with the loss after giving up eight runs -- six earned -- on nine hits and two walks over 4 1/3 frames.

"I definitely thought the debut with a new team would go a lot better," Detwiler said.

Texas was 10-9 versus the A's last season.






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