News
Cahill hopes to right ship against Red Sox
Oakland (35-47) at Boston (50-33), 4:10 p.m. PT
By Mychael Urban / MLB.com
07/07/09 11:39 PM ET
BOSTON -- Virtually attached to fellow 21-year-old rookie Brett Anderson in every respect since the start of Spring Training, A's right-hander Trevor Cahill would do well to follow in his friend's footsteps at Fenway Park. Cahill and Anderson, both of whom played in last summer's Futures All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium and for Team USA in the Beijing Olympics, entered the year as the top two prospects in the Oakland organization and earned spots in the starting rotation in their first trip to big league camp. Since then, they've alternately struggled and dominated; they both have a 5-7 record with an ERA in the mid to high fours. Two nights after Anderson dominated the Red Sox, firing a two-hit shutout with nine strikeouts, Cahill on Wednesday will get the ball for the finale of the three-game series, trying to overcome his most recent struggles. Anything close to replicating Anderson's outing will be a huge improvement over Cahill's previous two starts, in which he went 0-2 with a 14.72 ERA. After giving up seven runs in 3 2/3 innings in his last start of June, Cahill pitched just 3 2/3 innings again in his first start of July, giving up eight runs (five earned) on six hits and five walks. Before those two starts, Cahill hadn't given up more than three runs in a start since May 17. "Last time, I was missing up," Cahill said Friday in Cleveland. "The biggest thing tonight was that I fell behind early." When Cahill falls into hitter's counts, he often eschews his out pitch, a hard sinker, for a fastball he can keep in the strike zone. That kind of predictability, he knows, is dangerous against big league hitters. "When you get behind, they sit dead-red," Cahill said. Pitching matchupOAK: RHP Trevor Cahill (5-7, 4.55 ERA)
Cahill's most recent outing was against the Indians, who had lost five straight and scored just 13 runs combined in those losses. But the Tribe tagged the youngster, who threw 50 of his 95 pitches for strikes. The only positive for Cahill was that he was missing down in the zone; in his previous start, against the Rockies, he gave up four homers. This will be his first career start against Boston. BOS: RHP Tim Wakefield (10-3, 4.30 ERA)
Wakefield's record-breaking 383rd start as a member of the Red Sox last Friday certainly wasn't his most memorable. Despite logging eight innings against the Mariners at Fenway Park, the 42-year-old knuckleballer was tagged for five runs on 10 hits. In 38 lifetime appearances against the A's, Wakefield is 10-6 with a 4.07 ERA. He pitched arguably his best game of the season April 15 in Oakland, allowing two runs on four hits in a complete-game victory. Tidbits
Left-hander Dallas Braden, who was placed on the bereavement list Monday so he could fly home to be with his ailing grandmother, likely won't return to the team until after the All-Star break. If he does come back, he'll be moved right into the rotation; he could pitch Saturday or Sunday at Tampa Bay. As of now, the scheduled starters for those days are lefty Gio Gonzalez and Anderson, but Thursday's day off gives the team some flexibility. ... A's manager Bob Geren said Nomar Garciaparra probably won't start in the series finale in Boston because the medical staff is suggesting a one-day-on, two-days-off approach -- the exception being pinch-hitting appearances. Garciaparra might start at first base Friday against the Rays. ... Righty Justin Duchscherer (elbow surgery) remains on track to pitch in a Minor League game late this month. It'll be his first game action of the year. ... Geren said he hasn't heard anything new on third baseman Eric Chavez (back surgery), but lefty Josh Outman (Tommy John elbow ligament replacement surgery) is said to have started his rehab program. Chavez is hoping to be ready for the start of Spring Training 2010, and Outman isn't expected back until after next year's All-Star break. ... Stanford product Danny Putnam, who was batting .245 for Triple-A Sacramento, was sent to the Padres to complete the April trade for Minor League righty Chad Reineke. Tickets
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• KTRB 860, KDYA 1190 (Español) Up next
• Thursday: Off-day
• Friday: Athletics (Vin Mazzaro, 2-4, 3.59) at Rays (Matt Garza, 6-6, 3.70), 4:38 p.m. PT
• Saturday: Athletics (Gio Gonzalez, 1-2, 6.17) at Rays (TBD), 3:08 p.m. PT
Mychael Urban is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
