The A's and Smokin' Joe Blanton with an 0-4 record and a 5.15 ERA go against Scott Kazmir with a 1-4 record and a 4.44 ERA.
Smokin' Joe tries to put the A's ship back on the right course. He absolutely needs to start getting his curve and slider over, otherwise Blanton will continue to get the same results.
The A's made some roster moves today, including calling up Britt Reames and Nick Swisher, sending Jermaine Clark and Matt Watson back down to Sacramento. Swisher was hitting well with the Cats, so we'll see if he can inject some energy back into the lineup. He winds up at first base today. Here is the A's lineup:
Kotsay
Byrnes
Kendall
Chavez
Kielty
Hatteberg
Ellis
Swisher
Scutaro
The Rays counter with this group:
Crawford
Lugo
Hollins
Lee
Phelps
Cantu
Sanchez
Hall
Green
The injuries have proven to really hurt the team. Let's hope getting Swisher back really helps out. In the meantime, there is an interesting interview with one of the A's young front office members. Read it here.
LET'S GO OAK-LAND!!!