Bartolo Colon was scheduled to pitch the opener of Oakland's key three-game series at Tampa Bay. Instead, the Athletics must move forward without the veteran right-hander.
The A's will directly feel the effect of Colon's 50-game suspension for a positive testosterone test Thursday night against the Rays in a matchup of postseason contenders.
Pushing for its first playoff berth since 2006, Oakland (67-56) received a huge blow Wednesday when Colon became the second Bay Area major leaguer in a week to test positive for testosterone. San Francisco All-Star outfielder Melky Cabrera received a 50-game suspension Aug. 15.
The 39-year-old Colon was 10-9 with a 3.43 ERA in 24 starts and a popular teammate during his first season in Oakland. He will miss the rest of the regular season and 10 postseason contests if the A's qualify. Any remaining games would be served in a future season.
"It's a shock," teammate Grant Balfour said. "He's a guy that we're definitely relying on right now. I guess you could say it's bad timing any time, but especially now."The A's did not seem phased by the news during Wednesday's 5-1 victory over Minnesota. Coco Crisp had three hits including a homer while Tommy Milone allowed two hits in eight innings to help Oakland win for the sixth time in seven games.
"It is what it is. We certainly don't support the actions, but you have to move forward," manager Bob Melvin said of Colon. "You go through things over the course of the season. You have to have a short memory."Tyson Ross (2-8, 6.35 ERA) has been recalled from Triple-A Sacramento to start in place of Colon on Thursday. The right-hander has not pitched in the majors since June 28, when he allowed five runs in four innings of a 7-6 loss at Texas, but went 3-1 with a 2.85 ERA in nine starts since being demoted to the minors.
In his only previous start against the Rays on May 4, Ross was tagged for seven runs in 3 1-3 innings of a 7-2 road loss that was the only defeat for the A's in a three-game series at Tampa Bay.
The Rays (69-55) are playing much better ball these days, having won 18 of 24 to move atop the AL wild-card standings and close in on the East-leading New York Yankees . Tampa Bay also took two of three at Oakland from July 30-Aug. 1.
The Rays also won two of three at home against Kansas City this week, taking the finale 5-3 on Wednesday.
"It's a team you don't really want to come in and play because they're coached well, they're managed well, they play the game right," Royals manager Ned Yost said.
Jeff Keppinger had two hits with an RBI and James Shields threw 7 2-3 solid innings Wednesday for Tampa Bay. Keppinger is batting .354 (17 for 48) in his last 14 games, and is 6 for 17 (.353) against the A's in 2012.
Scheduled Rays starter Alex Cobb (7-8, 4.74) had allowed one run in seven innings in each of his previous three outings before yielding eight runs and 12 hits over 2 2-3 frames Saturday against Los Angeles, although Tampa Bay rallied to win 10-8.
The right-hander gave up one run - a homer by Brandon Inge - in seven innings of a 4-1 victory at Oakland on Aug. 1.
Crisp, 3 for 3 versus Cobb, is 9 for 21 (.429) with two homers and nine RBIs in his last five games overall.
This series will conclude Saturday. Both teams will get a rare Sunday off so Tropicana Field can host a party for the Republican National Convention, which begins Monday at the nearby Tampa Bay Times Forum.
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AVG
HRRUNSSBSOBBOBPSLGOPS
VS.
| HITTERS | AB | AVG | H | HR | RBI | BB | SO | OBP | OPS | SLG |
| Coco Crisp | 3 | 1.000 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 2.000 | 1.000 |
| Cliff Pennington | 2 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Adam Rosales | 1 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .500 | .500 | .000 |
| Kurt Suzuki | 2 | .500 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .500 | 1.500 | 1.000 |
| Jemile Weeks | 3 | .333 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | .333 | .666 | .333 |
VS.
| HITTERS | AB | AVG | H | HR | RBI | BB | SO | OBP | OPS | SLG |
| Reid Brignac | 1 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Luke Scott | 1 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| B.J. Upton | 1 | 1.000 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 2.000 | 1.000 |
 Oakland Athletics |
|||
| Date | Player | Status | Injury |
| August 18, 2012 | Jordan Norberto | 15-Day DL | Left shoulder tendinitis |
| August 12, 2012 | Brandon Inge | 15-Day DL | Dislocated right shoulder |
| August 12, 2012 | Brandon Inge | Day-to-Day | Dislocated right shoulder |
| August 07, 2012 | Eric Sogard | 15-Day DL | Strained back |
| August 05, 2012 | A.J. Griffin | 15-Day DL | Strained right shoulder |
| August 04, 2012 | A.J. Griffin | Day-to-Day | Sore right shoulder |
 Tampa Bay Rays |
|||
| Date | Player | Status | Injury |
| August 05, 2012 | Ben Zobrist | Day-to-Day | Left game - upper back spasms |
| July 21, 2012 | Luke Scott | 15-Day DL | Right oblique strain |
| July 21, 2012 | Luke Scott | 15-Day DL | Right oblique strain |
| July 21, 2012 | Alex Cobb | Day-to-Day | Left game - right knee contusion |
| July 02, 2012 | Hideki Matsui | Day-to-Day | Left game - left hamstring tightness |
| June 30, 2012 | Jeremy Hellickson | Day-to-Day | Left game - bruised right shin |
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) -- The surging Tampa Bay Rays have discovered a simple formula: It's hard to lose when you don't give up any runs.
