GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: OAKLAND (68-70) at LA ANGELS (80-56)

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">AL AT LA ANGELS - MID INNING UPDATE
PLAY: D Meyer relieved C Lewis.
SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, NONE ON, 0 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: OAKLAND 4
LA ANGELS 9 BOTTOM, 8TH

DUE UP FOR LA ANGELS: J Mathis (.238, 2-FOR-3, HR, 2 RBI)</div>

 

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">AL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
OAKLAND 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 4 6 0
LA ANGELS 1 1 0 0 5 1 1 0 9 12 1 (TOP 9)

CURRENT PITCHERS: OAK - DAN MEYER
LAA - JUSTIN SPEIER

DUE UP FOR OAKLAND: S STEWART (.283, 1-FOR-4, HR, RBI)
N SWISHER (.261, 0-FOR-4)
J CUST (.265, 0-FOR-2, 2 BB)</div>

 

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">OAKLAND (4) VS LA ANGELS (9) - END 8TH - IN PROGRESS

OAKLAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
S Stewart lf 4 1 1 1 0 1 2 .283
N Swisher cf 4 0 0 0 0 2 2 .261
J Cust rf 2 1 0 0 2 1 0 .265
M Piazza dh 4 1 3 2 0 0 1 .284
D Johnson 1b 3 1 1 0 1 0 2 .232
M Ellis 2b 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 .261
R Bowen c 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .346
J Hannahan 3b 1 0 0 0 3 1 2 .281
M Scutaro ss 4 0 1 1 0 0 4 .259
K Suzuki c 3 0 0 0 0 1 3 .260
D Murphy 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .221
a-J DaVanon ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .222
J Furmaniak 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200

Totals 29 4 6 4 7 8 19

a-struck out looking for D Murphy in the 8th.

BATTING: HR - S Stewart (11, 8th inning off R Thompson 0 on, 0 Out), M Piazza
(7, 8th inning off R Thompson 1 on, 1 Out). RBI - S Stewart (41), M Piazza 2
(37), M Scutaro (39). 2-out RBI - M Scutaro. Runners left in scoring position,
2 out - J DaVanon 1, N Swisher 1, K Suzuki 1. GIDP - D Johnson. Team LOB - 8.


FIELDING: PB - K Suzuki. DP: 1 (D Johnson).


LA ANGELS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
G Matthews Jr cf 4 1 1 1 1 1 0 .259
O Cabrera ss 5 1 2 1 0 1 1 .312
V Guerrero rf 4 1 1 0 0 0 3 .326
R Willits lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .292
G Anderson lf 3 2 1 1 1 0 1 .287
N Haynes rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .219
M Izturis 3b 4 1 2 2 0 0 0 .279
K Morales dh 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 .325
C Kotchman 1b 2 1 0 1 1 0 0 .292
H Kendrick 2b 4 1 2 0 0 1 2 .324
J Mathis c 4 1 2 2 0 1 1 .236

Totals 34 9 12 8 3 5 9

BATTING: 2B - M Izturis (16, C Gaudin); H Kendrick (19, C Gaudin); K Morales
(9, C Lewis). HR - G Matthews Jr (18, 1st inning off C Gaudin 0 on, 0 Out), J
Mathis (4, 5th inning off C Gaudin 1 on, 1 Out), G Anderson (13, 7th inning off
C Lewis 0 on, 0 Out). SF - C Kotchman. RBI - G Matthews Jr (71), C Kotchman
(59), J Mathis 2 (20), M Izturis 2 (43), O Cabrera (77), G Anderson (65). 2-out
RBI - M Izturis 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - V Guerrero 1, J
Mathis 1, H Kendrick 1. GIDP - G Anderson. Team LOB - 5.

FIELDING: E - M Izturis (3, ground ball). DP: 2 (C Kotchman-O Cabrera, C
Kotchman).


