ekansekans's blog: "df"

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Jason Vargas already had an efficient night -- and his job became that much easier as his defence turned double plays to shorten his outing. Vargas pitched a seven-hitter to win for the first time in more than a month, and the Seattle Mariners snapped Oaklands five-game winning streak with a 7-1 victory against the Athletics on Saturday night. Kyle Seager hit a bases-loaded double to drive in three, Brendan Ryan added a two-RBI double in the second and Ichiro Suzuki singled up the middle in the fifth to end a career-worst 0-for-23 hitless stretch as the Mariners scored their most runs since a 14-10 loss at Arizona on June 20. "Tonight, thats what were looking for if anybody was wondering," manager Eric Wedge said. "Thats a complete ballgame." Vargas tossed his sixth career complete game and first since July 6 last year at Oakland. He struck out six and walked one in a 107-pitch gem that featured the club record-matching four double plays. All the scoring meant a lot, too. "Thats always great when we can put up multiple runs an inning," Vargas said. "Thats huge for us. Our pitching staff can pitch with a lead." Casper Wells homered to help Vargas (8-7) end a five-start winless stretch in which he went 0-3 since a win at Anaheim on June 4. Vargas allowed his majors-high 23rd home run to Josh Reddick in the first, but during one stretch late in the game retired 13 straight. Reddick became the first As player since Nick Swisher in 2006 to hit 20 home runs before the All-Star break. Reddick also ran from right field into centre to make a diving catch and rob Suzuki of a hit leading off the third. "He belongs and I think he believes that he is one of the elite right fielders in the league," As manager Bob Melvin said. Seattle took a 1-0 lead in the first when John Jaso singled and centre fielder Coco Crisp appeared to lose the ball in the sun for a two-base error, allowing Michael Saunders to score. Reddicks homer in the bottom half gave the As a longball in 17 straight games, their most since also doing so in 2002. They havent gone more than 17 games in a row with a homer since a pair of 18-game stretches in 1999. Seattles offence bounced back against Oakland starter Jarrod Parker (5-4) a day after the As won 4-1 in 11 innings Friday night on Chris Carters game-ending three-run homer. "A game we should win, a game we did win and weve got a chance to win the series," Ryan said. "It seems like there was a little more energy." Parker was tagged for six hits and six runs -- five earned -- in 4 2-3 innings to have his three-game winning streak snapped. The right-hander, who beat the Mariners at Safeco Field on June 27 striking out a career-high nine, struck out six and walked two. Parker had allowed one or fewer runs in each of his previous four starts. As cleanup hitter Yoenis Cespedes went 0 for 3 with a walk and is just 1 for 19 on the homestand, though lately has looked fully healthy from a strained left hamstring that sidelined him for nine games in a 10-game stretch last month. Suzuki, whod been mired in a 0-for-23 funk since a seventh-inning single June 30 against Boston, also singled in the seventh after starting a game batting second for the first time in his career as Wedge tried to get him going. After his single in the fifth, Suzuki stole his 12th base. It was just the third time in Suzukis career he had a hitless streak of 20 games or longer and topped a 0-for-22 slump from July 30-Aug. 5, 2005. Wedge plans to keep Dustin Ackley in the leadoff spot and Suzuki second again Sunday. "I dont want to just cruise into the break not trying to do everything we can do," Wedge said. "Its one helluva frustrating process to sit down and put a lineup together right now because people arent doing their job. After a while, youve got to get tired of getting your teeth kicked in." There was a brief delay in the middle of the seventh when an advertising sign behind home plate got stuck on white. Notes: Seattle CF Franklin Gutierrez, on the seven-day concussion list since June 29, isnt likely to return until after the All-Star break and is expected to play a couple of rehab games first. ... Suzuki was 2 for 4 lifetime batting in the No. 2 hole, both as a pinch-hitter when he then stayed in the game. He did so during his AL Rookie of the Year and AL MVP 2001 season and again in 2002, both at Texas. ... Mariners C Jesus Montero, recovering from a mild concussion after taking a foul ball from Baltimores Robert Andino off the facemask Wednesday, took part in baseball activities and still hoped to play Sundays series finale. Wedge said he wont catch yet but could DH. ... The As rotation for their three-game series at Minnesota after the All-Star break: A.J. Griffin, Tommy Milone, Parker. ... Oakland opening day starter Brandon McCarthy, on the DL for a second time with a strained throwing shoulder, has played catch for two straight days. "Thats a good sign," Melvin said. ... Sundays game is "Turn Back the Clock" at the Oakland Coliseum, with the As set to wear 1955 Oakland Oaks uniforms, while the Mariners will be the Seattle Rainiers. Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys China .C. -- Fred Funk took a one-stroke lead over Larry Mize in the Greater Hickory Classic on Saturday, shooting his second straight bogey-free 6-under 66. Wholesale NFL Jerseys From China . He will receive an X-ray on Saturday. Cooper, a third-year veteran, caught 16 passes for 315 yards and a touchdown last season in addition to recording seven tackles as a key special teams contributor. http://hipstervancouver.com/ . Madrid qualified 5-2 on aggregate, but it was Ronaldos third goal in the 87th minute at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in the second leg that put the result of the last-16 match beyond doubt. It was Ronaldos third hat trick this season and the 18th of his Madrid career, but his opening goal in the third minute was the pick of the three. EL PASO, Texas -- Southern California was ranked No. 1 at the beginning of the season, and Matt Barkley was a strong contender for the Heisman Trophy. The year ended with Barkley on the sideline as the Trojans lost to Georgia Tech in the Sun Bowl. Tevin Washington threw a touchdown pass and ran for another score to lead the Yellow Jackets to a 21-7 victory on Monday in front of a crowd of 47,922 at Sun Bowl Stadium. "It was a really surprising day," Southern California coach Lane Kiffin said. "Coming down and turning the ball over, and with third-down efficiency, we really found no rhythm on offence. I thought wed play much better on offence today. The storyline really came down to our inefficiency on offence, and obviously it starts with the head coach." USC (7-6) became the first preseason No. 1 team to lose six games. Its also all but assured of becoming the school to enter the season on top of The Associated Press poll and finish unranked since Mississippi in 1964. Washingtons 1-yard touchdown run in the third made it 14-7, and he found Orwin Smith for a 17-yard touchdown pass in the fourth. "Im really proud of our football team," Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson said. "I thought that they showed up and played with a lot of heart and a lot of determination, and I know Southern California has some really good football players. It was a hard-fought game." Barkley, the first three-time captain in USC history, injured his right shoulder in a loss to UCLA and was not cleared to play his final college game. He clapped as the Trojans took the field for their first bowl game after a two-year NCAA ban. Max Wittek tossed a 9-yard touchdown pass to Silas Redd in the second quarter, but also threw three interceptions. Redd added 88 yards rushing on 17 carries. Talented receiver Robert Woods was limited to three receptions for 33 yards in what was likely his final college game. The junior said after the loss he plans to enter the NFL draft. Kiffin said he took responsibility for the lost season. "All of it," he said. "We cant be 7-6. Thats not USC, and thats not our expectations. Thats not why we came here. Obviously, we haave some work here to get that fixed.dddddddddddd "Even if wed won this game, wed still be very disappointed in this season. Its well below our standards." Asked if he thought the loss could cost him his job, Kiffin answered flatly, "No." The Trojans struggled to contain Georgia Techs triple-option attack. The Yellow Jackets (7-7) rushed for 294 yards on 63 carries while stopping a seven-bowl losing streak. "Im just glad we got the win," Washington said. Techs David Sims had 99 yards on 17 carries, but he got plenty of help. Zach Laskey added 60 yards on six carries, Vad Lee had 52 on 10 carries and Washington had 16 attempts for 46 yards for the No. 4 rushing team in the nation. Sims also caught a 3-yard touchdown pass from Lee in the first quarter. Lee and Washington combined to go just 5-for-10 passing, but two completions went for TDs passes and two more covered 26 and 49 yards, keying two of the teams scoring drives. Tech used its two-quarterback attack masterfully, working them in and out of the lineup and playing to their strengths. "I think both guys did some good things," Johnson said. "Vad hit some big plays and played well, and then in the second half we got kind of more geared into the run game and Tevin has a lot of experience and handled it really well." High-powered USC finished with 10 first downs and eight punts as Georgia Tech shut down the Trojans big-play threats all afternoon. USC receiver Marqise Lee, who finished fourth in this years Heisman voting, was held to six catches for 41 yards. "To go out and perform the way we did today was a great feeling," said Yellow Jackets cornerback Rod Sweeting, who had an interception and was the games MVP. Wittek had four passes deflected at the line. His second interception came in the Tech end zone with 6:22 to go and the last came inside the Tech 10-yard line in the games final minute. He was 14 for 37 for 107 yards. "It was definitely our best game of the year (defensively)," said Johnson, whose team finished the regular season 6-7 after losing the ACC title game and needed an NCAA waiver to be eligible for bowl play. ' ' '