Los Angeles @ Oakland preview
Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum
Last Meeting ( Sep 4, 2010 ) LA Angels 1, Oakland 3
We've heard of teams going out in a blaze of glory.
Well, the three-time defending American League West champions are going out in a blaze of frustration and ineptitude.
The Los Angeles Angels’ reign as West champs will officially end soon when the team is mathematically eliminated from the race. At the moment, the Angels are playing like a team that wants to pack its bags and catch the first plane home.
Los Angeles is 3-7 in its last 10 games and trails first-place Texas by 10 1/2 games. The only thing keeping the Angels from potentially finishing last is the fact that the lowly Seattle Mariners play in their division.
The Angels have barely bothered to show up in the first two games of their series against Oakland this weekend. Los Angeles was held to five hits in Friday night's 8-0 defeat and limited to five hits again in a 3-1 loss Saturday. Torii Hunter's solo homer in the eighth inning Saturday has accounted for the Angels' only run of the series.
After Gio Gonzalez and Trevor Cahill shut down the Angels in the first two games, Vin Mazzaro gets his chance to make it a sweep in today’s finale.
The right-hander is coming off a rough outing in Yankee Stadium, where the A's were swept last week. Mazzaro allowed nine runs (seven earned) and lasted only 3 2/3 innings, giving up home runs to Nick Swisher, Curtis Granderson and Mark Teixeira.
Making the outcome even worse for Mazzaro, a native of Hackensack, N.J., was pitching in front of family members and friends. The poor performance was yet another bad outing for Mazzaro, who hasn't won since July 24 and is 0-5 in his last seven starts.
Mazzaro (6-7) is 1-0 in two starts against the Angels this season. He has given up four earned runs and nine hits in 12 innings.
Ervin Santana (14-9) has been pitching well for Los Angeles, but it may not matter considering the way the Angels have been hitting. Santana is 6-2 since July 24, a span of eight starts. He held Seattle to two runs and eight hits in 7 2/3 innings in last start. Santana didn't walk a batter and struck out four.
Santana is 1-1 against the A's in two starts this season, allowing eight runs (six earned) and 14 hits in 11 innings. The right-hander is closing in on his career high in wins. Santana had 16 victories in 2006 and 2008.
A win would move Oakland back to the .500 mark. The A's trail the Rangers by eight games in the division.