GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: OAKLAND (68-72) at LA ANGELS (82-56)

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
AL
OAKLAND 6
LA ANGELS 2 FINAL</div>

 

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OAKLAND (6) AT LA ANGELS (2) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

LA ANGELS 1ST: R Willits singled to left. O Cabrera singled to right,
R Willits to third. V Guerrero struck out swinging. G Anderson singled to
right, R Willits scored, O Cabrera to third. M Izturis hit sacrifice fly to
right, O Cabrera scored. C Kotchman grounded out to first. (2 Runs, 3 Hits,
0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 4TH: M Scutaro walked. M Piazza lined out to shortstop. J Cust
singled to left, M Scutaro to second. M Ellis homered to left center,
M Scutaro and J Cust scored. N Swisher struck out swinging. D Johnson
singled to right center. K Suzuki walked, D Johnson to second. D Murphy
struck out swinging. (3 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 7TH: D Murphy homered to left. C Bootcheck relieved J Saunders.
S Stewart walked. M Scutaro flied out to right. M Piazza singled to center,
S Stewart to third. J Cust flied out to left. M Ellis singled to right,
S Stewart scored, M Piazza to second, M Piazza thrown out at third attempting
to advance on play. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 5, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 8TH: N Swisher doubled to deep right. D Johnson singled to center,
N Swisher to third. K Suzuki struck out swinging. D Murphy singled to center,
N Swisher scored, D Johnson to second. R Thompson relieved C Bootcheck.
D Johnson to third, D Murphy to second on wild pitch by R Thompson. S Stewart
struck out swinging. M Scutaro grounded out to third. (1 Run, 3 Hits,
0 Errors) OAKLAND 6, LA ANGELS 2.</div>

 

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OAKLAND (6) AT LA ANGELS (2) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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

La Angels Starting Lineups -- R Willits RF, O Cabrera SS, V Guerrero DH,
G Anderson LF, M Izturis 3B, C Kotchman 1B, G Matthews Jr CF, H Kendrick 2B,
R Budde C, J Saunders LHP.

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


Gametime Weather: 81 degrees, Sunny, wind out to center at 6 mph.


OAKLAND 1ST: S Stewart flied out to right. M Scutaro flied out to center.
M Piazza grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0,
LA ANGELS 0.

LA ANGELS 1ST: R Willits singled to left. O Cabrera singled to right,
R Willits to third. V Guerrero struck out swinging. G Anderson singled
to right, R Willits scored, O Cabrera to third. M Izturis hit sacrifice
fly to right, O Cabrera scored. C Kotchman grounded out to first. (2 Runs,
3 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 2ND: J Cust struck out swinging. M Ellis lined out to left.
N Swisher struck out looking. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0,
LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 2ND: G Matthews Jr flied out to left. H Kendrick singled to
right. R Budde flied out to right. R Willits grounded out to third. (0 Runs,
1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 3RD: D Johnson flied out to center. K Suzuki lined out to second.
D Murphy singled to right. S Stewart flied out to center. (0 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 3RD: O Cabrera popped out to second. V Guerrero flied out to
center. G Anderson singled to right. M Izturis grounded out to second.
(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 4TH: M Scutaro walked. M Piazza lined out to shortstop. J Cust
singled to left, M Scutaro to second. M Ellis homered to left center,
M Scutaro and J Cust scored. N Swisher struck out swinging. D Johnson
singled to right center. K Suzuki walked, D Johnson to second. D Murphy
struck out swinging. (3 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 4TH: C Kotchman flied out to center. G Matthews Jr grounded out
to second. H Kendrick lined out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3,
LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 5TH: S Stewart grounded out to second. M Scutaro singled to left.
M Piazza singled to center, M Scutaro to second. J Cust flied out to left.
M Ellis popped out to second. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 5TH: R Budde struck out looking. R Willits grounded out to
second. O Cabrera grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
OAKLAND 3, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 6TH: N Swisher flied out to center. D Johnson grounded out to
first. K Suzuki popped out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3,
LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 6TH: V Guerrero grounded out to first. G Anderson walked.
M Izturis grounded into double play, first to shortstop, G Anderson out
at second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 7TH: D Murphy homered to left. C Bootcheck relieved J Saunders.
S Stewart walked. M Scutaro flied out to right. M Piazza singled to center,
S Stewart to third. J Cust flied out to left. M Ellis singled to right,
S Stewart scored, M Piazza to second, M Piazza thrown out at third attempting
to advance on play. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 5, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 7TH: C Kotchman lined out to second. G Matthews Jr singled to
center. H Kendrick grounded into double play, shortstop to first, G Matthews Jr
out at second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 5, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 8TH: N Swisher doubled to deep right. D Johnson singled to center,
N Swisher to third. K Suzuki struck out swinging. D Murphy singled to center,
N Swisher scored, D Johnson to second. R Thompson relieved C Bootcheck.
D Johnson to third, D Murphy to second on wild pitch by R Thompson. S Stewart
struck out swinging. M Scutaro grounded out to third. (1 Run, 3 Hits,
0 Errors) OAKLAND 6, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 8TH: R Quinlan hit for R Budde. R Quinlan struck out looking.
R Willits lined out to shortstop. O Cabrera grounded out to shortstop.
(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 6, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 9TH: M Napoli catching. J Bulger relieved R Thompson. M Piazza
fouled out to catcher. J Cust walked. J Furmaniak ran for J Cust. M Ellis
popped out to second. N Swisher grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits,
0 Errors) OAKLAND 6, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 9TH: J Furmaniak in right field. H Street relieved J Blanton.
V Guerrero singled to left. G Anderson flied out to right. V Guerrero stole
second. M Izturis struck out swinging. C Kotchman walked. G Matthews Jr
struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 6, LA ANGELS 2.</div>

