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		A’s lose to Rangers, 9-1 By George Devine, Sr. August 12, 2011

	The AL West-leading Rangers arrived at the Coliseum and made the opening game of the series into the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, allowing only one Oakland run and batting around in a six-run second inning. The A’s starter, Brandon McCarthy, gets the loss and is now 5-6 with a 3.62 ERA. He also was forced to leave the game in the fourth when Endy Chavez hit a double off the pitcher’s right knee. The ball was hit with such force that it went into foul ground as Chavez went to second. The injury has been described as a contusion. Trystan Magnuson relieved McCarthy and gave up an RBI single to Ian Kinsler. Elvis Andrus got a base on balls and – after Josh Hamilton flied out – Michael Young’s base hit to center field drove in Kinsler and an error by right fielder David DeJesus plated Andrus. Young had started the scoring in the second with a triple to the right field wall just below the out-of-town scoreboard. Nelson Cruz singled, then he reached second and Mike Napoli took first on an error by shortstop Cliff Pennington. Base hits by Mitch Moreland, Yorvit Torrealba and Chavez rounded out the six-run onslaught. The Athletics’ run came off starter C.J. Wilson, who was the winner (11-5, 3.28). It was in the sixth when Josh Willingham and Conor Jackson both doubled. The two teams meet next at 1:10 p.m. PDT on Saturday, August 13 with Trevor Cahill (9-10, 3.93) facing fellow RHP Colby Lewis (10-8, 4.12). Phil Garner, former long-time manager with the Milwaukee Brewers, Detroit Tigers and Houston Astros, has been named a special advisor to the Oakland Athletics, team General Manager Billy Beane announced today. He will be with the Major League club periodically over the remainder of the 2011 season. Garner, who will be in uniform tonight to provide pre-game evaluation and instruction prior to the A’s series opener against Texas at the Coliseum, returns to where his Major League playing career began in 1973. Originally a first-round draft pick by the A’s in 1971, Garner spent the first four seasons (1973-76) of his 16-year playing career in Oakland. The Jefferson, Tenn. native posted a 985-1054 record (.483) as a major league manager during 15 seasons with Milwaukee (1992-99), Detroit (2000-02) and Houston (2004-07). He directed the Brewers to a 92-70 record and second place finish in his initial campaign of 1992, then later joined Houston in midseason and steered the Astros to a 48-26 mark (.629) and the National League Wild-Card playoff berth in 2004. The next season, he led Houston to an 89-73 record (.549) and the franchise’s first-ever World Series appearance, losing to the Chicago White Sox. In three-and-a-half seasons in Houston, Garner piloted the team to a 277-252 (.524) mark. Garner, 62, played parts of 16 seasons in the majors as an infielder, compiling a .260 lifetime batting average with 299 doubles, 82 triples, 109 home runs, 738 RBI and 225 stolen bases with Oakland, Pittsburgh (1977-81), Houston (1981-87), the Los Angeles Dodgers (1987) and San Francisco (1988). He was a member of the Pirates’ 1979 World Series championship team, hitting .417 in the National League Championship Series and then crowning his season by batting .500 (12 for 24) in the World Series. A three-time All-Star (’76, ’80 and ’81), Garner made history with the A’s when he delivered the 10,000th hit in Oakland history against the California Angels on June 27, 1975. The A’s have agreed to terms with their third round pick from the 2011 First-Year Player Draft, third baseman B.A. Vollmuth from Southern Mississippi. Vollmuth batted .301 with 12 home runs and 49 RBI in 55 games for the Golden Eagles, earning First Team All-Conference USA honors for the second consecutive season. The 6-3, 215-pound junior batted .386 with 20 home runs and 76 RBI in 60 games as a sophomore in 2010. The A’s have now signed or agreed to terms with 27 players from the draft, including each of their first six picks and 20 of their first 25. The deadline for signing drafted players is Monday, Aug. 15 at 9:00 p.m. PDT.