AL: OAKLAND at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">AL AT CLEVELAND - MID INNING UPDATE PLAY: T Nixon hit for K Shoppach. SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, NONE ON, 0 OUTS CURRENT SCORE: OAKLAND 9 CLEVELAND 3 BOTTOM, 9TH DUE UP FOR CLEVELAND: T Nixon (.255, 3 HR, 31 RBI)</div>
AL: OAKLAND at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">AL FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - OAKLAND 0 2 0 1 3 3 0 0 0 9 15 0 CLEVELAND 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 3 10 1 (FINAL) BATTERIES: OAK - DAN HAREN, JERRY BLEVINS (7TH), RUDDY LUGO (8TH), HUSTON STREET (9TH) AND KURT SUZUKI CLE - PAUL BYRD, TOM MASTNY (5TH), CLIFF LEE (7TH), AARON FULTZ (9TH) AND KELLY SHOPPACH HOME RUNS: OAK - MARK ELLIS (19) OFF PAUL BYRD IN THE 4TH, 0 ON JACK CUST (26) OFF TOM MASTNY IN THE 6TH, 1 ON CLE - GRADY SIZEMORE (24) OFF DAN HAREN IN THE 5TH, 1 ON</div>
AL: OAKLAND at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">AL FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - OAKLAND 0 2 0 1 3 3 0 0 0 9 15 0 CLEVELAND 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 3 10 1 (FINAL) BATTERIES: OAK - DAN HAREN, JERRY BLEVINS (7TH), RUDDY LUGO (8TH), HUSTON STREET (9TH) AND KURT SUZUKI CLE - PAUL BYRD, TOM MASTNY (5TH), CLIFF LEE (7TH), AARON FULTZ (9TH) AND KELLY SHOPPACH WP - DAN HAREN (15-8) LP - PAUL BYRD (15-7) SAVE - NONE HOME RUNS: OAK - MARK ELLIS (19) OFF PAUL BYRD IN THE 4TH, 0 ON JACK CUST (26) OFF TOM MASTNY IN THE 6TH, 1 ON CLE - GRADY SIZEMORE (24) OFF DAN HAREN IN THE 5TH, 1 ON TIME: 3:05 ATT: 40,663 PROBABLES: OAK - DALLAS BRADEN (1-7, 6.41) CLE - JAKE WESTBROOK (5-9, 4.41)</div>
AL: OAKLAND at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">OAKLAND (9) VS CLEVELAND (3) - FINAL OAKLAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg S Stewart lf 5 1 2 0 0 0 0 .288 D Barton 1b 4 1 1 0 1 0 1 .320 N Swisher cf-rf 5 2 3 2 0 0 1 .267 J Cust rf 5 2 2 2 0 1 3 .263 J DaVanon cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .238 D Johnson dh 3 0 0 0 2 1 2 .232 M Ellis 2b 5 2 3 3 0 1 1 .275 M Scutaro ss 4 1 1 0 1 1 2 .262 J Hannahan 3b 5 0 2 2 0 3 2 .293 K Suzuki c 5 0 1 0 0 0 2 .254 Totals 41 9 15 9 4 7 14 BATTING: 2B - J Hannahan (11, P Byrd); S Stewart (21, P Byrd); D Barton (7, P Byrd); M Ellis (32, T Mastny); N Swisher (35, T Mastny). HR - M Ellis (19, 4th inning off P Byrd 0 on, 0 Out), J Cust (26, 6th inning off T Mastny 1 on, 2 Out). RBI - J Hannahan 2 (22), M Ellis 3 (76), N Swisher 2 (75), J Cust 2 (82). 2-out RBI - J Hannahan 2, N Swisher, J Cust 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - D Johnson 1, J Hannahan 2, K Suzuki 1. Team LOB - 9. CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg G Sizemore cf 5 1 1 2 0 2 1 .272 A Cabrera 2b 5 1 1 0 0 1 1 .285 T Hafner dh 4 0 3 1 1 0 1 .256 V Martinez 1b 4 0 1 0 0 1 3 .301 J Peralta ss 4 0 0 0 0 1 2 .270 C Blake 3b 4 0 2 0 0 1 0 .267 K Lofton lf 3 0 1 0 0 0 1 .299 F Gutierrez rf 4 1 1 0 0 0 3 .272 K Shoppach c 3 0 0 0 0 1 2 .257 a-T Nixon ph 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .255 Totals 36 3 10 3 2 7 14 a-walked for K Shoppach in the 9th. BATTING: 2B - T Hafner 2 (24, D Haren 2); A Cabrera (9, J Blevins). HR - G Sizemore (24, 5th inning off D Haren 1 on, 1 Out). S - K Lofton. RBI - G Sizemore 2 (76), T Hafner (96). 2-out RBI - T Hafner. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - V Martinez 2, J Peralta 1, K Shoppach 1. Team LOB - 9. FIELDING: E - K Shoppach (4, catch). Outfield assists - K Lofton (J Hannahan at Home). ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND - 020 133 000 -- 9 CLEVELAND - 000 020 100 -- 3 ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND ip h r er bb so hr era D Haren (W, 15-8) 6 7 2 2 1 6 1 3.12 J Blevins 1 2 1 1 0 0 0 4.15 R Lugo 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 5.36 H Street 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 2.81 CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era P Byrd (L, 15-7) 4 1/3 9 6 6 2 3 1 4.55 T Mastny 1 2/3 4 3 3 1 2 1 4.67 C Lee 2 1 0 0 0 1 0 6.40 A Fultz 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 2.91 WP - D Haren. Pitches-strikes: D Haren 106-68; J Blevins 22-15; R Lugo 9-6; H Street 16-8; P Byrd 83-59; T Mastny 36-22; C Lee 34-23; A Fultz 18-8. Ground balls-fly balls: D Haren 7-5; J Blevins 0-3; R Lugo 2-1; H Street 0-2; P Byrd 6-3; T Mastny 0-3; C Lee 3-2; A Fultz 1-1. Batters faced: D Haren 26; J Blevins 5; R Lugo 4; H Street 4; P Byrd 23; T Mastny 10; C Lee 7; A Fultz 5. UMPIRES: HP--Greg Gibson. 1B--Larry Vanover. 2B--James Hoye. 3B--Tony Randazzo. T--3:05. Att--40,663. Weather: 69 degrees, clear. Wind: 5 mph, in from center.</div>
AL: OAKLAND at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ OAKLAND (9) AT CLEVELAND (3) - HOW THEY SCORED ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ OAKLAND 2ND: J Cust grounded out to second. D Johnson struck out looking. M Ellis reached on infield single to catcher. M Scutaro singled to center, M Ellis to second. J Hannahan doubled to deep right center, M Ellis and M Scutaro scored. K Suzuki singled to left, J Hannahan thrown out at home. (2 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 2, CLEVELAND 0. OAKLAND 4TH: M Ellis homered to left. M Scutaro grounded out to second. J Hannahan struck out looking. K Suzuki flied out to right. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, CLEVELAND 0. OAKLAND 5TH: S Stewart grounded out to second. D Barton doubled to deep left. N Swisher singled to right, D Barton scored, N Swisher to second on error by catcher K Shoppach. J Cust singled to center, N Swisher to third. D Johnson walked, J Cust to second. T Mastny relieved P Byrd. M Ellis doubled to deep left, N Swisher and J Cust scored, D Johnson to third. M Scutaro struck out swinging. J Hannahan struck out swinging. (3 Runs, 4 Hits, 1 Error) OAKLAND 6, CLEVELAND 0. CLEVELAND 5TH: F Gutierrez singled to center. K Shoppach lined out to center. G Sizemore homered to right, F Gutierrez scored. A Cabrera struck out swinging. T Hafner doubled to right center. V Martinez grounded out to second. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 6, CLEVELAND 2. OAKLAND 6TH: K Suzuki flied out to right. S Stewart singled to left. D Barton flied out to right. N Swisher doubled to deep center, S Stewart scored. J Cust homered to center, N Swisher scored. D Johnson walked. M Ellis flied out to left. (3 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 9, CLEVELAND 2. CLEVELAND 7TH: J Blevins relieved D Haren. K Shoppach flied out to center. G Sizemore popped out to second. A Cabrera doubled to left. T Hafner singled to center, A Cabrera scored. V Martinez flied out to center. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 9, CLEVELAND 3.</div>
