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Cust's two HRs help A's sink Rays

Wed 21st, May 2008

Oakland, CA (Sports Network) - Jack Cust belted a pair of two-run home runs, and Dana Eveland threw his first career complete game as the Oakland Athletics avoided a sweep with a 9-1 dismantling of the Tampa Bay Rays in the finale of a three-game series at McAfee Coliseum.

Eveland (4-3) allowed just one run on three hits and struck out five to win for the first time in five starts.

Bobby Crosby went 3-for-5 with a double and two runs batted in for the A's, who also snapped a three-game losing streak. Emil Brown added a pair of doubles and drove in a run, while Kurt Suzuki notched an RBI double. Jack Hannahan hit his third homer of the year and scored twice.

Andy Sonnanstine (6-2) had his five-game win streak snapped after being shelled for seven runs on nine hits in six innings. Jonny Gomes hit a solo homer to provide the scoring for the Rays, who have dropped three of five.

Sonnanstine retired the first eight batters before Gregorio Petit singled up the middle in the third. Hannahan followed with a walk, then Crosby ripped a grounder that rolled into the left field corner for a two-run double.

Oakland got to Sonnanstine again in the home fourth, as Ryan Sweeney started the threat with a one-out single to right. Brown then drilled a double to deep left, allowing Sweeney to round the bases for a 3-0 A's lead.

The Rays threatened when Gomes was hit by a pitch with one out in the fifth and Gabe Gross followed with a single, but Eveland got Shawn Riggans to ground to Hannahan for an inning-ending 5-3 double play.

Hannahan upped the lead to four runs with his one-out solo shot to right in the bottom of the frame, and after Crosby lined a single to right, Cust crushed his sixth homer of the year just over the wall in right-center.

"I threw good pitches and they hit them," Sonnanstine said. "I threw bad pitches and they hit them. I'd say it was a pretty good first couple of innings and then it all went downhill with my location and sharpness."

Brown picked up his second double of the game to start the bottom of the sixth, and scored one out later when Suzuki doubled to left for a 7-0 edge.

Cust added a second two-run shot in the seventh, a blast to left-center off reliever Jason Hammel, and while Gomes finally got the Rays on the board with a leadoff homer in the eighth, Eveland didn't let Tampa Bay get any closer.

"Eveland was very good today and that set the tone for them," said Rays manager Joe Maddon. "We couldn't do anything against him. They got big hits and put us behind the eight-ball. They pretty much spiked us."

Game Notes

It was Cust's third career multi-homer game...Gross and Akinori Iwamura had the other hits for Tampa Bay, both singles...Hammel allowed two runs on two hits while walking three in an inning of relief...Both teams are off on Thursday, with the A's opening up a three-game home set with Boston on Friday and the Rays returning home to start a three-game series with the Orioles...Attendance was 22,712.