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Brown homers, Blanton solid as A's top Phils

Jun 25, 2008 - 6:45 AM By Michael Duca PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

OAKLAND, California (Ticker) - Emil Brown and Jack Cust each hit home runs and Joe Blanton broke a four-game losing streak as the Oakland Athletics won the first game of their interleague series with the Philadelphia Phillies, 5-2, on Tuesday night.

It was a matchup for the ages - Philadelphia starter Jamie Moyer, 45, against a young lineup of Oakland Athletics, three of whom were not yet born when Moyer signed his first professional

contract.

Moyer (7-5) was masterful for six innings, striking out nine and pitching to just one over the minimum. In his 567 career starts he has struck out nine or more just 12 times, and has double-digit strikeouts in only four starts.

"Jaime Moyer gives up three runs and we're going to win a lot of games," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. "That's the bottom line but that's his game (to win). What the hell. It seems after we scored those 20 runs all of a sudden it seems like we got snake bit and we can't score."

Blanton (4-10) had pitched well, but with poor luck at home this season. Blanton was 1-7 with a 3.98 ERA at home and it looked like more of the same Tuesday - he had allowed only four hits and a single run on Pat Burrell's long home run to left-center in the fourth.

"I was out there trying to visualize each pitch," Blanton said, "Trying to say calmer. You take a deep breath, your adrenaline goes down and you get your mind back."

Blanton, who was coming off his worst start of the year (seven hits, eight earned runs, three innings) at Arizona , allowed the first two Phillies to reach in the seventh, a leadoff walk to Burrell and a chopper off home plate by Jayson Werth. After Blanton retired Geoff Jenkins on a fly to left, Pedro Feliz singled through the hole at first, but Burrell's lack of speed kept him at third. Carlos Ruiz hit a shot right at Jack Hannahan on the bag at third - Hannahan threw to first to complete the double play, and momentum had swung.

"I threw him a sinker in," Blanton said. "I had stayed away from him most of the night and I wanted him to hit a ground ball."

Through six the A's had just two men reach base, and one was erased in a double play. Ryan Sweeney's dunker fell in front of Burrell in left; after Cust flied out to left, Bobby Crosby's bleeder dropped in front of a diving Shane Victorino. Phillies manager Charlie Manuel visited the mound, and left Moyer in.

Brown then finished Oakland 's trifecta of perfectly-placed balls when he hit a 76-mph changeup off the top of the left field fence for a three-run homer, the 13th Moyer has allowed this year.

"As a starter, if you stick around long enough, you hope something good happens," said Blanton, "And that's what happened tonight - I was able to stick around long enough to see it."

Brown had struggled for playing time over the past few weeks. "I was happy I hit the home run because Joe (Blanton) had pitched so well - pitching out of the bases-loaded situation - so I really wanted to do something there to get those runs in.."

Philadelphia cut the deficit in half against Alan Embree in the eighth when Victorino singled, stole second (the Phillies' 19th-straight successful steal attempt) and scored on Ryan Howard's single.

Cust provided insurance runs in the eighth when he homered off

J.C Romero with Sweeney on board again. It was the first homer Romero allowed to a lefthanded hitter since April 21, 2006, a span of 203 at-bats.

"I'm glad I was able to be the one to break that streak, and do it here," Cust said.

Huston Street pitched the ninth - after losing one game and blowing a save in another against Florida , Street struck out two and collected his 14th save without allowing a base runner.

Moyer summed up his night, and the Phillies' recent slide, which has reached six games.

"A bad pitch, middle of the plate," he said. "You go through phases throughout the season. A couple of weeks ago the runs we were scoring were coming like a dam broke. Now we're not and that's part of the game, deal with it."