Athletics at Blue Jays
The Oakland Athletics have received a lot of mileage from the long ball on their 10-game road trip that concludes with the finale of a four-game set against the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday afternoon. The Athletics have homered in all nine games on the trek, including Chad Pinder's dramatic eighth-inning grand slam in Saturday's 5-4 victory.
Pinder's blast capped a five-run inning that erased a 4-0 deficit, lifting Oakland to its third consecutive victory and fifth win in the last six games. Khris Davis collected two more hits Saturday and is 7-for-13 in the series for the Athletics, who are 6-3 on the trip against American League East foes New York, Boston and Toronto. The skidding Blue Jays have dropped six of sevento fall two games below .500 for the first time since losing the first two of the season and will try to avoid a four-game sweep when they send winless Joe Biagini to the mound. Toronto's Gio Urshela belted a two-run homer in Saturday's defeat, the 11th loss in the last 14 at home to assure the team of a sixth straight winless series (0-4-2).
TV: 1:07 p.m. ET, NBCS California (Oakland), TVAS, Sportsnet (Toronto)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Athletics RH Daniel Mengden (3-4, 3.75 ERA) vs. Blue Jays RH Joe Biagini (0-2, 7.98)
Mengden ended a four-start winless string with a strong performance last time out in Boston, limiting the Red Sox to two runs (one earned) on eight hits over six innings. It marked the fifth time in six starts he yielded two runs or fewer, a span in which he has walked a combined three batters. Mengden made his lone career start against Toronto in July 2016 and was roughed up for seven runs over 3 1/3 innings.
Biagini has made three appearances this season -- all spots starts -- and may be running out of chances after failing to get through five innings in his last two outings. He was tagged for four runs over 4 2/3 innings in a loss to Boston on May 13 and six runs and 10 hits at Cleveland 10 days earlier. Opponents are batting .317 against Biagini, who has lost 15 of 18 decisions since the start of the 2017 season.
WALK-OFFS
1. Oakland improved to a major league-best 8-2 in one-run games.
2. Toronto OF Teoscar Hernandez returned to the lineup after a two-game absence but was hitless in five at-bats.
3. Athletics LHP Brett Anderson went on the disabled list after exiting Friday's game due to a shoulder strain.