----------------------------------------------------
OAKLAND - 000 000 04 -- 4
LA ANGELS - 110 051 10 -- 9
----------------------------------------------------

OAKLAND ip h r er bb so hr era
C Gaudin 5 8 7 6 2 3 2 4.25
C Lewis 2 4 2 2 1 1 1 7.85
D Meyer 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 5.40

LA ANGELS ip h r er bb so hr era
E Santana 6 1/3 2 0 0 5 4 0 6.07
R Thompson 1 2 3 3 1 2 2 13.50
J Bulger 1/3 2 1 1 1 1 0 6.75
J Speier 1/3 0 0 0 0 1 0 3.43

WP - C Gaudin. IBB - G Anderson (by C Gaudin). Pitches-strikes: C Gaudin
79-48; C Lewis 40-24; D Meyer 13-7; E Santana 105-61; R Thompson 27-13; J
Bulger 18-9; J Speier 5-3. Ground balls-fly balls: C Gaudin 5-7; C Lewis 4-1; D
Meyer 1-1; E Santana 6-8; R Thompson 0-1; J Bulger 0-0; J Speier 0-0. Batters
faced: C Gaudin 24; C Lewis 11; D Meyer 3; E Santana 25; R Thompson 6; J Bulger
4; J Speier 1.

UMPIRES: HP--Jeff Nelson. 1B--Jim Wolf. 2B--Tim Tschida. 3B--Jim Joyce.

Weather: 106 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 5 mph, out to right.</div>

 

Santana dazzles as Angels humbled Athletics

<h3>LA ANGELS 9, OAKLAND 5</h3>ANAHEIM, California (Ticker) -- Ervin Santana put an end to anawful three-month stretch on Monday.


Santana pitched great into the seventh inning as the Los AngelesAngels of Anaheim avoided a three-game losing streak by postinga 9-5 victory over the Oakland Athletics in the opener of athree-game series.


Garret Anderson blasted a solo homer in the seventh and he hasdriven in a run in eight straight contests for the Angels(81-56), who maintained their 6 1/2 game lead in the AmericanLeague West over the Seattle Mariners (74-62).


The 24-year-old Santana (6-12) registered his first win sinceJune 9, going 0-6 with an 8.28 ERA over nine starts that wasinterrupted by a brief stint in the minor leagues. TheDominican righthander yielded five runs on four hits and twowalks over just one-third of an inning in his last outing lastTuesday.


Santana responded nicely this time out. He hurled 6 1/3scoreless frames, allowing just two hits with five walks andfour strikeouts. The three-year pro was relieved after issuinga four-pitch walk to Jack Hannahan in the seventh, tossing 102pitches in the contest.


The Angels are 6-2 over Anderson's current RBI streak. The35-year-old outfielder is hitting .287 with 13 home runs and 65RBI this season.


Gary Matthews Jr. gave Los Angeles an early 1-0 advantage bybelting a first-pitch offering from Oakland starter Chad Gaudin(10-10) over the center field wall to lead off the game.

Jeff Mathis hit a two-run shot to start a five-run rally in thefifth as the Angels extended their lead to 7-0.


Gaudin suffered his worst outing of 2007, surrendering sevenruns and eight hits with two walks over five innings.

The Athletics cut the deficit to 9-4 in the eighth inning.Shannon Stewart started the rally with a solo homer and MikePiazza added a two-run shot later in the inning before MarcoScutaro's RBI single.


Oakland added another run in the ninth.

 

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">AL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
OAKLAND 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 1 5 8 0
LA ANGELS 1 1 0 0 5 1 1 0 x 9 12 2 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: OAK - CHAD GAUDIN, COLBY LEWIS (6TH), DAN MEYER (8TH) AND KURT
SUZUKI, ROB BOWEN (7TH)

LAA - ERVIN SANTANA, RICH THOMPSON (7TH), JASON BULGER
(8TH), JUSTIN SPEIER (8TH) AND JEFF MATHIS

HOME RUNS: OAK - SHANNON STEWART (11) OFF RICH THOMPSON IN THE 8TH, 0 ON
MIKE PIAZZA (7) OFF RICH THOMPSON IN THE 8TH, 1 ON

LAA - GARY MATTHEWS JR (18) OFF CHAD GAUDIN IN THE 1ST, 0 ON
JEFF MATHIS (4) OFF CHAD GAUDIN IN THE 5TH, 1 ON
GARRET ANDERSON (13) OFF COLBY LEWIS IN THE 7TH, 0 ON</div>

 

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">AL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
OAKLAND 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 1 5 8 0
LA ANGELS 1 1 0 0 5 1 1 0 x 9 12 2 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: OAK - CHAD GAUDIN, COLBY LEWIS (6TH), DAN MEYER (8TH) AND KURT
SUZUKI, ROB BOWEN (7TH)

