OAKLAND -- The free-agent signing of T.J. McFarland and trade acquisition of Burch Smith did not generate as much hype as other high-profile moves during the offseason. But one game into the regular season, both pitchers showed just how valuable they could be for the A¡¯s.

McFarland and Smith both made their Oakland debuts in Friday night¡¯s 7-3 walk-off win over the Angels. Both turned in scoreless innings of work in high-leverage situations, with McFarland¡¯s 1-2-3 sixth keeping the game tied while Smith was credited with the win after his scoreless 10th.

Smith¡¯s victory was certainly well-earned. The right-hander made history as the pitcher on the mound for the first extra-inning game under the new automatic runner rules implemented in the 2020 season. It came with an assist from the game¡¯s eventual hero, Matt Olson, who before hitting a walk-off grand slam made a brilliant play on defense in the top half of the 10th to eliminate the automatic runner on second base, which was represented by Shohei Ohtani. Smith managed to get through the frame on just 18 pitches.

¡°It¡¯s stressful,¡± A¡¯s manager Bob Melvin said of the situation Smith found himself in. ¡°You got a man on second that you didn¡¯t do anything to put him there. It¡¯s your first game with us and no room for error. I thought he handled himself really well.¡±

The left-handed McFarland was brought in this offseason with the expectation of matching up against some of the toughest left-handed bats throughout the season. Matched against 2019 All-Star Tommy La Stella, Albert Pujols and Jason Castro Friday night, McFarland retired them on 13 pitches.

¡°A 1-2-3 inning. Any time I throw a zero up on the scoreboard, I¡¯m happy with it,¡± McFarland said. ¡°I don¡¯t really want to dissect it any more than that. It¡¯s three outs.¡±

With A¡¯s starters on a limited workload their first time through the rotation, relievers will be relied on even more than usual early in the season. The bullpen did it¡¯s job on Friday, as six different pitchers combined to allow just one earned run in six innings of relief. Most surprising, that lone run came with Liam Hendriks on the mound.

¡°We have some great arms down there with an incredible back-end of the bullpen,¡± McFarland said. ¡°We have a dominant staff down there, and I¡¯m excited to be a part of it.¡±