 

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">OAKLAND (6) VS LA ANGELS (2) - FINAL

OAKLAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
S Stewart lf 4 1 0 0 1 1 3 .283
M Scutaro 3b 4 1 1 0 1 0 3 .263
M Piazza dh 5 0 2 0 0 0 1 .285
J Cust rf 4 1 1 0 1 1 4 .261
J Furmaniak pr-rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200
M Ellis 2b 5 1 2 4 0 0 3 .263
N Swisher cf 5 1 1 0 0 2 1 .259
D Johnson 1b 4 0 2 0 0 0 0 .235
K Suzuki c 3 0 0 0 1 1 2 .255
D Murphy ss 4 1 3 2 0 1 2 .244

Totals 38 6 12 6 4 6 19

BATTING: 2B - N Swisher (31, C Bootcheck). HR - M Ellis (17, 4th inning off J
Saunders 2 on, 1 Out), D Murphy (5, 7th inning off J Saunders 0 on, 0 Out). RBI
- M Ellis 4 (60), D Murphy 2 (16). 2-out RBI - M Ellis. Runners left in scoring
position, 2 out - M Scutaro 2, M Ellis 1, D Murphy 1. Team LOB - 9.

FIELDING: DP: 2 (D Johnson-D Murphy, D Murphy-D Johnson).


LA ANGELS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
R Willits rf 4 1 1 0 0 0 1 .292
O Cabrera ss 4 1 1 0 0 0 0 .309
V Guerrero dh 4 0 1 0 0 1 2 .326
G Anderson lf 3 0 2 1 1 0 1 .294
M Izturis 3b 3 0 0 1 0 1 4 .276
C Kotchman 1b 3 0 0 0 1 0 1 .290
G Matthews Jr cf 4 0 1 0 0 1 2 .258
H Kendrick 2b 3 0 1 0 0 0 1 .323
R Budde c 2 0 0 0 0 1 1 .167
a-R Quinlan ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .244
M Napoli c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .253

Totals 31 2 7 2 2 5 13

a-struck out looking for R Budde in the 8th.

BATTING: SF - M Izturis. RBI - G Anderson (68), M Izturis (44). Runners left in
scoring position, 2 out - G Matthews Jr 1. GIDP - M Izturis, H Kendrick. Team
LOB - 5.

BASERUNNING: SB - V Guerrero (3, 2nd base off H Street/K Suzuki).

FIELDING: Outfield assists - R Willits (M Piazza at 3rd base).


----------------------------------------------------
OAKLAND - 000 300 210 -- 6
LA ANGELS - 200 000 000 -- 2
----------------------------------------------------

OAKLAND ip h r er bb so hr era
J Blanton (W, 12-9) 8 6 2 2 1 3 0 3.81
H Street 1 1 0 0 1 2 0 3.32

LA ANGELS ip h r er bb so hr era
J Saunders (L, 7-3) 6 7 4 4 2 4 2 3.78
C Bootcheck 1 1/3 5 2 2 1 1 0 4.06
R Thompson 2/3 0 0 0 0 1 0 10.12
J Bulger 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 3.86

J Saunders pitched to 1 batter in the 7th.

WP - R Thompson. Pitches-strikes: J Blanton 99-69; H Street 17-10; J Saunders
102-65; C Bootcheck 32-21; R Thompson 9-6; J Bulger 21-10. Ground balls-fly
balls: J Blanton 12-9; H Street 0-1; J Saunders 3-11; C Bootcheck 0-2; R
Thompson 1-0; J Bulger 1-2. Batters faced: J Blanton 29; H Street 5; J Saunders
27; C Bootcheck 9; R Thompson 2; J Bulger 4.

