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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) -- Kevin Appier turned in the latest strong
start by an Oakland pitcher.
Appier followed up shutouts by Tim Hudson and Barry Zito by
pitching eight solid innings as the Oakland Athletics defeated the
Tampa Bay Devil Rays 5-1 Monday night.
|  | | Felix Martinez leaps over the A's Matt Stairs after failing to turn a double play in the second inning. |
The A's moved within one game of Seattle in the AL West and 1½ games of wild card leader Cleveland. But the attendance was only
9,109 -- the lowest since May 18, when Oakland drew 8,746 against
Minnesota.
"I learned a lot from watching the others and incorporated that
into my game," Appier said. "This gives you a lot of confidence
when you hit your spots."
Appier (13-11) came within one inning of pitching the A's fourth
consecutive complete game, which hasn't been done since 1982. He
gave up one run and five hits with five strikeouts.
"You always want to finish a game, but I understand the
decision," Appier said. "I was ready to go, though."
Appier took a shutout into the sixth, extending the A's
scoreless streak to 23 innings. He didn't walk a batter either,
helping to set an Oakland record for consecutive innings without a
walk at 38 innings. The A's went 31 innings without issuing a free
pass between June 3-5, 1972.
"That speaks volumes of why we've been successful," A's
manager Art Howe said. "If you don't walk people you have a great
chance of winning."
The A's allowed just three earned runs in the four games against
Tampa Bay (0.77 ERA) and gave up 17 hits. Oakland outscored the
Devil Rays 26-5.
"They did pretty good," A's outfielder Matt Stairs said. "It
was awesome. They worked quick and threw strikes."
Randy Velarde opened the eighth with a single against Doug Creek
(1-3) and advanced to third on Jason Giambi's single. Ben Grieve
then sharply hit a 1-1 pitch from Creek into right field.
Esteban Yan replaced Creek and threw two wild pitches -- with
only one runner advancing on each -- before striking out Adam Piatt.
Stairs then delivered a two-run double and scored on a two-out
single by Eric Chavez.
"It was just good placement over the bag," Stairs said.
"There's a lot of confidence back in this clubhouse."
Travis Harper allowed one run, two hits and four walks in five
innings in his second start with the Devil Rays.
"We kept it close but that wasn't good enough," Devil Rays
manager Larry Rothschild said. "Grieve hits a good pitch. That's
just the way this game goes."
Oakland took a 1-0 lead in the second on Miguel Tejada's
sacrifice fly.
With one out in the sixth, Felix Martinez tripled to the fence
in center field. Gerald Williams then bounced a double through a
drawn-in infield to tie it.
The A's left the bases loaded in the third. After Terrence Long
singled, Velarde and Giambi walked with no outs. Harper got Grieve
to fly out to shallow left, then he struck out Piatt looking on a
full count and got Matt Stairs to fly out to left.
"Harper did a nice job," Rothschild said. "To get out of that
bases-loaded situation, he deserves some credit."
Game notes
The Devil Rays added three players to the roster: OF Randy
Winn, OF Ozzie Timmons, C Toby Hall. ... RHP Ryan Rupe was placed
on the 60-day DL with a blood clot in his right shoulder. ... LHP
Mike Duvall was designated for assignment. ... Durham manager Bill
Evers joined the Tampa Bay coaching staff for the rest of the
season. ... The A's added seven players to their roster: RHP Ariel
Prieto, RHP Scott Service, RHP Jon Ratliff, INF Mark Bellhorn, INF
Jose Ortiz, OF Eric Brynes and OF Bo Porter. ... Oakland also released
INF Joey Espada, designated LHP Leo Vasquez for assignment and
transferred 1B Mario Valdez to the 60-day DL. ... Appier went to
three balls on just two batters.
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ALSO SEE
Baseball Scoreboard
Tampa Bay Clubhouse
Oakland Clubhouse
RECAPS
Boston 4
NY Yankees 0
Chi. White Sox 10
Detroit 3
Baltimore 3
Anaheim 1
Oakland 5
Tampa Bay 1
Kansas City 6
Seattle 3
Philadelphia 5
Montreal 2
Montreal 7
Philadelphia 6
(2nd game)
Cincinnati 7
Chicago Cubs 6
St. Louis 8
Pittsburgh 4
Milwaukee 8
NY Mets 2
San Francisco 8
Houston 7
Los Angeles 6
Arizona 3
San Diego 7
Colorado 2
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