Kurtz makes more history, Butler breaks out in A's balanced win

HOUSTON – One night after a performance for the ages from Nick Kurtz, all eyes were on the Athletics rookie first baseman Saturday night to see what he might have in store for an encore.

It took one inning for Kurtz to make some more history. Walked on five pitches by Astros All-Star starter Hunter Brown in the first, Kurtz scored all the way from first one batter later on a double by Brent Rooker. Having scored six runs on Friday night -- just the ninth such game in MLB history -- Kurtz became the first A’s player to score seven runs in a two-game span since Jason Giambi in 2000.

• Kurtz's bat bound for Cooperstown after historic four-homer night

“Great baserunning read by Nick,” manager Mark Kotsay said. “That ball’s up in the air with only one out and he’s able to read the distance and get it around second base to give himself a chance to score and give us a lead.”

Comparatively speaking, Kurtz had a much tamer performance, at least for his standards. The rookie first baseman reached base three times with two singles and a walk, pushing his hitting streak to 13 games.

Instead of a one-man wrecking crew, Saturday’s 5-1 victory over the Astros at Daikin Park was the result of a balanced team effort. Jacob Lopez held Houston scoreless through 4 1/3 innings; then came the A’s bullpen, which saw the trio of Justin Sterner, Sean Newcomb and Mason Miller combine for 4 2/3 innings of one-run ball.

“Stern came in and got a huge out, then Newcomb and Mason,” said Lopez, whose pitch count reached 95 as he navigated through four walks and two hits. “The bullpen picked me up big again.”

After a tightly contested eight innings with the A’s holding a one-run lead, Lawrence Butler delivered the biggest swing of the night, providing important insurance in the top of the ninth in the form of a majestic 403-foot three-run blast off Héctor Neris.

“It felt amazing,” Butler said. “I feel like we had good at-bats all day. It was just huge to be able to come up in the ninth and get us the win.”

Butler’s clutch home run was as big for the team on a single-game level as it was for his own confidence. Since the All-Star break, Butler was 2-for-32 heading into that ninth-inning at-bat. Earlier this week, the A’s outfielder opened up about his frustrations over his second-half struggles.

Butler is an emotional player. The 25-year-old expects greatness from himself and prides himself on coming through for the A’s in big moments, much like Saturday. Of course, succeeding in every situation is unrealistic, which is why Kotsay said the club has been working closely with him to get a better handle on those moments of failure.

“Lawrence has been grinding,” Kotsay said. “He’s going through those ups and downs of a season, and that can be challenging. He’s one player who wears the failure really hard. He takes it really personally. He feels like he’s failing the team. For him to come up in that at-bat, the biggest adjustment that I’ve seen Lawrence make over the last two weeks or since the All-Star break is dealing with the failure and being able to just let it go.”

Butler was hitless in his four previous at-bats prior to the homer, which came on a 1-2 fastball inside he impressively turned on for a no-doubter that clanked off the second deck beyond right field.

“That fifth at-bat was a result of just letting those previous at-bats go and staying locked in,” Kotsay said. “Knowing that you’re going to grind an at-bat and get a result. It was a big result for us.”

Much like the current heater that Kurtz is on, Butler has proven capable of going on scorching runs of his own. Last year, Butler slashed .302/.346/.597 over his final 73 games with 20 homers, 18 doubles, two triples, 49 RBIs and 14 stolen bases. That monster stretch featured a pair of three-homer games.

The numbers might not be as extraordinary so far this year, but Butler is still on pace for a 20-20 season with 15 homers and 17 stolen bases, serving as a steady table-setter atop the A’s lineup.

“I’m just taking it day by day,” Butler said. “Not trying to get too high or too low. Just knowing, regardless of what I do, there’s still eight other players out there grinding their [butts] off. I’m just trying to stay behind them.”