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

T--2:40. Att--34,000.
Weather: 81 degrees, sunny. Wind: 6 mph, out to
center.</div>

 

Ellis blasts three-run shot as A's top Angels

<h3>OAKLAND 6, LA ANGELS 2</h3>ANAHEIM, California (Ticker) -- Garret Anderson made history,but Mark Ellis trumped him for the Oakland Athletics.

Ellis belted a crucial three-run homer as the Athletics salvagedthe finale of a three-game set against Anderson and the LosAngeles Angels of Anaheim with a 6-2 victory on Wednesdayafternoon.


Joe Blanton (12-9) hurled eight solid innings and Donnie Murphyalso homered for the Athletics (69-72), who snapped a two-gamelosing streak. The Athletics, however, are just playing out thestring - 14 games behind the Angels (82-57) in the AmericanLeague West.


Anaheim is seven games ahead of the second-place SeattleMariners (74-63) in the division. The Mariners play the finaleof their three-game set with the New York Yankees laterWednesday night.


Anderson matched a franchise record by recording an RBI in 10straight games. The veteran, who also hit a go-ahead two-runhomer on Tuesday, tied the previous record held by Fred Lynn(1984) and Wally Joyner (1986).


He opened the scoring with an RBI single in the first, andMaicer Izturis added a sacrifice fly to give the Angels an earlytwo-run advantage.


But it was Ellis who came up with the game's biggest hit to capa three-run, fourth-inning rally.


Marco Scutaro was issued a leadoff walk and, after Mike Piazzastruck out, Jack Cust singled - setting up Ellis' deep blast toleft off Angels starter Joe Saunders (7-3).


Oakland added two insurance runs in the seventh thanks toMurphy, who led off the frame with a solo shot. Ellis added anRBI single to give Oakland a 5-2 lead.


Murphy added an RBI single in the eighth to cap the scoring.

Blanton yielded two runs and six hits while striking out threeand walking one. Huston Street pitched the ninth in a non-savesituation.


Saunders was effective early but picked up the loss afterallowing four runs and seven hits in six-plus innings. Hestruck out four and walked two en route to his third loss in asmany outings.


The Angels have lost three of their last five games.

 

AL: OAKLAND at LA ANGELS

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OAKLAND (6) AT LA ANGELS (2) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(RESENDING -- CORRECTING LA ANGELS' NINTH)

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

La Angels Starting Lineups -- R Willits RF, O Cabrera SS, V Guerrero DH,
G Anderson LF, M Izturis 3B, C Kotchman 1B, G Matthews Jr CF, H Kendrick 2B,
R Budde C, J Saunders LHP.

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


Gametime Weather: 81 degrees, Sunny, wind out to center at 6 mph.


OAKLAND 1ST: S Stewart flied out to right. M Scutaro flied out to center.
M Piazza grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0,
LA ANGELS 0.

LA ANGELS 1ST: R Willits singled to left. O Cabrera singled to right,
R Willits to third. V Guerrero struck out swinging. G Anderson singled
to right, R Willits scored, O Cabrera to third. M Izturis hit sacrifice
fly to right, O Cabrera scored. C Kotchman grounded out to first. (2 Runs,
3 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 2ND: J Cust struck out swinging. M Ellis lined out to left.
N Swisher struck out looking. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0,
LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 2ND: G Matthews Jr flied out to left. H Kendrick singled to
right. R Budde flied out to right. R Willits grounded out to third. (0 Runs,
1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 3RD: D Johnson flied out to center. K Suzuki lined out to second.
D Murphy singled to right. S Stewart flied out to center. (0 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 3RD: O Cabrera popped out to second. V Guerrero flied out to
center. G Anderson singled to right. M Izturis grounded out to second.
(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 4TH: M Scutaro walked. M Piazza lined out to shortstop. J Cust
singled to left, M Scutaro to second. M Ellis homered to left center,
M Scutaro and J Cust scored. N Swisher struck out swinging. D Johnson
singled to right center. K Suzuki walked, D Johnson to second. D Murphy
struck out swinging. (3 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 4TH: C Kotchman flied out to center. G Matthews Jr grounded out
to second. H Kendrick lined out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3,
LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 5TH: S Stewart grounded out to second. M Scutaro singled to left.
M Piazza singled to center, M Scutaro to second. J Cust flied out to left.
M Ellis popped out to second. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 5TH: R Budde struck out looking. R Willits grounded out to
second. O Cabrera grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
OAKLAND 3, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 6TH: N Swisher flied out to center. D Johnson grounded out to
first. K Suzuki popped out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3,
LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 6TH: V Guerrero grounded out to first. G Anderson walked.
M Izturis grounded into double play, first to shortstop, G Anderson out
at second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 7TH: D Murphy homered to left. C Bootcheck relieved J Saunders.
S Stewart walked. M Scutaro flied out to right. M Piazza singled to center,
S Stewart to third. J Cust flied out to left. M Ellis singled to right,
S Stewart scored, M Piazza to second, M Piazza thrown out at third attempting
to advance on play. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 5, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 7TH: C Kotchman lined out to second. G Matthews Jr singled to
center. H Kendrick grounded into double play, shortstop to first, G Matthews Jr
out at second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 5, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 8TH: N Swisher doubled to deep right. D Johnson singled to center,
N Swisher to third. K Suzuki struck out swinging. D Murphy singled to center,
N Swisher scored, D Johnson to second. R Thompson relieved C Bootcheck.
D Johnson to third, D Murphy to second on wild pitch by R Thompson. S Stewart
struck out swinging. M Scutaro grounded out to third. (1 Run, 3 Hits,
0 Errors) OAKLAND 6, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 8TH: R Quinlan hit for R Budde. R Quinlan struck out looking.
R Willits lined out to shortstop. O Cabrera grounded out to shortstop.
(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 6, LA ANGELS 2.

