Orioles-Athletics Preview

5/7/2008 12:46 AM

By JON PALMIERI
STATS Editor

Joe Blanton has yet to win at home this season despite a respectable ERA. Few opponents give him a better chance to end that streak than the punchless Baltimore Orioles.

Blanton looks to lead the Athletics to their fourth straight win and a sweep of the Orioles when the teams conclude their three-game series Wednesday afternoon.

Blanton (2-5, 3.88 ERA) is 0-5 with a 3.73 ERA in six home starts this year - a lack of success due partly to an offense that has averaged only 2.85 runs in those games.

That trend continued Friday as Blanton pitched well enough to win in a 4-3 loss to Texas. He gave up four runs - two earned - and seven hits in seven innings while matching a season low with one strikeout.

Besides receiving minimal offensive support again, Blanton also was hurt by a defense that committed a season-high four errors.

"Joe pitched well enough to win," Oakland manager Bob Geren told the team's official Web site. "He's our No. 1 guy, and he pitched like it. ... No doubt, this was our worst performance of the year."

Blanton's struggles at McAfee Coliseum are surprising considering he went 3-0 with a 1.93 ERA in his last four home starts in 2007.

Since pitching well in his first two starts against the Orioles (16-17), Blanton has been hit hard in the last three meetings. He is 1-2 with a 5.46 ERA in five career starts versus Baltimore.

Melvin Mora is 5-for-11 with two homers and a double against Blanton.

The Athletics (21-14) beat the Orioles 2-1 in 10 innings Monday and rode a strong start from Justin Duchscherer to a 4-2 victory on Tuesday.

Oakland, which has allowed four runs during its three-game win streak, owns a major league-best 3.09 ERA.

Second baseman Mark Ellis, who has already endured an 0-for-18 skid this season, dropped from second in the order to seventh and went 0-for-3 Tuesday to move to 0-for-16 in his last five games.

"It's tough, but I've been through it before,'' Ellis said.

Baltimore has lost a season-high four straight, batting .214 (27-for-126) while scoring nine runs during that span. The defeat dropped the Orioles under .500 for the first time since a season-opening loss to Tampa Bay.

Tuesday's loss was the sixth straight game Baltimore has played decided by one or two runs.

"Everybody in baseball goes through it and we're going through it right now," manager Dave Trembley said. "We're in every game. It just seems like things aren't going our way. Obviously you make your own fortune but I've got no problem with the approach."

Coming off his first win in nearly a year, Jeremy Guthrie (1-3, 4.06) takes the mound for the Orioles. The right-hander limited the Los Angeles Angels to two runs and three hits in seven innings while walking two and striking out six in a 4-3 victory Friday.

The win was Guthrie's first since beating the Yankees 4-2 at Baltimore on July 27.

"I focused on keeping the ball down," Guthrie said. "I still made some mistakes, up, but fortunately they didn't leave the yard."

Guthrie is 1-1 with a 0.75 ERA in two career starts against the Athletics. He allowed two hits over seven innings in a 2-0 win at Oakland on July 22.