Athletics beat Orioles 5-1 to win their first series in more than a month

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Max Muncy homered and Jacob Wilson and Tyler Soderstrom each had two hits and an RBI as the Athletics beat the Baltimore Orioles 5-1 on Sunday to win their first series in more than a month.

Sean Newcomb (1-4) struck out three in three scoreless innings in relief of starter Jacob Lopez for the win. Grant Holman pitched a scoreless eighth and Mason Miller tossed a 1-2-3 ninth to end it.

The A's last won a series May 2-4 when they took two of three against Miami. They hadn't won a series at home since they won two of three against the Chicago White Sox from April 25-27.

The Athletics took a 1-0 lead off Orioles starter Tomoyuki Sugano in the first inning after Lawrence Butler led off with a base hit before scoring on Soderstrom's two-out single.

A throwing error by catcher Jhonny Pereda on a pickoff attempt led to an unearned run off Lopez as the Orioles tied it in the second.

Pereda atoned for the errant throw with a go-ahead RBI double in the Athletics' second. Butler drove in a run on a fielder's choice before Wilson singled to make it 4-1.

Muncy led off the eighth against Bryan Baker with his third homer for the final run.

Lopez allowed four hits in four innings and struck out five before giving way to Newcomb.

Sugano (5-4) allowed four runs — three earned — and eight hits in 4 1/3 innings. Scott Blewett, reacquired by Baltimore on Friday from Atlanta, followed and retired all five batters he faced.

The Orioles were coming off a three-game sweep of the Mariners in Seattle.

Pereda's RBI double recaptured the momentum and gave the A's the lead for good.

Wilson finished 2 for 4 and has multiple hits in five straight games and seven overall while going 20 for 40 during a nine-game hitting streak. The rookie shortstop raised his batting average to .372 and trails only the Yankees' Aaron Judge, who began the day hitting .390.

The Athletics will play three against the Los Angeles Angels beginning Monday. Neither team announced a starter.

The Orioles head home for six games and hadn't announced a starter for the first of three against the Tigers beginning Tuesday. Detroit will start RHP Sawyer Gipson-Long (0-0, 7.36).

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Baltimore Orioles pitcher Tomoyuki Sugano throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Athletics on Sunday, June 8, 2025, in West Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Sara Nevis)

Athletics pitcher Jacob Lopez throws to the Baltimore Orioles during the first inning of a baseball game Sunday, June 8, 2025, in West Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Sara Nevis)

Athletics first baseman Tyler Soderstrom (21) attempts to force out Baltimore Orioles' Adley Rutschman (35) during the fifth inning of a baseball game Sunday, June 8, 2025, in West Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Sara Nevis)

Athletics' Denzel Clarke celebrates in the dugout after scoring during the second inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles Sunday, June 8, 2025, in West Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Sara Nevis)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is meeting with oil executives at the White House on Friday in hopes of securing $100 billion in investments to revive Venezuela’s ability to fully tap into its expansive reserves of petroleum — a plan that rides on their comfort in making commitments in a country plagued by instability, inflation and uncertainty.

Since the U.S. military raid to capture former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro on Saturday, Trump has quickly pivoted to portraying the move as a newfound economic opportunity for the U.S., seizing tankers carrying Venezuelan oil, saying the U.S. is taking over the sales of 30 million to 50 million barrels of previously sanctioned Venezuelan oil and will be controlling sales worldwide indefinitely.

On Friday, U.S. forces seized their fifth tanker over the past month that has been linked to Venezuelan oil. The action reflected the determination of the U.S. to fully control the exporting, refining and production of Venezuelan petroleum, a sign of the Trump administration's plans for ongoing involvement in the sector as it seeks commitments from private companies.

It's all part of a broader push by Trump to keep gasoline prices low. At a time when many Americans are concerned about affordability, the incursion in Venezuela melds Trump’s assertive use of presidential powers with an optical spectacle meant to convince Americans that he can bring down energy prices.

The meeting, set for 2:30 p.m. EST, will be open to the news media, according to an update to the president's daily schedule. “At least 100 Billion Dollars will be invested by BIG OIL, all of whom I will be meeting with today at The White House,” Trump said Friday in a pre-dawn social media post.

Trump is set to meet with executives from 17 oil companies, according to the White House. Among the companies attending are Chevron, which still operates in Venezuela, and ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips, which both had oil projects in the country that were lost as part of a 2007 nationalization of private businesses under Maduro’s predecessor, Hugo Chávez.

The president is meeting with a wide swath of domestic and international companies with interests ranging from construction to the commodity markets. Other companies slated to be at the meeting include Halliburton, Valero, Marathon, Shell, Singapore-based Trafigura, Italy-based Eni and Spain-based Repsol.

Large U.S. oil companies have so far largely refrained from affirming investments in Venezuela as contracts and guarantees need to be in place. Trump has suggested on social media that America would help to backstop any investments.

Venezuela’s oil production has slumped below one million barrels a day. Part of Trump's challenge to turn that around will be to convince oil companies that his administration has a stable relationship with Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodríguez, as well as protections for companies entering the market.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum are slated to attend the oil executives meeting, according to the White House.

Meanwhile, the United States and Venezuelan governments said Friday they were exploring the possibility of r estoring diplomatic relations between the two countries, and that a delegation from the Trump administration arrived to the South American nation on Friday.

The small team of U.S. diplomats and diplomatic security officials traveled to Venezuela to make a preliminary assessment about the potential re-opening of the U.S. Embassy in Caracas, the State Department said in a statement.

Trump also announced on Friday he’d meet with President Gustavo Petro in early February, but called on the Colombian leader to make quick progress on stemming flow of cocaine into the U.S.

Trump, following the ouster of Maduro, had made vague threats to take similar action against Petro. Trump abruptly changed his tone Wednesday about his Colombian counterpart after a friendly phone call in which he invited Petro to visit the White House.

President Donald Trump waves as he walks off stage after speaking to House Republican lawmakers during their annual policy retreat, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)