AL: OAKLAND (61-64) at TORONTO (63-60) <h3>Blue Jays, Athletics open three-game set</h3> <div class="pre">Oakland (61-64) at Toronto (63-60) 7:07 pm EDT</div> TORONTO (Ticker) -- The Toronto Blue Jays will take on theOakland Athletics in the first game of a three-game series onMonday as both teams look to salvage disappointing seasons inthe final month and a half of regular-season play. The Blue Jays have won three of their five series in August andsplit a four-game set against the Kansas City Royals from August10-13. Despite the strong play, Toronto (63-60) is 10 1/2games behind of the first-place Boston Red Sox in the AmericanLeague East. After ending last season with a loss to the Detroit Tigers inthe AL Championship Series, key injuries to designated hitterMike Piazza and closer Houston Street have led to the Athletics'(61-64) poor performance this season. One pitcher contributing to the Blue Jays' resurgence in thesecond half of the season has been Shaun Marcum (10-4, 3.31).The righthander, who has won his last five starts, is 6-1 with a2.76 ERA in seven outings since the All-Star break. In his last start, Marcum allowed one run and four hits with sixstrikeouts over seven innings of a 2-1 win over the Los AngelesAngels of Anaheim on Wednesday. Marcum has only faced the Athletics once in his career, allowingtwo runs and five hits over 4 2/3 innings in the Blue Jays' 4-3win on July 28, 2006. Joe Blanton (10-8, 3.64 ERA) will look for his third win in hislast four starts when he takes the mound for the A's. Blantonpitched seven scoreless innings, allowing five hits, in a 3-2victory over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday. Blanton hurled a complete game in his last start againstToronto. The righthander surrendered just one run and four hitsin a 3-1 win on July 3. For his career, Blanton is 3-2 with a 3.43 ERA in six startsagainst the Blue Jays.
AL: OAKLAND (61-64) at TORONTO (63-60) <h3>Blue Jays, Athletics open three-game set</h3> <div class="pre">Oakland (61-64) at Toronto (63-60) 7:07 pm EDT</div> TORONTO (Ticker) -- The Toronto Blue Jays will take on theOakland Athletics in the first game of a three-game series onMonday as both teams look to salvage disappointing seasons inthe final month and a half of regular-season play. The Blue Jays have won three of their five series in August andsplit a four-game set against the Kansas City Royals from August10-13. Despite the strong play, Toronto (63-60) is 10 1/2games behind of the first-place Boston Red Sox in the AmericanLeague East. After ending last season with a loss to the Detroit Tigers inthe AL Championship Series, key injuries to designated hitterMike Piazza and closer Houston Street have led to the Athletics'(61-64) poor performance this season. One pitcher contributing to the Blue Jays' resurgence in thesecond half of the season has been Shaun Marcum (10-4, 3.31).The righthander, who has won his last five starts, is 6-1 with a2.76 ERA in seven outings since the All-Star break. In his last start, Marcum allowed one run and four hits with sixstrikeouts over seven innings of a 2-1 win over the Los AngelesAngels of Anaheim on Wednesday. Marcum has only faced the Athletics once in his career, allowingtwo runs and five hits over 4 2/3 innings in the Blue Jays' 4-3win on July 28, 2006. Joe Blanton (10-8, 3.64 ERA) will look for his third win in hislast four starts when he takes the mound for the A's. Blantonpitched seven scoreless innings, allowing five hits, in a 3-2victory over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday. Blanton hurled a complete game in his last start againstToronto. The righthander surrendered just one run and four hitsin a 3-1 win on July 3. For his career, Blanton is 3-2 with a 3.43 ERA in six startsagainst the Blue Jays.