Alex Cobb pitched a four-hitter for his first major league shutout and the Rays beat the Oakland Athletics 5-0 on Thursday night to pull within 2 1/2 games of the first-place New York Yankees in the AL East.
Matt Joyce hit a two-run double in a five-run fifth inning against Tyson Ross , hastily called up from the minors to pitch in place of suspended Oakland starter Bartolo Colon .
After the big inning, it was easy for Cobb.
"All the pressure goes away," he said. "You don't have to be fine, you can just go ahead and attack hitters. Once I got up by five, my main thought was to go as deep as I could and make them hit fastballs."
Cobb (8-8) struck out eight and walked two in his second career complete game, both this season. He bounced back from a poor outing against the Los Angeles Angels to win for the fourth time in five starts.
"Nothing worked the last time. And to his credit, he just threw that in the trash can and did this tonight," Rays manager Joe Maddon said.
It was the 14th win in 17 games for the Rays and their seventh shutout since July 19. They have pitched 13 shutouts this season, second-most in the majors behind the Angels (15).
Cobb threw a called third strike past Yoenis Cespedes for the final out. As the Rays poured onto the field for handshakes, a group of starting pitchers jumped together and bumped shoulders in excitement.
Matt Moore banged into Cobb and sent him tumbling onto the mound, minus his cap. Still clutching the ball in his glove, Cobb climbed back to his feet and smiled.
It's the closest the Rays have been to first place since they were 2 1/2 out before games of June 16.
Oakland dropped into a tie with Baltimore and Detroit for the AL's second wild-card spot, 2 1/2 games behind the Rays. The teams finish their three-game series Saturday and get a rare Sunday off because the Republican National Convention begins Monday in Tampa.
The A's did not have a travel day after beating Minnesota at home on Wednesday afternoon. They were shut out for the 15th time this season.
"We just couldn't figure (Cobb) out tonight," manager Bob Melvin said. "He was throwing chase-fastballs to us. Every time we were looking for a fastball he threw a breaking ball, and every time we were looking for a breaking ball he threw a fastball, so he was pretty unpredictable tonight."
Luke Scott also doubled for the Rays in the fifth against Ross (2-9), called up from Triple-A Sacramento when Colon received a 50-game suspension Wednesday for testing positive for testosterone. The Rays batted around in the big inning, which also included RBI singles by Sam Fuld and Evan Longoria .
Ryan Roberts broke the scoreless tie with a sacrifice fly.
Ross, making his first start for the A's since June 28, pitched six-plus innings. He gave up nine hits while striking out six.
He will be sent back to Sacramento to work out of the bullpen, and the A's plan to bring him back up when rosters expand in September.
"Now I've just got to move forward," Ross said. "Learn as much as I can about relieving, and be ready come September. I'm excited about the opportunity. Out of the `pen, I think I have a chance to help this team win some games."
Stephen Drew had two hits for Oakland, including a fourth-inning single that snapped an 0-for-22 slide. It was his first hit for the A's since he was acquired from Arizona in a trade.
Cobb allowed 12 hits and eight earned runs in 2 2-3 innings at Los Angeles on Saturday night, the only time this month a Rays pitcher has given up more than four runs. The Rays came back from an 8-0 deficit to win that game and take Cobb off the hook.
"It's great to see a teammate go out there and come back from struggling and really carry the team like he did tonight," Joyce said. "I'm really happy for him and really proud of him."
NOTES: Moore, scheduled to start Friday night against Jarrod Parker , is 4-0 with a 1.16 ERA in his last five starts. ... Melvin said INF Brandon Inge (sprained right shoulder) is ready to start a minor league rehab assignment with Sacramento. ... Athletics RHP A.J. Griffin (right shoulder) allowed three runs and four hits over 2 1-3 innings in his first rehab start Wednesday night for Sacramento.
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Oakland Athletics