Bailey Ober tosses 4-hitter and strikes out 10 in 1st career complete game as Twins rout A's 10-2

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Bailey Ober struck out 10 in a four-hitter for his first career complete game and the Minnesota Twins used a seven-run second inning to rout the Oakland Athletics 10-2 on Saturday.

Ober (7-4) needed just 89 pitches to finish the game while tying a career high in strikeouts and walking none. It was the fewest pitches in a complete game by a Twins pitcher since Carlos Silva in 2005.

Ober allowed two runs on solo homers by JJ Bleday and Tyler Soderstrom in the first two innings. The 28-year-old threw just 19 balls, his performance eliciting a Greg Maddux-like comparison from A's manager Mark Kotsay and praise from his skipper Rocco Baldelli.

Baldelli said he looked up in the eighth inning and saw Ober had thrown under 20 balls.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen that in my life, and I've seen some exceptional pitching performances," Baldelli said. “It was just nothing but effectiveness everywhere you looked.”

Ober got A's batters to swing early in the count, and his offspeed pitches were effective. Ober also faced the A's in Minnesota last week, allowing a run in 6 1/3 innings in a win, and noticed their aggressiveness — which he took advantage of Saturday.

He noted a complete game as a “personal goal,” and it was his first since pitching at the College of Charleston.

“As a starting pitcher, that’s the goal every single game, is to go out there and finish the whole game,” Ober said.

After the seventh inning, Ober told pitching coach Pete Maki: “I'm finishing this thing.” He had a lot more energy left, striking out the side in the eighth and the leadoff hitter in the ninth.

“He just got the lead, pounded the zone and made us beat him,” Kotsay said. “We didn’t have any success with that.”

Manuel Margot hit a three-run homer in Minnesota's big inning against JP Sears (4-7). Jose Miranda and Carlos Correa each had three hits for the Twins, who snapped a three-game skid.

The A’s had won three of four before Saturday’s defeat in front of an announced crowd of 9,299.

Margot, who got his 700th career hit on a leadoff single in the first, blasted his three-run shot to kick off the scoring in the second. The Twins sent 12 batters to the plate in the inning, with the first six reaching base and tied a season-high for runs in an inning. Every batter in the starting lineup except for Carlos Santana had a hit.

Sears, who has lost four straight starts, lasted just 1 1/3 innings while allowing eight runs and nine hits. He also hit three batters, including consecutive hitters in the first that forced in a run. Sears has struggled against the Twins, also losing to them last week when he allowed four runs in 4.1 innings.

“At one point in the game, they were firing swing after swing at balls in the zone, and we saw that throughout the game,” Kotsay said. “Real tough day for JP and one that we’ll just turn the page on.”

After Margot’s homer in the second, Miranda – who also had three RBIs – knocked in a pair to make it 6-1. Byron Buxton and Kyle Farmer each had RBI singles to cap the seven-run frame.

Bleday, whose solo homer tied it for the A’s at 1 in the first, extended his hitting streak to a career-best 11 games.

Soderstrom's homer in the second cut Oakland's deficit to 8-2.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Twins: OF Max Kepler (neck spasms) was not in the lineup for the second straight game after leaving Thursday’s game while sliding headfirst into first base. Baldelli said Kepler felt better Friday and was available off the bench.

Athletics: IF Abraham Toro (strained right hamstring) was placed on the 10-day injured list and IF Armando Alvarez was selected from Triple-A Las Vegas in a corresponding move. Alvarez entered the game in the eighth as a defensive replacement, making his MLB debut.

