An unusually large crowd attended an Oakland Athletics home game.

The Athletics defeated the 2023 Major League Baseball Tampa Bay Rays 2-1 on Thursday (April 14) at Levi’s Central Coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

The Athletics extended their winning streak to seven games, dating back to June 6 against the Pittsburgh Pirates, against Tampa Bay (0.686), the best winning percentage team in the majors. With a .275 winning percentage, they moved out of last place in the majors, ahead of the Kansas City Royals (0.269), who have lost eight straight.메이저사이트

The Athletics were led by opener Shintaro Fujinami, who pitched one inning of one-hit ball with one strikeout, before Hogan Harris picked up his second win of the season with seven innings of four-hit ball with two strikeouts and one run. Trevor May pitched one scoreless inning in the ninth.

Tampa Bay took a 1-0 lead in the fifth inning on Manuel Margot’s RBI single, but the Athletics tied the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the seventh on Brent Rooker’s RBI double with one out. The Athletics took the lead in the bottom of the eighth when Carlos Perez hit a grounder to third base that scored Ramon Laureano from third.

The Athletics remain in last place in the American League West at 19-50 despite winning seven straight games. They are 15.5 games back of fourth-place Seattle. Prior to their seven-game winning streak, they were the worst offense in the majors with a .194 winning percentage. Their seven-game winning streak is remarkable in its own right.

But there was something else that was amazing about this game. There were 27,759 fans in attendance at the Coliseum. According to Major League Baseball’s official website, the Coliseum’s season average attendance prior to this game was 8,555, which is more than triple the average.

That’s because of the reverse boycott. The Athletics, who settled in Oakland in 1968, have recently pushed for a move. Oakland specifically requested public funding from the Nevada State Legislature to build a new stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Senate approved the move on Thursday, with the condition that the Athletics return a portion of their revenue to the community each year.

Angered by the club’s unilateral move to the new stadium without consulting local residents, local fans showed up at the stadium with signs that read “SELL” to protest the move and want the owners to leave. After the game, numerous water bottles were thrown onto the field.

Calling it a “reverse boycott,” CBS Sports said, “The Athletics have averaged just 3,913 fans for their five Tuesday home games this season, but there was an unusually large turnout on this day. Fans criticized the team for ignoring them over the relocation issue.”

Still, the Athletics’ popularity is low and their baseball is poor. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said in April that Oakland’s unpopularity “may be a case of the chicken or the egg.” The Athletics could be on their way out in a few years.