LAA - ERVIN SANTANA, RICH THOMPSON (7TH), JASON BULGER
(8TH), JUSTIN SPEIER (8TH) AND JEFF MATHIS


WP - ERVIN SANTANA (6-12)
LP - CHAD GAUDIN (10-10)
SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS: OAK - SHANNON STEWART (11) OFF RICH THOMPSON IN THE 8TH, 0 ON
MIKE PIAZZA (7) OFF RICH THOMPSON IN THE 8TH, 1 ON

LAA - GARY MATTHEWS JR (18) OFF CHAD GAUDIN IN THE 1ST, 0 ON
JEFF MATHIS (4) OFF CHAD GAUDIN IN THE 5TH, 1 ON
GARRET ANDERSON (13) OFF COLBY LEWIS IN THE 7TH, 0 ON


TIME: 2:53 ATT: 39,164

PROBABLES: OAK - LENNY DINARDO (8-7, 3.57)
LAA - JERED WEAVER (10-6, 3.79)</div>

 

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">OAKLAND (5) VS LA ANGELS (9) - FINAL

OAKLAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
S Stewart lf 5 2 2 1 0 1 2 .285
N Swisher cf 5 0 1 0 0 2 2 .262
J Cust rf 3 1 0 0 2 2 2 .264
M Piazza dh 4 1 3 3 0 0 2 .284
D Johnson 1b 4 1 1 0 1 0 3 .232
M Ellis 2b 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 .261
R Bowen c 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .346
J Hannahan 3b 1 0 0 0 3 1 2 .281
M Scutaro ss 4 0 1 1 0 0 4 .259
K Suzuki c 3 0 0 0 0 1 3 .260
D Murphy 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .221
a-J DaVanon ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .222
J Furmaniak 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200

Totals 33 5 8 5 7 9 23

a-struck out looking for D Murphy in the 8th.

BATTING: HR - S Stewart (11, 8th inning off R Thompson 0 on, 0 Out), M Piazza
(7, 8th inning off R Thompson 1 on, 1 Out). SF - M Piazza. RBI - S Stewart
(41), M Piazza 3 (38), M Scutaro (39). 2-out RBI - M Scutaro. Runners left in
scoring position, 2 out - J DaVanon 1, D Johnson 1, N Swisher 1, K Suzuki 1.
GIDP - D Johnson. Team LOB - 9.

FIELDING: PB - K Suzuki. DP: 1 (D Johnson).


LA ANGELS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
G Matthews Jr cf 4 1 1 1 1 1 0 .259
O Cabrera ss 5 1 2 1 0 1 1 .312
V Guerrero rf 4 1 1 0 0 0 3 .326
R Willits lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .292
G Anderson lf 3 2 1 1 1 0 1 .287
N Haynes rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .219
M Izturis 3b 4 1 2 2 0 0 0 .279
K Morales dh 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 .325
C Kotchman 1b 2 1 0 1 1 0 0 .292
H Kendrick 2b 4 1 2 0 0 1 2 .324
J Mathis c 4 1 2 2 0 1 1 .236

Totals 34 9 12 8 3 5 9

BATTING: 2B - M Izturis (16, C Gaudin); H Kendrick (19, C Gaudin); K Morales
(9, C Lewis). HR - G Matthews Jr (18, 1st inning off C Gaudin 0 on, 0 Out), J
Mathis (4, 5th inning off C Gaudin 1 on, 1 Out), G Anderson (13, 7th inning off
C Lewis 0 on, 0 Out). SF - C Kotchman. RBI - G Matthews Jr (71), C Kotchman
(59), J Mathis 2 (20), M Izturis 2 (43), O Cabrera (77), G Anderson (65). 2-out
RBI - M Izturis 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - V Guerrero 1, J
Mathis 1, H Kendrick 1. GIDP - G Anderson. Team LOB - 5.

FIELDING: E - M Izturis (3, ground ball); J Speier (1, throw). DP: 2 (C
Kotchman-O Cabrera, C Kotchman).