UP NEXT

LHP Hogan Harris (1-0, 2.37 ERA) is scheduled to start for the A's against RHP Pablo Lopez (6-6, 5.63 ERA) for the Twins in the final game of the three-game series.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Minnesota Twins' Byron Buxton (25) runs to third during the second inning of a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics in Oakland, Calif,. Saturday, June 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Minnesota Twins' Jose Miranda hits a single during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics in Oakland, Calif,. Saturday, June 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Oakland Athletics pitcher JP Sears (38) throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins in Oakland, Calif,. Saturday, June 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Minnesota Twins pitcher Bailey Ober (17) throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics in Oakland, Calif,. Satruday, June 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Minnesota Twins Royce Lewis (23) slides into home to score as Oakland Athletics catcher Kyle McCann fields the late throw during the second inning of a baseball game in Oakland, Calif,. Saturday, June 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Oakland Athletics pitcher JP Sears (38) walks off the mound after leaving the game during the second inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins in Oakland, Calif,. Saturday, June 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Oakland Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom (21) celebrates as he rounds third after hitting a home run during the second inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins in Oakland, Calif,. Saturday, June 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Oakland Athletics pitcher JP Sears throws during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins in Oakland, Calif,. Saturday, June 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Minnesota Twins' Byron Buxton (25) shakes hands with' Manuel Margot (13) after Margot scored during the first inning of a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics in Oakland, Calif,. Saturday, June 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Minnesota Twins pitcher Bailey Ober (17) throws during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics in Oakland, Calif,. Saturday, June 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

Minnesota Twins pitcher Bailey Ober celebrates after throwing a complete game for a win following a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics in Oakland, Calif,. Saturday, June 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

DORTMUND, Germany (AP) — Here’s a quiz question: What do the 2022 World Cup final, the 2021 African Cup of Nations final, the 2020 European Championship final and the 2016 Copa America final have in common?

Answer: They were all settled by a penalty shootout.

Like it or not, the shootout — that tense battle of wills over 12 yards (11 meters) — has increasingly become a huge part of soccer, an unavoidable feature of the knockout stage in the biggest competitions.

Added to the laws of the game in 1970, penalty shootouts have marred careers (Roberto Baggio has never gotten over his miss in the 1994 World Cup final), spawned pizza adverts (Gareth Southgate starred in one after his decisive failure from the spot at Euro 1996) and, in Lionel Messi’s case at the most recent World Cup, earned a win that definitively secures a player a place in the pantheon of soccer greats.

It’s why those who delve into the psychology and science of soccer are perplexed why this tiebreaker system has been — and continues to be — overlooked by many teams, especially in these data-driven times.

“There are so many things you can do to prepare your team for penalties, to train them for penalties, to help your players and team cope with the pressure of penalties,” says Geir Jordet, professor at the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences and author of the recently published book, “Pressure: Lessons from the Psychology of the Penalty Shootout.”

“You can do this as an individual, as a team, as a manager,” he said.

The theory that penalty shootouts are a “lottery” is well worn and oft-repeated, with recently departed Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino saying just that in December after winning a cup game.

Johan Cruyff, the late Dutch maestro, gave short shrift to the idea that teams can prepare for spot kicks.

“Taking penalties in training is useless,” he said in 2000. “The penalty is a unique skill outside of football.”

Cruyff subscribed to the philosophy that a player can never simulate the pressure of a penalty shootout — that initial wait in the center circle, that long walk to the penalty spot, those few seconds face-to-face with the goalkeeper — on the training field.

Just this year, France coach Didier Deschamps railed against an attempt by the French Football Federation to come up with an initiative to improve the team’s performance in shootouts. France lost in them in the last 16 at Euro 2020 and in the 2022 World Cup final against Argentina.

“I’m convinced — and my past as a player gives me this information — that it’s impossible,” Deschamps said, “to recreate a situation, on a psychological level, between training and a match.”

Jordet acknowledged that, but said it’s “absurd” to not try to simulate these pressure situations in training.

“There are studies showing that training with mild anxiety will prepare you and help you perform better under conditions of high anxiety,” he said, before looking at other professions and areas of work.

“If you look at military training — in peacetime, which is what we’re used to, should they train for war activities and the pressure and stress of being in a conflict, or should they just sit back and say we cannot simulate the pressure and the stress of being in an active firefight? That’s absurd. It’s the same case with pilots or if you look at surgeons or ER doctors.”

Jordet has looked specifically at penalty shootouts at the last World Cup and how coaches managed the two minutes they had with their players between extra time finishing and the shootout starting. He noted the winning teams, “without exception,” were those whose coaches took the shortest time giving their instructions.