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">OAKLAND AT TORONTO -- LINEUPS OAKLAND TORONTO AVG HR RBI AVG HR RBI Shannon Stewart LF .293 10 38 Reed Johnson LF .271 2 11 Nick Swisher 1B .256 15 59 Lyle Overbay 1B .255 8 36 Jack Cust RF .273 20 63 Alex Rios RF .312 20 67 Mike Piazza DH .274 4 28 Vernon Wells CF .264 14 70 Mark Ellis 2B .260 16 55 Frank Thomas DH .258 19 73 Jeff Davanon CF .444 0 2 Troy Glaus 3B .257 16 50 Marco Scutaro SS .257 7 34 Russ Adams 2B .000 0 0 Jack Hannahan 3B .167 0 2 Curtis Thigpen C .263 0 5 Kurt Suzuki C .241 4 17 John Mcdonald SS .260 1 23 Joe Blanton RHP (10-8, 3.94) Shaun Marcum RHP (10-4, 3.31)</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO WARMUPS: OAK - JOE BLANTON (10-8, 3.94) TOR - SHAUN MARCUM (10-4, 3.31) UMPIRES: HP - JAMES HOYE 1B - PHIL CUZZI 2B - TOM HALLION 3B - MIKE ESTABROOK WEATHER: INDOORS</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO STARTING BATS: OAK - JOE BLANTON AND KURT SUZUKI TOR - SHAUN MARCUM AND CURTIS THIGPEN DUE UP FOR OAKLAND: S STEWART (.293, 10 HR, 38 RBI) N SWISHER (.256, 15 HR, 59 RBI) J CUST (.273, 20 HR, 63 RBI)</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO - SCORING UPDATE TWO-RUN HOME RUN BY NICK SWISHER (16) TO CENTER WITH 0 OUT IN THE 1ST OFF SHAUN MARCUM SCORED SHANNON STEWART. CURRENT SCORE: OAKLAND 2, TORONTO 0 DUE UP FOR OAKLAND: J CUST (.273, 20 HR, 63 RBI)</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">AL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - OAKLAND 2 2 2 0 TORONTO 0 0 0 (BOT 1) CURRENT PITCHERS: OAK - JOE BLANTON TOR - SHAUN MARCUM DUE UP FOR TORONTO: R JOHNSON (.271, 2 HR, 11 RBI) L OVERBAY (.255, 8 HR, 36 RBI) A RIOS (.312, 20 HR, 67 RBI)</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">OAKLAND (2) VS TORONTO (0) - MID 1ST - IN PROGRESS OAKLAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg S Stewart lf 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .295 N Swisher 1b 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 .258 J Cust rf 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .272 M Piazza dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .273 M Ellis 2b 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .259 J DaVanon cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .444 M Scutaro ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .257 J Hannahan 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .167 K Suzuki c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .241 Totals 5 2 2 2 0 2 0 BATTING: HR - N Swisher (16, 1st inning off S Marcum 1 on, 0 Out). RBI - N Swisher 2 (61). Team LOB - 0. TORONTO ab r h rbi bb so lob avg R Johnson lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .271 L Overbay 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .255 A Rios rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .312 V Wells cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .264 F Thomas dh 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .258 T Glaus 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .257 R Adams 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 C Thigpen c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .263 J McDonald ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .260 Totals 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 BATTING: Team LOB - 0. ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND - 2 -- 2 TORONTO - -- 0 ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND ip h r er bb so hr era J Blanton 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3.94 TORONTO ip h r er bb so hr era S Marcum 1 2 2 2 0 2 1 3.43 Pitches-strikes: S Marcum 16-13. Ground balls-fly balls: S Marcum 0-1. Batters faced: S Marcum 5. UMPIRES: HP--James Hoye. 1B--Phil Cuzzi. 2B--Tom Hallion. 3B--Mike Estabrook. Weather: INDOORS.</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO CONFIRMED STARTERS: OAK - JOE BLANTON TOR - SHAUN MARCUM</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO - SCORING UPDATE DOUBLE BY VERNON WELLS SCORED ALEX RIOS. SITUATION: 1 RUN IN, V WELLS ON SECOND, 2 OUT CURRENT SCORE: OAKLAND 2 TORONTO 1 BOTTOM, 1ST DUE UP FOR TORONTO: F THOMAS (.258, 19 HR, 73 RBI)</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">AL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - OAKLAND 2 2 2 0 TORONTO 1 1 3 0 (TOP 2) CURRENT PITCHERS: OAK - JOE BLANTON TOR - SHAUN MARCUM DUE UP FOR OAKLAND: J DAVANON (.444, 0 HR, 2 RBI) M SCUTARO (.257, 7 HR, 34 RBI) J HANNAHAN (.167, 0 HR, 2 RBI)</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">OAKLAND (2) VS TORONTO (1) - END 1ST - IN PROGRESS OAKLAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg S Stewart lf 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .295 N Swisher 1b 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 .258 J Cust rf 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .272 M Piazza dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .273 M Ellis 2b 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .259 J DaVanon cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .444 M Scutaro ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .257 J Hannahan 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .167 K Suzuki c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .241 Totals 5 2 2 2 0 2 0 BATTING: HR - N Swisher (16, 1st inning off S Marcum 1 on, 0 Out). RBI - N Swisher 2 (61). Team LOB - 0. FIELDING: DP: 1 (J Hannahan-M Ellis-N Swisher). TORONTO ab r h rbi bb so lob avg R Johnson lf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .276 L Overbay 1b 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .254 A Rios rf 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .313 V Wells cf 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 .265 F Thomas dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .257 T Glaus 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .257 R Adams 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 C Thigpen c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .263 J McDonald ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .260 Totals 5 1 3 1 0 0 2 BATTING: 2B - V Wells (35, J Blanton). RBI - V Wells (71). 2-out RBI - V Wells. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - F Thomas 1. GIDP - L Overbay. Team LOB - 1. ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND - 2 -- 2 TORONTO - 1 -- 1 ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND ip h r er bb so hr era J Blanton 1 3 1 1 0 0 0 3.96 TORONTO ip h r er bb so hr era S Marcum 1 2 2 2 0 2 1 3.43 Pitches-strikes: J Blanton 10-6; S Marcum 16-13. Ground balls-fly balls: J Blanton 2-1; S Marcum 0-1. Batters faced: J Blanton 5; S Marcum 5. UMPIRES: HP--James Hoye. 1B--Phil Cuzzi. 2B--Tom Hallion. 3B--Mike Estabrook. Weather: INDOORS.</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">AL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - OAKLAND 2 0 2 4 0 TORONTO 1 1 3 0 (BOT 2) CURRENT PITCHERS: OAK - JOE BLANTON TOR - SHAUN MARCUM DUE UP FOR TORONTO: T GLAUS (.257, 16 HR, 50 RBI) R ADAMS (.000, 0 HR, 0 RBI) C THIGPEN (.263, 0 HR, 5 RBI)</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">OAKLAND (2) VS TORONTO (1) - MID 2ND - IN PROGRESS OAKLAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg S Stewart lf 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 .295 N Swisher 1b 2 1 1 2 0 0 3 .257 J Cust rf 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .272 M Piazza dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .273 M Ellis 2b 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .259 J DaVanon cf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .400 M Scutaro ss 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .260 J Hannahan 3b 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .211 K Suzuki c 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 .239 Totals 10 2 4 2 1 2 5 BATTING: 2B - J Hannahan (3, S Marcum). HR - N Swisher (16, 1st inning off S Marcum 1 on, 0 Out). RBI - N Swisher 2 (61). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - N Swisher 2. Team LOB - 3. FIELDING: DP: 1 (J Hannahan-M Ellis-N Swisher). TORONTO ab r h rbi bb so lob avg R Johnson lf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .276 L Overbay 1b 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .254 A Rios rf 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .313 V Wells cf 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 .265 F Thomas dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .257 T Glaus 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .257 R Adams 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 C Thigpen c 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .263 J McDonald ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .260 Totals 5 1 3 1 0 0 2 BATTING: 2B - V Wells (35, J Blanton). RBI - V Wells (71). 2-out RBI - V Wells. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - F Thomas 1. GIDP - L Overbay. Team LOB - 1. ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND - 20 -- 2 TORONTO - 1 -- 1 ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND ip h r er bb so hr era J Blanton 1 3 1 1 0 0 0 3.96 TORONTO ip h r er bb so hr era S Marcum 2 4 2 2 1 2 1 3.40 Pitches-strikes: J Blanton 10-6; S Marcum 41-27. Ground balls-fly balls: J Blanton 2-1; S Marcum 2-2. Batters faced: J Blanton 5; S Marcum 11. UMPIRES: HP--James Hoye. 1B--Phil Cuzzi. 2B--Tom Hallion. 3B--Mike Estabrook. Weather: INDOORS.</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">AL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - OAKLAND 2 0 2 4 0 TORONTO 1 0 1 3 0 (TOP 3) CURRENT PITCHERS: OAK - JOE BLANTON TOR - SHAUN MARCUM DUE UP FOR OAKLAND: J CUST (.272, 0-FOR-1) M PIAZZA (.273, 0-FOR-1) M ELLIS (.259, 0-FOR-1)</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">OAKLAND (2) VS TORONTO (1) - END 2ND - IN PROGRESS OAKLAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg S Stewart lf 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 .295 N Swisher 1b 2 1 1 2 0 0 3 .257 J Cust rf 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .272 M Piazza dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .273 M Ellis 2b 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .259 J DaVanon cf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .400 M Scutaro ss 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .260 J Hannahan 3b 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .211 K Suzuki c 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 .239 Totals 10 2 4 2 1 2 5 BATTING: 2B - J Hannahan (3, S Marcum). HR - N Swisher (16, 1st inning off S Marcum 1 on, 0 Out). RBI - N Swisher 2 (61). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - N Swisher 2. Team LOB - 3. FIELDING: DP: 1 (J Hannahan-M Ellis-N Swisher). TORONTO ab r h rbi bb so lob avg R Johnson lf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .276 L Overbay 1b 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .254 A Rios rf 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .313 V Wells cf 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 .265 F Thomas dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .257 T Glaus 3b 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .256 R Adams 2b 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .000 C Thigpen c 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .259 J McDonald ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .260 Totals 8 1 3 1 0 2 2 BATTING: 2B - V Wells (35, J Blanton). RBI - V Wells (71). 2-out RBI - V Wells. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - F Thomas 1. GIDP - L Overbay. Team LOB - 1. ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND - 20 -- 2 TORONTO - 10 -- 1 ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND ip h r er bb so hr era J Blanton 2 3 1 1 0 2 0 3.94 TORONTO ip h r er bb so hr era S Marcum 2 4 2 2 1 2 1 3.40 Pitches-strikes: J Blanton 23-16; S Marcum 41-27. Ground balls-fly balls: J Blanton 2-2; S Marcum 2-2. Batters faced: J Blanton 8; S Marcum 11. UMPIRES: HP--James Hoye. 1B--Phil Cuzzi. 2B--Tom Hallion. 3B--Mike Estabrook. Weather: INDOORS.</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO - SCORING UPDATE SINGLE BY MARCO SCUTARO SCORED JACK CUST. SITUATION: 1 RUN IN, M SCUTARO ON FIRST, M ELLIS ON SECOND, 2 OUT CURRENT SCORE: OAKLAND 3 TORONTO 1 TOP, 3RD DUE UP FOR OAKLAND: J HANNAHAN (.211, 1-FOR-1)</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">AL AT TORONTO - SCORING UPDATE THREE-RUN HOME RUN BY JACK HANNAHAN (1) TO RIGHT CENTER WITH 2 OUT IN THE 3RD OFF SHAUN MARCUM SCORED MARK ELLIS AND MARCO SCUTARO. CURRENT SCORE: OAKLAND 6, TORONTO 1 DUE UP FOR OAKLAND: K SUZUKI (.239, 0-FOR-1)</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">AL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - OAKLAND 2 0 4 6 9 0 TORONTO 1 0 1 3 1 (BOT 3) CURRENT PITCHERS: OAK - JOE BLANTON TOR - SHAUN MARCUM DUE UP FOR TORONTO: J MCDONALD (.260, 1 HR, 23 RBI) R JOHNSON (.276, 1-FOR-1) L OVERBAY (.254, 0-FOR-1)</div>
AL: OAKLAND at TORONTO <div class="pre">OAKLAND (6) VS TORONTO (1) - MID 3RD - IN PROGRESS OAKLAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg S Stewart lf 2 1 1 0 1 1 1 .294 N Swisher 1b 2 1 1 2 0 0 3 .257 J Cust rf 2 1 1 0 0 1 0 .274 M Piazza dh 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 .271 M Ellis 2b 2 1 1 0 0 1 0 .261 J DaVanon cf 2 0 0 0 0 1 2 .364 M Scutaro ss 2 1 2 1 0 0 0 .263 J Hannahan 3b 2 1 2 3 0 0 0 .250 K Suzuki c 2 0 1 0 0 0 2 .245 Totals 18 6 9 6 1 4 9 BATTING: 2B - J Hannahan (3, S Marcum). HR - N Swisher (16, 1st inning off S Marcum 1 on, 0 Out), J Hannahan (1, 3rd inning off S Marcum 2 on, 2 Out). RBI - N Swisher 2 (61), M Scutaro (35), J Hannahan 3 (5). 2-out RBI - M Scutaro, J Hannahan 3. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - N Swisher 2. Team LOB - 4. FIELDING: DP: 1 (J Hannahan-M Ellis-N Swisher). TORONTO ab r h rbi bb so lob avg R Johnson lf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .276 L Overbay 1b 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .254 A Rios rf 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 .313 V Wells cf 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 .265 F Thomas dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .257 T Glaus 3b 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .256 R Adams 2b 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .000 C Thigpen c 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .259 J McDonald ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .260 Totals 8 1 3 1 0 2 2 BATTING: 2B - V Wells (35, J Blanton). RBI - V Wells (71). 2-out RBI - V Wells. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - F Thomas 1. GIDP - L Overbay. Team LOB - 1. FIELDING: E - T Glaus (7, throw). ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND - 204 -- 6 TORONTO - 10 -- 1 ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND ip h r er bb so hr era J Blanton 2 3 1 1 0 2 0 3.94 TORONTO ip h r er bb so hr era S Marcum 3 9 6 6 1 4 2 3.65 Pitches-strikes: J Blanton 23-16; S Marcum 75-47. Ground balls-fly balls: J Blanton 2-2; S Marcum 2-3. Batters faced: J Blanton 8; S Marcum 19. UMPIRES: HP--James Hoye. 1B--Phil Cuzzi. 2B--Tom Hallion. 3B--Mike Estabrook. Weather: INDOORS.</div>