----------------------------------------------------
OAKLAND - 000 000 041 -- 5
LA ANGELS - 110 051 10x -- 9
----------------------------------------------------

OAKLAND ip h r er bb so hr era
C Gaudin (L, 10-10) 5 8 7 6 2 3 2 4.25
C Lewis 2 4 2 2 1 1 1 7.85
D Meyer 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 5.40

LA ANGELS ip h r er bb so hr era
E Santana (W, 6-12) 6 1/3 2 0 0 5 4 0 6.07
R Thompson 1 2 3 3 1 2 2 13.50
J Bulger 1/3 2 1 1 1 1 0 6.75
J Speier 1 1/3 2 1 1 0 2 0 3.57

WP - C Gaudin. IBB - G Anderson (by C Gaudin). Pitches-strikes: C Gaudin
79-48; C Lewis 40-24; D Meyer 13-7; E Santana 105-61; R Thompson 27-13; J
Bulger 18-9; J Speier 21-14. Ground balls-fly balls: C Gaudin 5-7; C Lewis 4-1;
D Meyer 1-1; E Santana 6-8; R Thompson 0-1; J Bulger 0-0; J Speier 1-1. Batters
faced: C Gaudin 24; C Lewis 11; D Meyer 3; E Santana 25; R Thompson 6; J Bulger
4; J Speier 6.

UMPIRES: HP--Jeff Nelson. 1B--Jim Wolf. 2B--Tim Tschida. 3B--Jim Joyce.

T--2:53. Att--39,164.
Weather: 106 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 5 mph, out
to right.</div>

 

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
AL
OAKLAND 5
LA ANGELS 9 FINAL</div>

 

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OAKLAND (5) AT LA ANGELS (9) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

LA ANGELS 1ST: G Matthews Jr homered to center. O Cabrera singled to
right. V Guerrero popped out to second. G Anderson grounded into double play,
to first, O Cabrera out at second.(1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0,
LA ANGELS 1.

LA ANGELS 2ND: M Izturis doubled to deep center. K Morales grounded out to
catcher, M Izturis to third. C Kotchman hit sacrifice fly to right, M Izturis
scored. H Kendrick doubled to center. J Mathis popped out to third. (1 Run,
2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 5TH: C Kotchman walked. H Kendrick flied out to center.
J Mathis homered to left, C Kotchman scored. G Matthews Jr struck out swinging.
O Cabrera singled to right. V Guerrero singled to right, O Cabrera to third.
V Guerrero to second on wild pitch by C Gaudin. G Anderson intentionally
walked. O Cabrera scored, V Guerrero to third, G Anderson to second on passed
ball by K Suzuki. M Izturis singled to right center, V Guerrero and G Anderson
scored. K Morales struck out swinging. (5 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0,
LA ANGELS 7.

LA ANGELS 6TH: C Lewis relieved C Gaudin. C Kotchman grounded out to
second. H Kendrick singled to shallow right. J Mathis singled to right,
H Kendrick to third. G Matthews Jr walked, J Mathis to second. O Cabrera
grounded into fielder's choice to third, H Kendrick scored, J Mathis out at
third, G Matthews Jr to second. V Guerrero grounded into fielder's choice to
third, O Cabrera out at second. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 8.

LA ANGELS 7TH: R Bowen catching. D Murphy at second base. G Anderson
homered to right center. M Izturis flied out to left. K Morales doubled to
left. C Kotchman grounded out to first, K Morales to third. H Kendrick struck
out swinging. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 9.

OAKLAND 8TH: R Willits in left field. N Haynes in right field. S Stewart
homered to center. N Swisher struck out swinging. J Cust walked. M Piazza
homered to left, J Cust scored. J Bulger relieved R Thompson. D Johnson
singled to right center. R Bowen struck out looking. J Hannahan walked,
D Johnson to second. M Scutaro singled to center, D Johnson scored, J Hannahan
to second. J Speier relieved J Bulger. J DaVanon hit for D Murphy. J DaVanon
struck out looking. (4 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 4, LA ANGELS 9.

OAKLAND 9TH: S Stewart reached on infield single to pitcher, S Stewart to
second on throwing error by pitcher J Speier. N Swisher singled to left,
S Stewart to third. J Cust struck out looking. M Piazza hit sacrifice fly to
center, S Stewart scored. N Swisher to second on fielder's indifference.
D Johnson grounded out to first. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 1 Error) OAKLAND 5, LA ANGELS 9.</div>

 

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OAKLAND (5) AT LA ANGELS (9) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Oakland Starting Lineups -- S Stewart LF, N Swisher CF, J Cust RF, M Piazza DH,
D Johnson 1B, M Ellis 2B, J Hannahan 3B, M Scutaro SS, K Suzuki C, C Gaudin RHP.