AL: OAKLAND at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ OAKLAND (9) AT CLEVELAND (3) - EVENT LOG ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Oakland Starting Lineups -- S Stewart LF, D Barton 1B, N Swisher CF, J Cust RF, D Johnson DH, M Ellis 2B, M Scutaro SS, J Hannahan 3B, K Suzuki C, D Haren RHP. Cleveland Starting Lineups -- G Sizemore CF, A Cabrera 2B, T Hafner DH, V Martinez 1B, J Peralta SS, C Blake 3B, K Lofton LF, F Gutierrez RF, K Shoppach C, P Byrd RHP. Umpires -- Greg Gibson (HP), Larry Vanover (1B), James Hoye (2B), Tony Randazzo (3B). Gametime Weather: 69 degrees, Clear, wind in from center at 5 mph. OAKLAND 1ST: S Stewart lined out to center. D Barton lined out to second. N Swisher grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, CLEVELAND 0. CLEVELAND 1ST: G Sizemore grounded out to second. A Cabrera grounded out to shortstop. T Hafner walked. V Martinez singled to left, T Hafner to second. J Peralta flied out to right. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 0, CLEVELAND 0. OAKLAND 2ND: J Cust grounded out to second. D Johnson struck out looking. M Ellis reached on infield single to catcher. M Scutaro singled to center, M Ellis to second. J Hannahan doubled to deep right center, M Ellis and M Scutaro scored. K Suzuki singled to left, J Hannahan thrown out at home. (2 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 2, CLEVELAND 0. CLEVELAND 2ND: C Blake singled to center. K Lofton sacrificed to catcher, C Blake to second. F Gutierrez grounded out to shortstop. C Blake to third on wild pitch by D Haren. K Shoppach struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 2, CLEVELAND 0. OAKLAND 3RD: S Stewart doubled to deep center. D Barton walked. N Swisher grounded into fielder's choice to first, D Barton out at second, S Stewart to third. J Cust struck out looking. D Johnson grounded out to pitcher. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 2, CLEVELAND 0. CLEVELAND 3RD: G Sizemore struck out looking. A Cabrera grounded out to second. T Hafner doubled to deep left center. V Martinez struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 2, CLEVELAND 0. OAKLAND 4TH: M Ellis homered to left. M Scutaro grounded out to second. J Hannahan struck out looking. K Suzuki flied out to right. (1 Run, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, CLEVELAND 0. CLEVELAND 4TH: J Peralta struck out swinging. C Blake struck out swinging. K Lofton flied out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 3, CLEVELAND 0. OAKLAND 5TH: S Stewart grounded out to second. D Barton doubled to deep left. N Swisher singled to right, D Barton scored, N Swisher to second on error by catcher K Shoppach. J Cust singled to center, N Swisher to third. D Johnson walked, J Cust to second. T Mastny relieved P Byrd. M Ellis doubled to deep left, N Swisher and J Cust scored, D Johnson to third. M Scutaro struck out swinging. J Hannahan struck out swinging. (3 Runs, 4 Hits, 1 Error) OAKLAND 6, CLEVELAND 0. CLEVELAND 5TH: F Gutierrez singled to center. K Shoppach lined out to center. G Sizemore homered to right, F Gutierrez scored. A Cabrera struck out swinging. T Hafner doubled to right center. V Martinez grounded out to second. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 6, CLEVELAND 2. OAKLAND 6TH: K Suzuki flied out to right. S Stewart singled to left. D Barton flied out to right. N Swisher doubled to deep center, S Stewart scored. J Cust homered to center, N Swisher scored. D Johnson walked. M Ellis flied out to left. (3 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 9, CLEVELAND 2. CLEVELAND 6TH: J Peralta grounded out to second. C Blake flied out to center. K Lofton singled to center. F Gutierrez flied out to center. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 9, CLEVELAND 2. OAKLAND 7TH: C Lee relieved T Mastny. M Scutaro grounded out to third. J Hannahan struck out swinging. K Suzuki flied out to center. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 9, CLEVELAND 2. CLEVELAND 7TH: J Blevins relieved D Haren. K Shoppach flied out to center. G Sizemore popped out to second. A Cabrera doubled to left. T Hafner singled to center, A Cabrera scored. V Martinez flied out to center. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 9, CLEVELAND 3. OAKLAND 8TH: S Stewart grounded out to shortstop. D Barton flied out to left. N Swisher singled to left center. J Cust grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 9, CLEVELAND 3. CLEVELAND 8TH: N Swisher in right field. J DaVanon in center field. R Lugo relieved J Blevins. J Peralta flied out to left. C Blake singled to right. K Lofton grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, C Blake out at second. F Gutierrez grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 9, CLEVELAND 3. OAKLAND 9TH: A Fultz relieved C Lee. D Johnson grounded out to first. M Ellis struck out swinging. M Scutaro walked. J Hannahan singled to right, M Scutaro to third. K Suzuki flied out to left. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 9, CLEVELAND 3. CLEVELAND 9TH: H Street relieved R Lugo. T Nixon hit for K Shoppach. T Nixon walked. G Sizemore struck out swinging. A Cabrera popped out to second. T Hafner lined out to center. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) OAKLAND 9, CLEVELAND 3.</div>
Haren wins 15th as A's prevent Indians from clinching <h3>OAKLAND 9, CLEVELAND 3</h3>By Todd Krepop PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer CLEVELAND (Ticker) -- The Oakland Athletics made sure thechampagne stayed on ice. Dan Haren won for the first time in a month as the Athleticsdefeated the Cleveland Indians, 9-3, on Saturday night. Nick Swisher returned from his three-game suspension with threehits and two RBI and Mark Ellis drove in three runs as the A'ssnapped their five-game losing streak. Despite the loss, Cleveland (91-62) assured itself of at least atie for the American League Central with the Detroit Tigers'loss to Kansas City. Cleveland (91-63) fell into a tie with theBoston Red Sox (91-63) for the best overall record in themajors. Boston is playing at Tampa Bay. Haren (15-8) came in to Saturday's game on a four-game losingstreak with an ERA near 6.00, but had little trouble with aCleveland team that had a chance to wrap up its first divisionalcrown since the 2001 season. Haren allowed two runs on seven hits in six innings whilestriking out six. His only mistake came in the fifth inningwhen he allowed a two-run homer to Grady Sizemore. While the home run didn't hurt Haren's chances of picking up awin, it might have cost him the American League ERA crown.Haren entered the game trailing Cleveland's Fausto Carmona 3.12to 3.03. Haren's ERA remained unchanged after his outing, andhe has one start remaining this season. The A's offense went to work off of starter Paul Byrd (15-7) inthe second inning as they took advantage of a miscommunicationfrom the Indians' infielders. With two outs, Ellis popped up Byrd's pitch in the infield forwhat should have been the third out. However nobody took chargeas third baseman Casey Blake, catcher Kelly Shoppach and Byrdwatched as the ball dropped between them. Marco Scutaro followed with a single and Jack Hannahan hit atwo-run double to give the A's an early 2-0 lead. Ellis' solo home-run in the fourth extended the A's lead to 3-0.Byrd hung an 0-2 pitch that Ellis blasted down the left fieldline for his 19th home run. After Byrd was chased from the game earlier in the inning, Ellisdrove in another two runs in the fifth as he laced a double offthe left field wall as part of a three-run inning, giving theA's a 6-0 lead. Byrd gave up six runs on nine hits in 4 1/3 innings. It was thesecond time in the last four starts that Byrd failed to get outof the fifth.