In the final, Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni’s nomination process took 15 seconds, Jordet said, because his team was prepared.

“Deschamps,” Jordet added, “spent almost 20 seconds considering who should take the shot for each of his penalty takers, looking around, showing basically how little clarity he had about what to do. It was probably something his players would pick up on as well.”

EUROS HISTORY

There have been 22 shootouts at the Euros, including four in 1996 and 2020. Of the 232 shots taken in the shootouts, 178 were successful — a 76.7% success rate. That fits the data models which typically say the expected success of a penalty is 0.76 (that is, 76 out of 100 penalties would typically be scored).

GO FIRST OR SECOND?

So much for the widely held perception that the team going second in a shootout is at a disadvantage for being under extra pressure. The latest major study of penalties, covering men's competitions in European soccer over the last 11 years, showed the winning percentage of the team shooting first in penalty kicks was 48.83. Jordet said the advantage has “progressively and dramatically shrunk” compared to older research, some of which said there was around a 60% chance of the team going first winning.

TEAM ORDERS

That same study showed the first kick is scored in shootouts more often than any other (nearly 84%) and is typically delivered by the most reliable penalty taker. Messi and Kylian Mbappé took the first two kicks in the World Cup final shootout, for example. The likelihood of success by a team's second taker dips to as low as around 72%, the study says, while the fifth kicker of the team shooting second hasn't gotten to take a penalty in 43.26% of shootouts. Placing your best taker at No. 5 in the list is dangerous, then — just ask Cristiano Ronaldo, who never got to take a penalty when Portugal lost a shootout to Spain in the Euro 2012 semifinals, and Mohamed Salah, who was left stranded as his Egypt team lost the African Cup of Nations final in 2021.

TACTICS

Watch out for gamesmanship around shootouts or regular penalties. Opponents have been seen attempting to scuff the turf around the spot in hopes of causing the taker to slip. That has led on some occasions to players from the team awarded the penalty gathering around the spot to protect the turf. Another recent phenomenon is one player holding onto the ball near the spot when a penalty has been awarded and then passing it, at the last minute, to the teammate taking the kick. “It’s about making the individual act of shooting a penalty into a collective team performance,” Jordet said. There also have been numerous examples of back-up goalkeepers or outfield players being brought on as a substitute late in extra time because they have a better record in penalties than the regular starter. See Netherlands goalkeeper Tim Krul at the 2014 World Cup and Australia goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne in qualifying for the 2022 World Cup.

NEW TECHNIQUE

There’s a new dominant penalty technique — and it’s not for the faint-hearted. It involves the taker approaching the ball and waiting for the goalkeeper to make the first move. What invariably becomes a stutter-step routine has been called the “goalkeeper-dependent technique” by experts like Jordet. “It’s very sophisticated and hard to perform when the pressure’s truly on,” he said. “If you’re competent at executing this technique, this will effectively delete the risk factor of the goalkeeper going in the right direction and your odds suddenly going down.” Poland captain Robert Lewandowski has been using it since 2016 — and used it against France on Tuesday — and Harry Kane is a recent adopter.

PROVEN PEDIGREE

History suggests Germany might be the best penalty-taking team in Europe, having won all six of its shootouts since losing the European Championship’s first to Czechoslovakia in the 1976 final. Conversely, there’s England, which has had so many penalty heartaches down the years — not least in the last Euro final — in its 2-7 overall record. The Netherlands (2-6) hasn’t fared much better.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

FILE - Senegal's Sadio Mane, top left, and teammates celebrate after scoring the winning penalty at the end of the African Cup of Nations 2022 final soccer match between Senegal and Egypt at the Ahmadou Ahidjo stadium in Yaounde, Cameroon, Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022. The penalty shootout is a tense battle of wills over 12 yards (11 meters) that has increasingly become a huge part of soccer and an unavoidable feature of the knockout stage in the biggest competitions. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe, File)

FILE -Egyptian players react after the African Cup of Nations 2022 final soccer match between Senegal and Egypt at the Ahmadou Ahidjo stadium in Yaounde, Cameroon, Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022. The penalty shootout is a tense battle of wills over 12 yards (11 meters) that has increasingly become a huge part of soccer and an unavoidable feature of the knockout stage in the biggest competitions. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba, File)

