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(Sports Network) - The Oakland Athletics will try to close out their nine-game homestand on a winning note when they host the San Francisco Giants in the finale of a three-game set at McAfee Coliseum.

Joe Blanton will take the ball this afternoon for the A's in search of his second consecutive victory. Blanton suffered through a personal four-game skid before leading Oakland to a 5-2 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies this past Tuesday.

In the win over the Phillies, the 27-year-old righty tossed seven strong innings, surrendering just one run on four hits. Blanton did walk four batters in the contest, but also struck out five opponents.

Blanton has made 12 starts at the Coliseum this season and although he has a mediocre ERA of 3.74, he only has a 2-7 ledger to show for his efforts.

Taking the hill for the Giants will be the red-hot Jonathan Sanchez, who has recently been unstoppable, winning five of his last six starts, including a 3-2 win over Cleveland this past Tuesday.

In the victory over the Indians, Sanchez baffled the Tribe, allowing just one run on five hits in 7 2/3 innings of duty. The right-hander walked just two batters, while striking out eight.

In eight starts away from home, Sanchez has collected a 5-2 record, but he has not been overly impressive in those outings, posting a lackluster 5.16 ERA.

Yesterday, Tim Lincecum dominated -- striking out 11 over seven shutout innings -- and outdueled a brilliant Justin Duchscherer to lead San Francisco to a 1-0 win.

Lincecum (9-1) allowed just five hits and walked three in winning his fifth straight decision as the Giants snapped a two-game losing streak. The right- hander became the first Giants pitcher to start a season 9-1 since Gaylord Perry opened 12-1 in 1966.

Fred Lewis and Ray Durham had the only hits for San Francisco, with Lewis scoring the deciding run as the Giants snapped a seven-game losing streak to the A's over the last two years.

Duchscherer (8-5) nearly matched Lincecum, allowing a run on two hits -- striking out four and walking one -- over eight innings for the A's, who had a two-game win streak ended. Kurt Suzuki went 3-for-4 with a double, but the A's went 2-for-14 with runners in scoring position and stranded 10 men on base.

Oakland has a solid 27-20 ledger at home, while the Giants have struggled on the road, collecting a mere 21-22 mark away from home.