AL: OAKLAND at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">OAKLAND (9) VS CLEVELAND (3) - FINAL OAKLAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg S Stewart lf 5 1 2 0 0 0 0 .288 D Barton 1b 4 1 1 0 1 0 1 .320 N Swisher cf-rf 5 2 3 2 0 0 1 .267 J Cust rf 5 2 2 2 0 1 3 .263 J DaVanon cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .238 D Johnson dh 3 0 0 0 2 1 2 .232 M Ellis 2b 5 2 3 3 0 1 1 .275 M Scutaro ss 4 1 1 0 1 1 2 .262 J Hannahan 3b 5 0 2 2 0 3 2 .293 K Suzuki c 5 0 1 0 0 0 2 .254 Totals 41 9 15 9 4 7 14 BATTING: 2B - J Hannahan (11, P Byrd); S Stewart (21, P Byrd); D Barton (7, P Byrd); M Ellis (32, T Mastny); N Swisher (35, T Mastny). HR - M Ellis (19, 4th inning off P Byrd 0 on, 0 Out), J Cust (26, 6th inning off T Mastny 1 on, 2 Out). RBI - J Hannahan 2 (22), M Ellis 3 (76), N Swisher 2 (75), J Cust 2 (82). 2-out RBI - J Hannahan 2, N Swisher, J Cust 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - D Johnson 1, J Hannahan 2, K Suzuki 1. Team LOB - 9. CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg G Sizemore cf 5 1 1 2 0 2 1 .272 A Cabrera 2b 5 1 1 0 0 1 1 .285 T Hafner dh 4 0 3 1 1 0 1 .256 V Martinez 1b 4 0 1 0 0 1 3 .301 J Peralta ss 4 0 0 0 0 1 2 .270 C Blake 3b 4 0 2 0 0 1 0 .267 K Lofton lf 3 0 1 0 0 0 1 .299 F Gutierrez rf 4 1 1 0 0 0 3 .272 K Shoppach c 3 0 0 0 0 1 2 .257 a-T Nixon ph 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .255 Totals 36 3 10 3 2 7 14 a-walked for K Shoppach in the 9th. BATTING: 2B - T Hafner 2 (24, D Haren 2); A Cabrera (9, J Blevins). HR - G Sizemore (24, 5th inning off D Haren 1 on, 1 Out). S - K Lofton. RBI - G Sizemore 2 (76), T Hafner (96). 2-out RBI - T Hafner. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - V Martinez 2, J Peralta 1, K Shoppach 1. Team LOB - 9. FIELDING: E - K Shoppach (4, catch). Outfield assists - K Lofton (J Hannahan at Home). ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND - 020 133 000 -- 9 CLEVELAND - 000 020 100 -- 3 ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND ip h r er bb so hr era D Haren (W, 15-8) 6 7 2 2 1 6 1 3.12 J Blevins 1 2 1 1 0 0 0 4.15 R Lugo 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 5.36 H Street 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 2.81 CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era P Byrd (L, 15-7) 4 1/3 9 6 6 2 3 1 4.55 T Mastny 1 2/3 4 3 3 1 2 1 4.67 C Lee 2 1 0 0 0 1 0 6.40 A Fultz 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 2.91 WP - D Haren. Pitches-strikes: D Haren 106-68; J Blevins 22-15; R Lugo 9-6; H Street 16-8; P Byrd 84-59; T Mastny 36-22; C Lee 34-23; A Fultz 18-8. Ground balls-fly balls: D Haren 7-5; J Blevins 0-3; R Lugo 2-1; H Street 0-2; P Byrd 6-3; T Mastny 0-3; C Lee 3-2; A Fultz 1-1. Batters faced: D Haren 26; J Blevins 5; R Lugo 4; H Street 4; P Byrd 23; T Mastny 10; C Lee 7; A Fultz 5. UMPIRES: HP--Greg Gibson. 1B--Larry Vanover. 2B--James Hoye. 3B--Tony Randazzo. T--3:05. Att--40,663. Weather: 69 degrees, clear. Wind: 5 mph, in from center.</div>
