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Weaver tries to get off the schneid against A's

May 23, 2011 - 2:28 PM (Sports Network) - Four consecutive losses have made Jered Weaver's 6-0 start a distant memory. Perhaps the Angels ace can turn things around against the last team he was able to beat.

Weaver tries to avoid dropping five straight decisions for the first time in his career this evening when Los Angeles opens up a four-game series with the Oakland Athletics at Angels Stadium.

The right-handed Weaver was already starting to hear whispers of a Cy Young Award when he opened up the season 6-0 with a 0.99 earned run average. The final victory of that red-hot start came at the expense of the Athletics, who Weaver limited to seven hits in a 5-0 shutout while striking out 10 batters.

The 28-year-old improved to 4-6 with a 3.14 ERA in 16 career outings versus Oakland.

Not much has gone right for Weaver since. He is 0-4 in four starts with a 5.25 ERA, lasting six innings in each setback. His most recent outing came on Wednesday in Seattle and he yielded three runs on seven hits to take a 3-0 loss.

"I gave (the Mariners) an opportunity to get some runs, and they put some big hits together," said Weaver, who now has a season ERA of 2.45 over his 10 starts. "I had to battle again today. You got to score runs to win and (that) didn't happen today."

Los Angeles was able to score enough runs to take Sunday's rubber match of a three-game set with Atlanta, 4-1. Tyler Chatwood threw seven innings of one- run ball and Torii Hunter backed him with a two-run homer off Braves starter Derek Lowe in the fourth inning that put the Angels ahead for good.

"I haven't seen one of those in awhile," said Hunter, who snapped a 28-game homerless drought. "[Lowe] doesn't make many mistakes and I was able to get one up."

The Angels have won two of three since a five-game slide and are a half-game behind the Rangers for first place in the American League West.

Oakland, meanwhile, has fallen into last place in the division thanks to a season-worst five-game slide, though it is just two games back of Texas. The Athletics blasted the Angels, 14-0, right before their current skid, one in which they have plated just nine runs.

Nearly half of those came in Sunday's 5-4 setback to the Giants, who won on Emmanuel Burriss' run-scoring single in the bottom of the 11th inning off Brian Fuentes.

Gio Gonzalez started the game and went 6 2/3 innings, allowing two runs -- one earned -- on eight hits while fanning eight. Josh Willingham hit a solo homer in defeat.

"Any time that you lose a close game it's tough," said Oakland manager Bob Geren. "But, we're professionals and we have to shake this one off and start over tomorrow."

With two rotation spots to fill due to recent injuries to Tyson Ross and Brandon McCarthy, Josh Outman will make his first major league start since June 19, 2009.

Outman missed the rest of that season and all of 2010 due to Tommy John surgery and the left-hander is 4-1 with a 4.78 ERA in eight starts with Triple-A Sacramento this season.

The 26-year-old is 5-3 with a 3.77 ERA in 20 career games at the major league level, including 16 starts, and lost his only other career start versus the Angels.

The Athletics have won three straight over Los Angeles since a six-game series losing streak, but have lost eight of their last nine at Angels Stadium.