GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: OAKLAND (44-46) at MINNESOTA (47-43)

AL: OAKLAND at MINNESOTA

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OAKLAND (3) AT MINNESOTA (4) - HOW THEY SCORED
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OAKLAND 2ND: E Chavez walked. D Johnson singled to right, E Chavez to
second. M Ellis sacrificed to pitcher, E Chavez to third, D Johnson to second.
M Kotsay grounded out to shortstop, E Chavez scored, D Johnson to third.
B Crosby grounded out to second. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 1,
MINNESOTA 0.

MINNESOTA 2ND: J Morneau singled to right center. J Morneau stole second.
T Hunter flied out to right, J Morneau to third on error by right fielder
N Swisher. G Jones grounded out to first. J Tyner singled to left, J Morneau
scored. N Punto flied out to right. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 1,
MINNESOTA 1.

MINNESOTA 3RD: L Castillo grounded out to shortstop. J Bartlett singled to
center. J Mauer singled to right, J Bartlett to third. M Cuddyer hit
sacrifice fly to right, J Bartlett scored. J Morneau lined out to right.
(1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 1, MINNESOTA 2.

MINNESOTA 5TH: L Castillo tripled to deep center. J Bartlett popped out to
second. J Mauer doubled to right, L Castillo scored. M Cuddyer singled to
center, J Mauer scored, M Cuddyer to second advancing on throw. J Morneau
flied out to left. T Hunter grounded out to first. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors)
OAKLAND 1, MINNESOTA 4.

OAKLAND 7TH: J Cust walked. E Chavez lined out to center. D Johnson
doubled to deep right, J Cust to third. M Ellis struck out swinging. D Reyes
relieved C Silva. M Kotsay doubled to deep right center, J Cust and D Johnson
scored. M Guerrier relieved D Reyes. B Crosby grounded out to pitcher.
(2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, MINNESOTA 4.</div>

 

AL: OAKLAND at MINNESOTA

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OAKLAND (3) AT MINNESOTA (4) - EVENT LOG
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Oakland Starting Lineups -- T Buck LF, N Swisher RF, J Cust DH, E Chavez 3B,
D Johnson 1B, M Ellis 2B, M Kotsay CF, B Crosby SS, K Suzuki C, J Blanton RHP.

Minnesota Starting Lineups -- L Castillo 2B, J Bartlett SS, J Mauer C,
M Cuddyer RF, J Morneau DH, T Hunter CF, G Jones 1B, J Tyner LF, N Punto 3B,
C Silva RHP.

Umpires -- Tim Welke (HP), Lance Barksdale (1B), Gary Cederstrom (2B),
Jim Reynolds (3B).

Gametime Weather: INDOORS.


OAKLAND 1ST: T Buck struck out looking. N Swisher lined out to left.
J Cust struck out looking. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, MINNESOTA 0.

MINNESOTA 1ST: L Castillo safe at first on error by shortstop B Crosby.
J Bartlett flied out to center. J Mauer flied out to left. L Castillo stole
second. M Cuddyer popped out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 1 Error) OAKLAND 0,
MINNESOTA 0.

OAKLAND 2ND: E Chavez walked. D Johnson singled to right, E Chavez to
second. M Ellis sacrificed to pitcher, E Chavez to third, D Johnson to second.
M Kotsay grounded out to shortstop, E Chavez scored, D Johnson to third.
B Crosby grounded out to second. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 1, MINNESOTA 0.

MINNESOTA 2ND: J Morneau singled to right center. J Morneau stole second.
T Hunter flied out to right, J Morneau to third.G Jones grounded out to first.
J Tyner singled to left, J Morneau scored. N Punto flied out to right. (1 Run,
2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 1, MINNESOTA 1.

OAKLAND 3RD: K Suzuki grounded out to shortstop. T Buck flied out to left.
N Swisher grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 1,
MINNESOTA 1.

MINNESOTA 3RD: L Castillo grounded out to shortstop. J Bartlett singled to
center. J Mauer singled to right, J Bartlett to third. M Cuddyer hit
sacrifice fly to right, J Bartlett scored. J Morneau lined out to right.
(1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 1, MINNESOTA 2.

OAKLAND 4TH: J Cust grounded out to second. E Chavez lined out to third.
D Johnson struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 1,
MINNESOTA 2.

MINNESOTA 4TH: T Hunter grounded out to shortstop. G Jones grounded out to
first. J Tyner doubled to left. N Punto flied out to center. (0 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) OAKLAND 1, MINNESOTA 2.

OAKLAND 5TH: M Ellis flied out to center. M Kotsay grounded out to second.
B Crosby lined out to pitcher. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 1,
MINNESOTA 2.

