Final Score: Blue Jays 4, A's 2 (12)
The Blue Jays fought hard to try to avoid winning today's game, but it just wasn't meant to be. The A's were too determined.
In the top of the first, Ryan Sweeney singled and went all the way to third on a wild throw by Brian Tallet, where he refused to score on Orlando Cabrera's broken bat bouncer to second with the infield back. Unfortunately, Giambi followed with another grounder and this time Sweeney was unable to refrain from scoring.
After a sparkling 1st inning, Trevor Cahill settled down to walk 5 batters, and hit another, in his 5.1 IP, culminating with his 4th inning walkathon in which Cahill walked the bases loaded, gave up the tying run on a FC, reloaded the bases, and needed an absolute gem of a play by Cabrera in the hole to escape further damage. And with Cabrera's play, Cahill's attempt to lose the game through wildness was thwarted.
In between stranding runners at second with nobody out, running into outs, and bunting foul, Oakland messed up in the top of the 6th and carelessly took the lead on doubles by Sweeney and Giambi, something Cahill efficiently rectified by giving up the tying run in the bottom half.
Then in the bottom of the 9th, with the game tied 2-2 Casilla made a valiant bid to lose the game, walking Scutaro to lead off. Scutaro tagged up at took second on a fly ball to right-center, at which point Casilla yelled "Marco" and when he didn't hear either "Polo!" or "Scutaro!" decided he could just ignore the matter entirely and so Scutaro stole third. The run was, however, choked off by a bouncer to second and then a called third strike.
But the A's got off the deck, weakly hitting pop-ups and dribblers until the bullpen could get back on track. In extra innings, looking for that walk-off HR, Bob Geren decided to roll the diese with Dan Giese, and Giese made every effort to lose the game, allowing warning track fly balls in the 10th and 11th that just wouldn't quite get out. Finally in the 12th, Giese managed to center a fastball to Lyle Overbay just right and Overbay put the A's out of our misery. The Blue Jays have now out-HRed the A's 22-3.
Fail.
