This Oakland Athletics' Starter Just Made Franchise History as Team Wins Again

The Oakland Athletics won again on Friday night, defeating the Washington Nationals in extra-innings by a score of 2-1. In the win, A's pitcher Paul Blackburn did something never done before in franchise history.

Apr 12, 2024; Oakland, California, USA; Washington Nationals catcher and baserunner Riley Adams (15) / Robert Edwards-USA TODAY Sports

The Oakland Athletics beat the Washington Nationals on Friday night, 2-1, in extra innings. With the win, the A's move to a surprising 6-8 on the season while the loss dropped Washington to 5-8.

Though he didn't factor into the decision, A's pitcher Paul Blackburn put together another sterling effort, going 6.1 scoreless innings. He gave up just five hits and two walks while striking out four.

The scoreless performance put him at the top of some very impressive team history, according to Sarah Langs of MLB.com:

Paul Blackburn is the first pitcher in A’s franchise history with scoreless starts in each of his first three outings in a season

Paul Blackburn is the first pitcher in A’s franchise history with scoreless starts in each of his first three outings in a season

— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) April 13, 2024

Considering that the A's have had great pitchers like Dave Stewart, Barry Zito, Tim Hudson, Frankie Montas and others on staffs before, this is a big accomplishment for Blackburn.

The 30-year-old, who has battled injury over the last few years, is now 1-0 with the 0.00 ERA. He's 18-24 lifetime with a 4.64. He made his debut in 2017 and has only pitched for Oakland in his career. He won a career-high seven games back in the 2022 season.

The A's and Nationals will do battle again on Saturday afternoon with the first pitch coming at 4:07 from the Colisseum. Left-hander MacKenzie Gore, a former top prospect, will go for Washington. He's 1-0 with a 4.09 ERA on the season. Joe Boyle pitches for Oakland. He's 1-1 with an 8.22 ERA thus far. He's 3-1 lifetime in just five career appearances.

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