OAKLAND 9TH: M Napoli catching. J Bulger relieved R Thompson. M Piazza
fouled out to catcher. J Cust walked. J Furmaniak ran for J Cust. M Ellis
popped out to second. N Swisher grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits,
0 Errors) OAKLAND 6, LA ANGELS 2.

LA ANGELS 9TH: J Furmaniak in right field. H Street relieved J Blanton.
V Guerrero singled to left. G Anderson flied out to right. V Guerrero to
second on fielder's indifference. M Izturis struck out swinging. C Kotchman
walked. G Matthews Jr struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
OAKLAND 6, LA ANGELS 2.</div>

 

Ellis blasts three-run shot as A's top Angels

<h3>OAKLAND 6, LA ANGELS 2</h3>ANAHEIM, California (Ticker) -- Garret Anderson made history,but Mark Ellis trumped him for the Oakland Athletics.

Ellis belted a crucial three-run homer as the Athletics salvagedthe finale of a three-game set against Anderson and the LosAngeles Angels of Anaheim with a 6-2 victory on Wednesdayafternoon.


Joe Blanton (12-9) hurled eight solid innings and Donnie Murphyalso homered for the Athletics (69-72), who snapped a two-gamelosing streak. The Athletics, however, are just playing out thestring - 14 games behind the Angels (82-57) in the AmericanLeague West.


"We just want to reach our goal right now, which is to win asmany games as we can from here on out and compete," Oaklandmanager Bob Geren said.


Anaheim is seven games ahead of the second-place SeattleMariners (74-63) in the division. The Mariners play the finaleof their three-game set with the New York Yankees laterWednesday night.


"Those guys (the A's) always play us tough and it's always abattle when we face them," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said."We just have to keep on winning games and hope to get ready forthe postseason."


Anderson matched a franchise record by recording an RBI in 10straight games. The veteran, who also hit a go-ahead two-runhomer on Tuesday, tied the previous record held by Fred Lynn(1984) and Wally Joyner (1986).


"He's one of those guys who can carry a team on his back forstretches at a time when he's swinging the way he his rightnow," Anaheim second baseman Howie Kendrick said of Anderson.

He opened the scoring with an RBI single in the first, andMaicer Izturis added a sacrifice fly to give the Angels an earlytwo-run advantage.


"It seems like (Anderson's) hitting the ball hard every time hemakes contact," Scioscia said.


But it was Ellis who came up with the game's biggest hit to capa three-run, fourth-inning rally.


"It was a big home run for me to get the lead and a big home runfor him (Ellis) personally," Blanton said.


Marco Scutaro was issued a leadoff walk and, after Mike Piazzastruck out, Jack Cust singled - setting up Ellis' deep blast toleft off Angels starter Joe Saunders (7-3).


"Feels good and I waited a long time to square a ball up and hitanother home run," Ellis said. "I have felt good the past fewdays by putting good swings together."


Oakland added two insurance runs in the seventh thanks toMurphy, who led off the frame with a solo shot. Ellis added anRBI single to give Oakland a 5-2 lead.


"This was a good win for us today, to come in here and beat themonce and avoid the sweep," Ellis said.


Murphy added an RBI single in the eighth to cap the scoring.

Blanton yielded two runs and six hits while striking out threeand walking one. Huston Street pitched the ninth in a non-savesituation.


"I just threw more sliders after the first inning when I gotinto trouble," Blanton said. "I know to beat them I have tothrow my 'A' game - and today I felt like I did that."

Saunders was effective early but picked up the loss afterallowing four runs and seven hits in six-plus innings. Hestruck out four and walked two en route to his third loss in asmany outings.


"I felt good early on, but then I was missing with my locationand leaving pitches up in the zone," Saunders said. "I havesome mechanics I want to work on so I can turn this around."

The Angels have lost three of their last five games.

"We are playing the consistent ball we were playing a coupleweeks ago, so we have a good team coming in here and we justneed to turn it around," Scioscia said.