La Angels Starting Lineups -- G Matthews Jr CF, O Cabrera SS, V Guerrero RF, G
Anderson LF, M Izturis 3B, K Morales DH, C Kotchman 1B, H Kendrick 2B, J Mathis C,
E Santana RHP.

Umpires -- Jeff Nelson (HP), Jim Wolf (1B), Tim Tschida (2B), Jim Joyce (3B).


Gametime Weather: 106 degrees, Partly Cloudy, wind out to right at 5 mph.


OAKLAND 1ST: S Stewart flied out to right. N Swisher grounded out to
second. J Cust walked. M Piazza flied out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0
Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 0.

LA ANGELS 1ST: G Matthews Jr homered to center. O Cabrera singled to
right. V Guerrero popped out to second. G Anderson grounded into double play,
to first, O Cabrera out at second.(1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0,
LA ANGELS 1.

OAKLAND 2ND: D Johnson walked. M Ellis walked, D Johnson to second.
J Hannahan struck out looking. M Scutaro flied out to left. K Suzuki grounded
into fielder's choice to shortstop, M Ellis out at second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits,
0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 1.

LA ANGELS 2ND: M Izturis doubled to deep center. K Morales grounded out to
catcher, M Izturis to third. C Kotchman hit sacrifice fly to right, M Izturis
scored. H Kendrick doubled to center. J Mathis popped out to third. (1 Run,
2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 3RD: S Stewart struck out looking. N Swisher grounded out to
pitcher. J Cust struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0,
LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 3RD: G Matthews Jr grounded out to second. O Cabrera struck out
swinging. V Guerrero flied out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0,
LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 4TH: M Piazza singled to center. D Johnson grounded into double
play, first to shortstop, M Piazza out at second. M Ellis flied out to right.
(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 4TH: G Anderson grounded out to second. M Izturis flied out to
center. K Morales fouled out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0,
LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 5TH: J Hannahan walked. M Scutaro flied out to right. K Suzuki
safe at first on error by third baseman M Izturis, J Hannahan to second.
S Stewart flied out to center. N Swisher struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits,
1 Error) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 5TH: C Kotchman walked. H Kendrick flied out to center.
J Mathis homered to left, C Kotchman scored. G Matthews Jr struck out swinging.
O Cabrera singled to right. V Guerrero singled to right, O Cabrera to third.
V Guerrero to second on wild pitch by C Gaudin. G Anderson intentionally
walked. O Cabrera scored, V Guerrero to third, G Anderson to second on passed
ball by K Suzuki. M Izturis singled to right center, V Guerrero and G Anderson
scored. K Morales struck out swinging. (5 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0,
LA ANGELS 7.

OAKLAND 6TH: J Cust grounded out to second. M Piazza singled to left.
D Johnson lined into double play, to first, M Piazza doubled off first.(0 Runs,
1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 7.

LA ANGELS 6TH: C Lewis relieved C Gaudin. C Kotchman grounded out to
second. H Kendrick singled to shallow right. J Mathis singled to right,
H Kendrick to third. G Matthews Jr walked, J Mathis to second. O Cabrera
grounded into fielder's choice to third, H Kendrick scored, J Mathis out at
third, G Matthews Jr to second. V Guerrero grounded into fielder's choice to
third, O Cabrera out at second. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 8.

OAKLAND 7TH: M Ellis flied out to center. J Hannahan walked. R Thompson
relieved E Santana. M Scutaro flied out to center. K Suzuki struck out
looking. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 8.

LA ANGELS 7TH: R Bowen catching. D Murphy at second base. G Anderson
homered to right center. M Izturis flied out to left. K Morales doubled to
left. C Kotchman grounded out to first, K Morales to third. H Kendrick struck
out swinging. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 9.

OAKLAND 8TH: R Willits in left field. N Haynes in right field. S Stewart
homered to center. N Swisher struck out swinging. J Cust walked. M Piazza
homered to left, J Cust scored. J Bulger relieved R Thompson. D Johnson
singled to right center. R Bowen struck out looking. J Hannahan walked,
D Johnson to second. M Scutaro singled to center, D Johnson scored, J Hannahan
to second. J Speier relieved J Bulger. J DaVanon hit for D Murphy. J DaVanon
struck out looking. (4 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 4, LA ANGELS 9.