Haren wins 15th as A's prevent Indians from clinching <h3>OAKLAND 9, CLEVELAND 3</h3>By Todd Krepop PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer CLEVELAND (Ticker) -- The Oakland Athletics made sure thechampagne stayed on ice. Dan Haren won for the first time in a month as the Athleticsdefeated the Cleveland Indians, 9-3, on Saturday night. Nick Swisher returned from his three-game suspension with threehits and two RBI and Mark Ellis drove in three runs as the A'ssnapped their five-game losing streak. Despite the loss, Cleveland assured itself of at least a tie forthe American League Central with the Detroit Tigers' loss toKansas City. Cleveland (91-63) fell a half-game behind theBoston Red Sox (92-63) for the best overall record in themajors. "It wasn't in the cards for us," Indians manager Eric Wedgesaid. "It wasn't our night tonight." Haren (15-8) came into Saturday's game on a four-game losingstreak with an ERA near 6.00, but had little trouble with aCleveland team that had a chance to wrap up its first divisionalcrown since the 2001 season. "I've been struggling to pick up a win," Haren said. "There aretimes in a season every pitcher goes through something likethis. I've had my struggles the last month." Haren allowed two runs on seven hits in six innings whilestriking out six. His only mistake came in the fifth inningwhen he allowed a two-run homer to Grady Sizemore. "Dan gave us a very strong outing," A's manager Bob Geren said."He was solid all the way around." While the home run didn't hurt Haren's chances of picking up awin, it might have cost him the American League ERA crown. Harenentered the game trailing Cleveland's Fausto Carmona 3.12 to3.03. Haren's ERA remained unchanged after his outing, and hehas one start remaining this season. "We faced a good pitcher," Indians third baseman Casey Blakesaid. "You have to remember that guy started the All Star game.He's a tough pitcher to hit." The A's offense went to work off of starter Paul Byrd (15-7) inthe second inning as they took advantage of a miscommunicationfrom the Indians' infielders. With two outs, Ellis popped up Byrd's pitch in the infield forwhat should have been the third out. However nobody took chargeas Blake, catcher Kelly Shoppach and Byrd watched as the balldropped between them. "It was the best hit I've ever had in my life," Ellis said. "Idon't know what happened. I was running to first." Marco Scutaro followed with a single and Jack Hannahan hit atwo-run double to give the A's an early 2-0 lead. "You're thinking I'll get the next guy out, he gets a hit," Byrdsaid. "A rookie then comes up, I throw him a good pitch and hehits a double. You're scratching your head wondering how I gothere." Ellis' solo home-run in the fourth extended the A's lead to 3-0.Byrd hung an 0-2 pitch that Ellis blasted down the left fieldline for his 19th home run. "I hit that ball a little bit better," Ellis said. "It was 0-2and I think he was trying to come inside. I was able to keep itfair." After Byrd was chased from the game earlier in the inning, Ellisdrove in another two runs in the fifth as he laced a double offthe left field wall as part of a three-run inning, giving theA's a 6-0 lead. Byrd gave up six runs on nine hits in 4 1/3 innings. It was thesecond time in the last four starts that Byrd failed to get outof the fifth. "It's disappointing (we didn't clinch tonight)," Byrd said. "Ithought I threw the ball OK. The contact game that I bring tothe table didn't work tonight."
