Battle of the Bay, Part I

After losing a series against the Yankees, the A’s traveled across the bay where they completed a sweep of the Giants. The A’s were able to combine good pitching with timely hitting to start another winning streak. Lets begin with Friday nights game which featured throw back jerseys worn by the Giants.

Greg Smith started for the A’s against former A’s ace and former Cy Young award winner Barry Zito. Smith had a shaky start but picked up the win for the A’s as he pitched 5 innings and gave up one earned run, which was scored by Omar Visquel on a steal home. Zito lasted 5 and 2/3 innings and gave up 4 earned runs. Daric Barton had a nice game at the plate going 2-3 with an RBI. Jack Cust also tallied 2 RBI, while Chavez and Ryan Sweeney each had an RBI as the A’s beat the Giants 5-1. Fans were also treated to a moment of comic relief as the sprinklers went off in the infield during the bottom of the 9th inning. That would be the only laughs the Giants fans had during the weekend.

On Saturday the A’s beat the Giants once again this time by a 4-0 margin. Rich Harden had another strong outing for the A’s pitching 6 innings and not giving up a run. Matt Cain started for the Giants and lasted 7 innings while giving up three earned runs. The A’s scored two earned runs with the help of Jack Cust and Daric Barton who each had an RBI. The A’s scored their additional two runs on wild pitches to complete a 4-0 shutout. 

The A’s completed the sweep of the Giants on sunday with a 5-3 win. Dana Eveland started for the A’s and picked up the win after throwing 6 2/3 innings and giving up one earned run. Kevin Correia started for the Giants and took the loss after a 5 1/3 inning 5 earned run outing. Eric Chavez had a great game going 3-4 with 2 RBI, and Carlos Gonzalez, Bobby Crosby, and Daric Barton all had one RBI for the A’s. Randy Winn, Brian Bowker, and Benji Molina supplied the runs for the Giants in a losing effort. Street came in and picked up another save for the A’s, his 13th of the season. With the series sweep over the Giants the A’s now head to the desert for a three game series against the D-Backs.

Tuesday night Justin Duchscherer(6-4, 2.20 ERA) will start for the A’s against Brandon Webb(11-2, 2.73). On Wednesday, Joe Blanton(3-9, 4.23 ERA) will oppose former A’s ace Dan Haren(6-4, 3.41 ERA). The series will conclude on Thursday with Greg Smith(4-5, 3.62) facing fellow lefty and Cancer survivor Doug Davis( 2-3, 3.99 ERA). Make sure to email us at hosts@athleticscast.com or call us at 415-691-6185. You can also have your voice heard by posting a message to this blog. Go A’s! Have a great week and remember to live smooth.