MINNESOTA 5TH: L Castillo tripled to deep center. J Bartlett popped out to
second. J Mauer doubled to right, L Castillo scored. M Cuddyer singled to
center, J Mauer scored, M Cuddyer to second advancing on throw. J Morneau
flied out to left. T Hunter grounded out to first. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors)
OAKLAND 1, MINNESOTA 4.

OAKLAND 6TH: K Suzuki grounded out to shortstop. T Buck popped out to
third. N Swisher flied out to center. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 1,
MINNESOTA 4.

MINNESOTA 6TH: G Jones struck out swinging. J Tyner popped out to pitcher.
N Punto grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 1,
MINNESOTA 4.

OAKLAND 7TH: J Cust walked. E Chavez lined out to center. D Johnson
doubled to deep right, J Cust to third. M Ellis struck out swinging. D Reyes
relieved C Silva. M Kotsay doubled to deep right center, J Cust and D Johnson
scored. M Guerrier relieved D Reyes. B Crosby grounded out to pitcher.
(2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, MINNESOTA 4.

MINNESOTA 7TH: L Castillo reached on bunt single to third. L Castillo
caught stealing second, catcher to second. J Bartlett struck out swinging.
J Mauer lined out to first. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, MINNESOTA 4.

OAKLAND 8TH: P Neshek relieved M Guerrier. K Suzuki flied out to center.
T Buck grounded out to second. N Swisher flied out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits,
0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, MINNESOTA 4.

MINNESOTA 8TH: M Cuddyer grounded out to first. J Morneau popped out to
shortstop. T Hunter singled to center. G Jones walked, T Hunter to second.
A Embree relieved J Blanton. J Cirillo hit for J Tyner. J Cirillo reached on
infield single to second, T Hunter to third, G Jones to second. L Ford ran for
J Cirillo. N Punto grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3,
MINNESOTA 4.

OAKLAND 9TH: L Ford in left field. J Nathan relieved P Neshek. J Cust
struck out looking. E Chavez grounded out to third. D Johnson flied out to
center. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, MINNESOTA 4.</div>

 

AL: OAKLAND at MINNESOTA

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OAKLAND (3) AT MINNESOTA (4) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

OAKLAND 2ND: E Chavez walked. D Johnson singled to right, E Chavez to
second. M Ellis sacrificed to pitcher, E Chavez to third, D Johnson to second.
M Kotsay grounded out to shortstop, E Chavez scored, D Johnson to third.
B Crosby grounded out to second. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 1,
MINNESOTA 0.

MINNESOTA 2ND: J Morneau singled to right center. J Morneau stole second.
T Hunter flied out to right, J Morneau to third. G Jones grounded out to first.
J Tyner singled to left, J Morneau scored. N Punto flied out to right.
(1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 1, MINNESOTA 1.

MINNESOTA 3RD: L Castillo grounded out to shortstop. J Bartlett singled to
center. J Mauer singled to right, J Bartlett to third. M Cuddyer hit
sacrifice fly to right, J Bartlett scored. J Morneau lined out to right.
(1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 1, MINNESOTA 2.

MINNESOTA 5TH: L Castillo tripled to deep center. J Bartlett popped out to
second. J Mauer doubled to right, L Castillo scored. M Cuddyer singled to
center, J Mauer scored, M Cuddyer to second advancing on throw. J Morneau
flied out to left. T Hunter grounded out to first. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors)
OAKLAND 1, MINNESOTA 4.

OAKLAND 7TH: J Cust walked. E Chavez lined out to center. D Johnson
doubled to deep right, J Cust to third. M Ellis struck out swinging. D Reyes
relieved C Silva. M Kotsay doubled to deep right center, J Cust and D Johnson
scored. M Guerrier relieved D Reyes. B Crosby grounded out to pitcher.
(2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, MINNESOTA 4.</div>

 

Silva strong as Twins edge Athletics

<h3>MINNESOTA 4, OAKLAND 3</h3>MINNEAPOLIS (Ticker) -- Carlos Silva hurled 6 2/3 effectiveinnings as the Minnesota Twins remained perfect since theAll-Star break with a 4-3 victory over the Oakland Athletics atthe Metrodome on Saturday night.


Michael Cuddyer drove in two runs for the Twins, who will try tocomplete a sweep of their four-game series against theAthletics on Sunday.


Silva (7-10) yielded three runs and two hits while striking outfour and walking two. He surrendered only one hit and one walkthrough the first six innings and retired 15 batters in a rowbefore Jack Cust drew a leadoff walk in the seventh.

Until then, Oakland's only run against Silva came on an RBIgroundout by Mark Kotsay in the second inning.


