OAKLAND—The Oakland Athletics took a 6-4 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday, July, 26, after jumping out to an quick lead and forcing Shohei Ohtani to retire early.

A five-run first inning gave Oakland the run support needed to keep the contest out of reach. In his first pitching appearance since undergoing Tommy John surgery in September 2018, Ohtani was subdued quickly by the A’s offense as the pitcher failed to record an out during the start.

Following a leadoff single to Marcus Semien, Ohtani gave up three consecutive walks the next three at-bats, allowing the A’s to take an easy 1-0 advantage. The ensuing two batters capitalized on the scoring opportunities. Mark Canha drove in two runs with a single while Robbie Grossman put the finishing touches on Ohtani’s afternoon with an RBI-single of his own.

Matt Andriese pitched in relief and managed to force the first batter he faced into a double play. A run would score however in place of the defensive play. Andriese struck out the next batter, ending the disastrous first inning for Los Angeles.

Ohtani came into the season expecting to be the team’s Sunday starter while also batting DH, a plan manager Joe Maddon hopes to follow still despite the two-way player’s latest outing.

The Athletic’s lead would be too much for the Angel’s to surmount, but Mike Trout made the game interesting despite the losing efforts.

Trout closed the gap with a three-run home run in the third inning. During his next at-bat, he contributed a sacrifice RBI with a flyout to center field, making the score 5-4 in the fifth. The Angels would fail to earn another run for the remainder of the game. Trout went 2-3 at the plate to go along with his four RBIs and a home run.

Sean Murphy gave Oakland insurance with a solo home run in the sixth inning. Anthony Rendon has yet to make an appearance with the Angels as the newly acquired third-baseman is nursing an oblique injury.

The Athletics will host the Angels on Monday, July, 27, for the series finale of the four-game series. The first pitch is scheduled to be thrown at 12:40 P.M. at the Oakland Coliseum.