LA ANGELS 8TH: J Furmaniak at second base. D Meyer relieved C Lewis.
J Mathis struck out swinging. G Matthews Jr flied out to center. O Cabrera
grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 4, LA ANGELS 9.

OAKLAND 9TH: S Stewart reached on infield single to pitcher, S Stewart to
second on throwing error by pitcher J Speier. N Swisher singled to left,
S Stewart to third. J Cust struck out looking. M Piazza hit sacrifice fly to
center, S Stewart scored. N Swisher to second on fielder's indifference.
D Johnson grounded out to first. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 1 Error) OAKLAND 5,
LA ANGELS 9.</div>

 

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">OAKLAND (5) VS LA ANGELS (9) - FINAL

OAKLAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
S Stewart lf 5 2 2 1 0 1 2 .285
N Swisher cf 5 0 1 0 0 2 2 .262
J Cust rf 3 1 0 0 2 2 2 .264
M Piazza dh 4 1 3 3 0 0 2 .284
D Johnson 1b 4 1 1 0 1 0 3 .232
M Ellis 2b 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 .261
R Bowen c 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .346
J Hannahan 3b 1 0 0 0 3 1 2 .281
M Scutaro ss 4 0 1 1 0 0 4 .259
K Suzuki c 3 0 0 0 0 1 3 .260
D Murphy 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .221
a-J DaVanon ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .222
J Furmaniak 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200

Totals 33 5 8 5 7 9 23

a-struck out looking for D Murphy in the 8th.

BATTING: HR - S Stewart (11, 8th inning off R Thompson 0 on, 0 Out), M Piazza
(7, 8th inning off R Thompson 1 on, 1 Out). SF - M Piazza. RBI - S Stewart
(41), M Piazza 3 (38), M Scutaro (39). 2-out RBI - M Scutaro. Runners left in
scoring position, 2 out - J DaVanon 1, D Johnson 1, N Swisher 1, K Suzuki 1.
GIDP - D Johnson. Team LOB - 9.

FIELDING: PB - K Suzuki. DP: 1 (D Johnson).


LA ANGELS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
G Matthews Jr cf 4 1 1 1 1 1 0 .259
O Cabrera ss 5 1 2 1 0 1 1 .312
V Guerrero rf 4 1 1 0 0 0 3 .326
R Willits lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .292
G Anderson lf 3 2 1 1 1 0 1 .287
N Haynes rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .219
M Izturis 3b 4 1 2 2 0 0 0 .279
K Morales dh 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 .325
C Kotchman 1b 2 1 0 1 1 0 0 .292
H Kendrick 2b 4 1 2 0 0 1 2 .324
J Mathis c 4 1 2 2 0 1 1 .236

Totals 34 9 12 8 3 5 9

BATTING: 2B - M Izturis (16, C Gaudin); H Kendrick (19, C Gaudin); K Morales
(9, C Lewis). HR - G Matthews Jr (18, 1st inning off C Gaudin 0 on, 0 Out), J
Mathis (4, 5th inning off C Gaudin 1 on, 1 Out), G Anderson (13, 7th inning off
C Lewis 0 on, 0 Out). SF - C Kotchman. RBI - G Matthews Jr (71), C Kotchman
(59), J Mathis 2 (20), M Izturis 2 (43), O Cabrera (77), G Anderson (65). 2-out
RBI - M Izturis 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - V Guerrero 1, J
Mathis 1, H Kendrick 1. GIDP - G Anderson. Team LOB - 5.

FIELDING: E - M Izturis (3, ground ball); J Speier (1, throw). DP: 2 (C
Kotchman-O Cabrera, C Kotchman).