England's Bukayo Saka, center, is comforted after he missed to score the last penalty during the penalty shootout of the Euro 2020 soccer championship final between England and Italy at Wembley stadium in London, Sunday, July 11, 2021. The penalty shootout is a tense battle of wills over 12 yards (11 meters) that has increasingly become a huge part of soccer and an unavoidable feature of the knockout stage in the biggest competitions. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, Pool, File)

FILE -England's goalkeeper Jordan Pickford saves a penalty shot y Italy's Andrea Belotti during the penalty shootout during the Euro 2020 soccer final match between England and Italy at Wembley stadium in London, Sunday, July 11, 2021. The penalty shootout is a tense battle of wills over 12 yards (11 meters) that has increasingly become a huge part of soccer and an unavoidable feature of the knockout stage in the biggest competitions. (Andy Rain/Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE - Argentinian players celebrate after winning penalty shootout during the World Cup final soccer match between Argentina and France at the Lusail Stadium in Lusail, Qatar, Sunday, Dec. 18, 2022. The penalty shootout is a tense battle of wills over 12 yards (11 meters) that has increasingly become a huge part of soccer and an unavoidable feature of the knockout stage in the biggest competitions. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek, File)

FILE - Argentina's head coach Lionel Scaloni motivates his players in extra time of the World Cup final soccer match between Argentina and France at the Lusail Stadium in Lusail, Qatar, Sunday, Dec. 18, 2022. The penalty shootout is a tense battle of wills over 12 yards (11 meters) that has increasingly become a huge part of soccer and an unavoidable feature of the knockout stage in the biggest competitions. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis, File)

FILE - France's head coach Didier Deschamps talks with players before the start of the extra time during the World Cup final soccer match between Argentina and France at the Lusail Stadium in Lusail, Qatar, Sunday, Dec. 18, 2022. The penalty shootout is a tense battle of wills over 12 yards (11 meters) that has increasingly become a huge part of soccer and an unavoidable feature of the knockout stage in the biggest competitions. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar, File)

FILE - In this Sunday, June 26, 2016 photo, Argentina's Lionel Messi reacts to losing 4-2 to Chile in penalty kicks during the Copa America Centenario championship soccer match, in East Rutherford, N.J. The penalty shootout is a tense battle of wills over 12 yards (11 meters) that has increasingly become a huge part of soccer and an unavoidable feature of the knockout stage in the biggest competitions. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)

FILE - Argentina's Lionel Messi misses his shot during penalty kicks in the Copa America Centenario championship soccer match, Sunday, June 26, 2016, in East Rutherford, N.J. Chile defeated Argentina 4-2- in penalty kicks. The penalty shootout is a tense battle of wills over 12 yards (11 meters) that has increasingly become a huge part of soccer and an unavoidable feature of the knockout stage in the biggest competitions. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)

FILE -Poland's Robert Lewandowski retakes his penalty kick to score during a Group D match between the France and Poland at the Euro 2024 soccer tournament in Dortmund, Germany, Tuesday, June 25, 2024. The penalty shootout is a tense battle of wills over 12 yards (11 meters) that has increasingly become a huge part of soccer and an unavoidable feature of the knockout stage in the biggest competitions. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits, File)

FILE - Argentina's Gonzalo Montiel, right, scores the winning penalty during a shootout to win the World Cup final soccer match against France at the Lusail Stadium in Lusail, Qatar, Sunday, Dec. 18, 2022. The penalty shootout is a tense battle of wills over 12 yards (11 meters) that has increasingly become a huge part of soccer and an unavoidable feature of the knockout stage in the biggest competitions. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco, File)

FILE - England's Harry Kane left, shoots to score past Italy's goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma during penalty shootout of the Euro 2020 soccer championship final match between England and Italy at Wembley Stadium in London, Sunday, July 11, 2021. The penalty shootout is a tense battle of wills over 12 yards (11 meters) that has increasingly become a huge part of soccer and an unavoidable feature of the knockout stage in the biggest competitions. (Paul Ellis/Pool via AP, File)