A’s Drop 2 of 3 in Toronto

Hey A’s fans, its Jordan here and I will not be able to bring you a show today due to the fact that I have a bad neck injury and can’t get to a studio. Therefore, I will bring you a blog post for now, and hopefully be able to get an episode with David done on Wednesday. The A’s dropped two of three in Toronto this weekend, which is quite disappointing. They were all very competitive, winnable games, and to come out of there with just one win, is, well…disappointing.

The A’s started thir trip withan exciting 8-5 comeback win over the Jays. After falling behind 5-1, Oakland rallied to come out on top, and draw first blood in the three game set. In thr fourth inning, the A’s came back to tie the game with a four run frame. With one out and the bases juiced, Bobby Crosby tripled to center, clearing the bases and bringing the Athletics within one, at 5-4. Then, it was all tied up after a wild pitch by David Purcey allowed Crosby to score. Oakland then went on top in the 7th, and added some insurance in the 8th to pull of the 8-5 win. In the 7th, Matt Holliday knocked in a run on a double, and was thrown out at third trying to stretch it to a triple. In the top half of the 8th, Oakland plated a pair on a Kurt Suzuki RBI single and an RBI groundout by Ryan Sweeney. Josh Outman struggled again, giving up five runs (three earned) in just four innings of work. The real credit though, needs to go to the A’s bullpen. They pitched five scoreless innings to hold on for the win. Andrew Bailey picked up his second win on the year with two scoreless innings, Michael Wuertz and Santiago Casilla earned holds in their scoreless innings of work and Brad Ziegler picked up his third save of 2009 with a scoreless 9th inning of work.

Oakland fell on Saturday to the Blue Jays in a tough loss in the 12th inning 4-2. Rookie Trevor Cahill pitched well again, as he went five and one third innings, surrendering just a pair of earned runs on five hits, but ended up with a no decision. Jason Giambi opened the scoring early in the first with an RBI groundout. Travis Snider tied it up in the fourth inning on an RBI groundout of his own. Oakland then took a lead for the second time in the top of the 6th when Giambi doubled in Sweeney. Unfortunately, Cahill couldn’t keep the lead, as he gave up a game-tying RBI single by Snider in the bottom of the frame. The A’s bullpen held Toronto scoreless for the next 5 innings, but the Jays broke through in the 12th in walkoff fashion as Lyle Overbay hit a 2-run bomb off Dan Giese to even the series at one game apiece.

Dallas Braden was asked one thing for his start on Sunday in the rubber match against the Jays. Save the bullpen please! The pen was overworked in the last two games, with Outman going just four innings, and a 12 inning marathon on Saturday, so it was important that Braden eat some innings. And that is what he did, as Braden pitched a gem, lasting seven and one third inning, allowing just one run on only five hits. Unfortuantely, he took the hard luck loss in the A’s 1-0 defeat at the hand of the Jays. Rookie lefty Ricky Romero outdid Braden on this day, pitching seven scoreless innings and allowing just four hits, while striking out six A’s hitters. Oakland threatened in the third when Sweeney doubled to center, and Mark Ellis tried to score all the way from first, but was gunned down at the plate on a relay throw by Aaron Hill. That was as close as the Athletics would come to scoring in this one, and fell 1-0, thanks to ROmero’s great outing and an Overbay RBI single in the second.

Oakland heads now to the new Yankee Stadium in New York for a three game set against the Yankees, which starts on Monday at 4:05 p.m. PT and can be seen on ESPN. The Yankees are coming off of a split with the Cleveland Indians which saw them lose on Saturday, 22-4. The A’s will send Dana Eveland to the hill on Monday night in the Bronx and he will be opposed by Andy Pettite in the A’s first visit to the new Yankee Stadium. On Tuesday, probable pitchers are Brett Anderson and CC Sabathia, and in the finale, the A’s look to send Josh Outman against Joba Chamberlain. This figures to be a tough series for the A’s, as the Yankees have shown they can score a lot of runs with that great lineup. Oakland needs Chavy to start hitting, as he is only hitting .125 early on in 2009. Hopefully the A’s can snag 1-2 games in the Bronx.

That’s How I See It…Let’s Go Oakland!!!