Athletics 6, Rangers 2
Athletics 6, Rangers 2: Brandon Moss and John Jaso each homered while Jarrod Parker posted his fourth straight victory as Oakland sent Texas to its seventh home loss in eight games.
Josh Donaldson scored and drove in a run and Eric Sogard had an RBI single in support of Parker (6-6), who allowed two runs on three singles and two walks over seven innings to record his eighth straight quality start. Ryan Cook and Grant Balfour threw a flawless inning apiece to complete the three-hitter.
Yu Darvish (7-3) struck out 10, but recorded his worst outing in over a month after giving up five runs – four earned – on six hits over six innings. The major-league leader in strikeouts is winless in his last six starts.
Moss’ solo shot and Sogard’s RBI single in the second staked Parker to a 2-0 advantage before Jaso went deep for the first time since April 9 in the third. A.J. Pierzynski got the Rangers within a run on his two-run single to right-center, but Parker allowed only two more baserunners before yielding to Cook to start the eighth.
Darvish was charged with a wild pitch in the fourth that enabled Donaldson to score and Seth Smith crossed the plate two batters later following an error by first baseman Lance Berkman. Donaldson added a sacrifice fly in the eight to complete the scoring.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The Athletics improved to a major league-best 30-15 in night games. … Berkman, who went 0-for-4, returned to the lineup after missing the previous two games with knee soreness. … The Rangers are a combined 5-for-38 with runners in scoring position in the losses during their 1-7 stretch.