That run put the Athletics ahead, but the Twins quickly tied thegame in the bottom of the frame when Jason Tyner's two-outsingle plated Justin Morneau. Morneau led off the inning with asingle, stole second and moved to third on a deep flyout byTorii Hunter.


Minnesota took the lead in the third on a sacrifice fly byCuddyer and stretched its advantage to 4-1 in the fifth. LuisCastillo led off the inning with a triple and Joe Mauer followedwith an RBI double before scoring on a single by Cuddyer, whosebat has been sizzling since the break.


Silva, who finished with four strikeouts, was in total controluntil the seventh inning. After issuing the walk to Cust, Silvagave up a double by Dan Johnson before being replaced by DennysReyes.


Kotsay hit Reyes' first pitch into the right-center field gap tocut Oakland's deficit to 4-3. But Matt Guerrier got the finalout of the inning to preserve the one-run lead and keep Silva inline for the win.


Pat Neshek worked a 1-2-3 eighth inning and Joe Nathan tossed ascoreless ninth for his 18th save.


Oakland starter Joe Blanton (8-6) allowed four runs and 10 hitsin 7 2/3 innings, walking one and striking out two.

Johnson had two hits for the A's (44-47), who lost their sixthstraight game and fell three games below .500 for the first timethis season. It is the first time Oakland has lost at leastsix consecutive games since May 2006.

 

Silva strong as Twins edge Athletics

<h3>MINNESOTA 4, OAKLAND 3</h3>MINNEAPOLIS (Ticker) -- Carlos Silva hurled 6 2/3 effectiveinnings as the Minnesota Twins remained perfect since theAll-Star break with a 4-3 victory over the Oakland Athletics atthe Metrodome on Saturday night.


Michael Cuddyer drove in two runs for the Twins, who will try tocomplete a sweep of their four-game series against theAthletics on Sunday.


The win was Minnesota's fifth in its last seven games and pushedthe team a season-high five games over .500.


Silva (7-10) yielded three runs and two hits while striking outfour and walking two. He surrendered only one hit and one walkthrough the first six innings and retired 15 batters in a rowbefore Jack Cust drew a leadoff walk in the seventh.

"He was throwing the ball good and keeping it over the plate,for the most part," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "Thatwas a great performance, and we needed it."


Until then, Oakland's only run against Silva came on an RBIgroundout by Mark Kotsay in the second inning.


"I was just trying to throw strikes, keep the ball down, andthat was it," Silva said.


His performance was the third consecutive strong showing by aTwins starter in this series. Scott Baker and Johan Santanaallowed a total of two runs in 13 combined innings over thefirst two games.


"As a pitcher, after you see two guys throw like that, you wantto do the same thing," Silva said.


That run in the second put the Athletics ahead, but the Twinsquickly tied the game in the bottom of the frame when JasonTyner's two-out single plated Justin Morneau. Morneau led offthe inning with a single, stole second and moved to third on adeep flyout by Torii Hunter.


Minnesota took the lead in the third on a sacrifice fly byCuddyer and stretched its advantage to 4-1 in the fifth. LuisCastillo led off the inning with a triple and Joe Mauer followedwith an RBI double before scoring on a single by Cuddyer, whosebat has been sizzling since the break.


Silva, who finished with four strikeouts, was in total controluntil the seventh inning. After issuing the walk to Cust, Silvagave up a double by Dan Johnson before being replaced by DennysReyes.


Kotsay hit Reyes' first pitch into the right-center field gap tocut Oakland's deficit to 4-3. But Matt Guerrier got the finalout of the inning to preserve the one-run lead and keep Silva inline for the win.


Pat Neshek worked a 1-2-3 eighth inning and Joe Nathan tossed ascoreless ninth for his 18th save.


Oakland starter Joe Blanton (8-6) allowed four runs and 10 hitsin 7 2/3 innings, walking one and striking out two.

"We hit balls hard but just didn't have anything to show forit," Kotsay said. "You could say that the struggles continue,but there were a lot of good at-bats."


Johnson had two hits for the A's (44-47), who lost their sixthstraight game and fell three games below .500 for the first timethis season. It is the first time Oakland has lost at leastsix consecutive games since May 2006.


Despite another loss, Oakland felt it was hitting the ball wellbut not getting any breaks.


"Something falls in here or there, and we win that game," A'smanager Bob Geren said. "I really feel that way. The positivething is that we started to make good contact at the plate."

Gardenhire has been on both sides of the offensive spectrum thisseason, so even though his team is riding high at the moment,he can sympathize with what the A's are going through.

"We've been through that, too," Gardenhire said. "Sometimesyou've got to work the count and find some holes. We've beenthe team that's done that so far on this homestand."