A's 8, Tigers 6
DETROIT -- Coco Crisp hit a home run and an RBI single, and newly promoted Daric Barton had a pair of RBI hits Monday night as the Oakland A's pounced on the Detroit bullpen to take an 8-6 victory from the Tigers.
A.J. Griffin (11-9) survived serving up his 31st and 32nd home runs of the season with relief help from Dan Otero, Sean Doolittle, Ryan Cook and Grant Balfour (33rd save) over the last four innings.
Griffin pitched five innings of four-run ball.
Oakland broke a 4-4 tie with four hits in the space of five batters in the sixth inning against reliever Jose Alvarez (1-4). The A's added their seventh run in the seventh on Alberto Callaspo's RBI single off Al Alburquerque. Jed Lowrie had an RBI double in the eighth off Jeremy Bonderman.
Crisp had two of Oakland's three extra-base hits in a 12-hit attack during a rematch of a 2012 American League Division Series won by Detroit.
Victor Martinez hit his 11th home run leading off the eighth, and Matt Tuiasosopo's RBI groundout in the ninth drew Detroit up to within two runs.
The A's jumped on reliever Alvarez for two runs in the sixth to take a 6-4 lead. Pinch hitter Nate Freiman and Callaspo singled to set up RBI singles by Barton and Crisp.
Anibal Sanchez was uncharacteristically wild, and Oakland reached him for four runs in six innings, which Detroit negated with a pair of two-run home runs.
Omar Infante's seventh home run, in the second, created a 2-2 tie, and Miguel Cabrera's 43rd, in the fifth, deadlocked the score at 4-4.
Josh Donaldson had an RBI single in the first. Donaldson went to third on a base hit by Brandon Moss, then scored when Yoenis Cespedes forced Moss at second with a grounder to third.
Crisp hit his 14th home run leading off the third to give the A's a 3-2 lead, and Barton's RBI single up the middle made it 4-2 in the fourth.
NOTES: Detroit C Alex Avila (concussion) started his fourth rehab game Monday night for Triple-A Toledo. Manager Jim Leyland was uncertain how long Avila could remain in the minors. ... Oakland made a flurry of moves Monday. They put RF Josh Reddick on the disabled list with a right wrist sprain, recalling Barton, and they designated RHP Pat Neshek for assignment, bringing RHP Evan Scribner back for the fourth time this season. ... Tigers RHP Octavio Dotel was bumped up to Toledo as he continues to try to return from right elbow problems that have sidelined him since late April. Leyland said Dotel was throwing 89-92 mph. ... A's RHP Bartolo Colon threw a 38-pitch bullpen session, and there were no reports of problems with his ailing groin muscle. Colon is eligible to come off the disabled list Thursday and may do so to start against the Tigers.