----------------------------------------------------
OAKLAND - 000 000 041 -- 5
LA ANGELS - 110 051 10x -- 9
----------------------------------------------------

OAKLAND ip h r er bb so hr era
C Gaudin (L, 10-10) 5 8 7 6 2 3 2 4.25
C Lewis 2 4 2 2 1 1 1 7.85
D Meyer 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 5.40

LA ANGELS ip h r er bb so hr era
E Santana (W, 6-12) 6 1/3 2 0 0 5 4 0 6.07
R Thompson 1 2 3 3 1 2 2 13.50
J Bulger 1/3 2 1 1 1 1 0 6.75
J Speier 1 1/3 2 1 0 0 2 0 3.35

WP - C Gaudin. IBB - G Anderson (by C Gaudin). Pitches-strikes: C Gaudin
79-48; C Lewis 40-24; D Meyer 13-7; E Santana 105-61; R Thompson 27-13; J
Bulger 18-9; J Speier 21-14. Ground balls-fly balls: C Gaudin 5-7; C Lewis 4-1;
D Meyer 1-1; E Santana 6-8; R Thompson 0-1; J Bulger 0-0; J Speier 1-1. Batters
faced: C Gaudin 24; C Lewis 11; D Meyer 3; E Santana 25; R Thompson 6; J Bulger
4; J Speier 6.

UMPIRES: HP--Jeff Nelson. 1B--Jim Wolf. 2B--Tim Tschida. 3B--Jim Joyce.

T--2:53. Att--39,164.
Weather: 106 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 5 mph, out
to right.</div>

 

Santana dazzles as Angels humbled Athletics

<h3>LA ANGELS 9, OAKLAND 5</h3>ANAHEIM, California (Ticker) -- Ervin Santana put an end to anawful three-month stretch on Monday.


Santana pitched great into the seventh inning as the Los AngelesAngels of Anaheim avoided a three-game losing streak by postinga 9-5 victory over the Oakland Athletics in the opener of athree-game series.


Garret Anderson blasted a solo homer in the seventh and he hasdriven in a run in eight straight contests for the Angels(81-56), who maintained their 6 1/2 game lead in the AmericanLeague West over the Seattle Mariners (74-62).


The 24-year-old Santana (6-12) registered his first win sinceJune 9, going 0-6 with an 8.28 ERA over nine starts that wasinterrupted by a brief stint in the minor leagues. TheDominican righthander yielded five runs on four hits and twowalks over just one-third of an inning in his last outing lastTuesday.


"This is definitely a step forward for (Santana)," Angelsmanager Mike Scioscia said. "We're excited of what we saw andto see his delivery show some signs of consistency andcontinuity."


Santana responded nicely this time out. He hurled 6 1/3scoreless frames, allowing just two hits with five walks andfour strikeouts. The three-year pro was relieved after issuinga four-pitch walk to Jack Hannahan in the seventh, tossing 102pitches in the contest.


"There was no pressure for me to perform well tonight," Santanasaid through a translator. "I just thought, 'I'm a good pitcherand I'm just going through some bad times, and I'm not thefirst one to go through bad times.'"


"He's starting to understand a little more about where hisdelivery has to be," Scioscia said. "Everybody says, 'Makeadjustments,' but a player has to find that adjustment to makeand I think he's had a lot of progress in that area."

The Angels are 6-2 over Anderson's current RBI streak. The35-year-old outfielder is hitting .287 with 13 home runs and 65RBI this season.


"Garret's really been able to carry the offense lately,"Scioscia said. "He's doing what he's done his entire career."

Gary Matthews Jr. gave Los Angeles an early 1-0 advantage bybelting a first-pitch offering from Oakland starter Chad Gaudin(10-10) over the center field wall to lead off the game.

Jeff Mathis hit a two-run shot to start a five-run rally in thefifth as the Angels extended their lead to 7-0.


"I was just trying to make contact and I got a pitch I coulddrive," Mathis said. "I'm starting to lay off pitches that Ididn't lay off last year and getting myself into better counts."

Gaudin suffered his worst outing of 2007, surrendering sevenruns and eight hits with two walks over five innings.

"Chad actually threw the ball pretty well," Athletics managerBob Geren said. "He had one rough inning where a few thinghappened. The hit-and-run turned into a home run, the ball gotby the catcher for a run and Izturis capped off the Angels'rally."


The Athletics cut the deficit to 9-4 in the eighth inning.Shannon Stewart started the rally with a solo homer and MikePiazza added a two-run shot later in the inning before MarcoScutaro's RBI single.


"It was a nice comeback at the end," Geren said. "It seems likewe've done that a lot lately and I appreciate the effortbecause the offense never gave up."


Oakland added another run in the ninth.