A’s can’t hold the Tigers
It was game time for the A’s, and Mike Piazza was still slotted as the designated hitter and Joe Blanton was the starting pitcher.
Two of the players whose names have appeared in recent trade rumors were still out there, doing what they get paid to do in the uniforms they started the season with.
And it was the kind of game the pair had already seen too much of this year, as the Detroit Tigers earned a 5-2 victory Monday to hand the A’s their fourth consecutive loss. It was the teams’ first game against each other in Oakland since last year’s American League championship series.
Placido Polanco owned the A’s once more by going 3 for 5 with a run and an RBI. The Tigers second baseman is hitting .517 (31 for 60) in 15 games against Oakland since the start of the 2005 season.
In his first major league start, Jordan Tata allowed six hits and two earned runs in seven innings as the Tigers ended a four-game slide. Tata was starting in place of Kenny Rogers, who went on the disabled list Sunday.
Blanton put forth a workmanlike effort, giving up five earned runs and striking out five in 6 2/3 innings on 110 pitches.
“Joe pitched a good game,” A’s Manager Bob Geren said. “(The Tigers) seemed to find a few holes and there were a few balls off the end of the bat that were in perfect spots.”
Blanton’s name came up in a trade rumor Monday. ESPN.com reported that the Los Angeles Dodgers were going after the right-hander, with some frontline prospects coming back to Oakland.
One person familiar with the talks told the Web site that a deal was not likely. The trade deadline is today at 1 p.m.
The Dodgers may be in need of a starting pitcher after Randy Wolf suffered a recent setback in his recovery. The left-hander last pitched July 3 and has since been sidelined because of a shoulder impingement. Fellow starters Brett Tomko and Mark Hendrickson have struggled of late.
“I haven’t heard anything one way or another,” Blanton said. “I just go out and play. I have no control over that whatsoever.”
Blanton got off to a rough start Monday as Detroit grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first inning after just 11 pitches. Curtis Granderson and Polanco singled to put runners on first and third base before Gary Sheffield grounded into a 6-4-3 double play, allowing Granderson to score.
The A’s responded with two runs in the fourth. Mark Kotsay doubled to right to bring home Marco Scutaro from first base. Kurt Suzuki then singled to right to score Kotsay and give Oakland a 2-1 lead.
The Tigers took the lead for good in the sixth as a fielding error by Kotsay in center field allowed Granderson to score from first on a Polanco single. One out later, Magglio Ordoñez singled to right to score Polanco and give Detroit a 3-2 advantage.
“The guy’s a good hitter. He’s not hitting (.343) for no reason,” Blanton said of Polanco. “He always seems to put the ball in play.”
Piazza went 1 for 4 in another audition for potential suitors. Since coming off the disabled list July 20, he is 15 for 39 with 11 RBIs. The Los Angeles Angels have been rumored to be the team most interested in his services.