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(Sports Network) - The Oakland Athletics insisted they weren't giving up on this season when the team dealt Rich Harden to Chicago earlier this week. Sean Gallagher faces the tough task of replacing Harden in the rotation tonight in the Athletics' opener of a three-game series with the American League West- rival Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at McAfee Coliseum.

Gallagher was one of the six players involved in Tuesday's trade, with the A's acquiring the right-hander along with outfielder Matt Murton, infielder/outfielder Eric Patterson and catcher Josh Donaldson from the Cubs for Harden and Chad Gaudin. Gallagher will make his Oakland debut tonight.

While Harden, who will make his first start with the Cubs on Saturday, was 5-1 with a 2.34 earned run average in 13 starts with Oakland, Gallagher was just 3-4 with a 4.45 ERA in 10 starts and two relief appearances with the Cubs this year. The 22-year-old last started on July 3 in San Francisco and took the loss after allowing four runs (3 earned) on four hits over five innings.

The 22-year-old was 0-3 with a 4.33 ERA in his last five outings with the Cubs and faces the Angels tonight for the first time in his career.

Oakland enters this test in second place in the AL West, five games back of the Angels. The Athletics erased a two-run deficit last night, using the long ball on the way to a 3-2 victory over Seattle which gave Oakland three wins in the four-game series.

Jack Cust homered in the ninth inning to start the rally and Kurt Suzuki later followed with a solo pinch-hit blast -- the A's first pinch-hit long ball since August 8, 2006 -- to force extra innings. Emil Brown connected on the game-winning homer in the bottom of the 11th inning.

Brown finished with two hits, while Ryan Sweeney had two hits for the A's before leaving with a dislocated left pinky finger.

Oakland will face Angels starter Jon Garland for the fourth time this season and have beaten him twice this year, though Garland owns a victory over the Athletics at McAfee Coliseum in 2008.

Garland went the distance in his last start, getting a win versus Toronto on Sunday after allowing a run on six hits with three strikeouts.

The right-hander is 2-1 with a 2.57 earned run average in his last four starts and 8-5 with a 3.76 ERA on the season. Garland has excelled on the road this year, going 5-1 in seven starts.

The 28-year-old's lone setback in his last four outings came versus Oakland on June 30, when he allowed four runs (2 earned) on eight hits over six innings of a 6-1 loss. Garland is just 4-10 with a 4.70 ERA in 16 career starts versus Oakland and 3-5 with a 3.70 ERA in nine starts at McAfee Coliseum.

Though Cust has two homers in his career versus Garland, the designated hitter is 0-for-8 with four strikeouts against him this year.

The Angels also played extra innings last night, winning an 11-10 decision over the Rangers in 11 frames. Maicer Izturis drove in the winning run as a pinch hitter in the 11th, getting Los Angeles off the hook after the team blew a 10-4 lead it held in the fifth inning.

Francisco Rodriguez held off a valiant Rangers rally in the bottom half of the 11th to secure his 36th save of the year.

Howie Kendrick hit his first two home runs of the season and went 3-for-5 with three runs scored and three batted in for the Angels, who earned a split in the four-game series. Juan Rivera had three hits and two runs scored

The Angels have won six of 10 versus the A's this season, taking two of three in Oakland from June 6-8.