A's win 1-0 to knock Orioles out of first place

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) Ross Detwiler knows it will take more than one strong outing for people to take him seriously again as a starting pitcher.

Eight scoreless innings in his Oakland Athletics debut is certainly a good place to start, and far more than what manager Bob Melvin hoped for from his new left-hander.

Detwiler and John Axford combined on a seven-hitter and Oakland beat Baltimore 1-0 on Wednesday night to knock the Orioles out of first place in the AL East.

''Our reports had more fastballs than anything else but he mixed it up really good today,'' Melvin said. ''Some curveballs, some sliders, some changeups. It was way more than we expected.''

Called up from the minors earlier in the day, Detwiler (1-0) allowed six hits over a career-high eight innings and struck out two while leading the A's to their third consecutive one-run win over the Orioles.

It was Detwiler's first win as a starting pitcher since he was with Washington and beat the Chicago Cubs on May 10, 2013.

Not bad for a pitcher who has spent most of the past two-plus seasons as a reliever. Detwiler was also nearly out of baseball after being designated for assignment by Cleveland in July before the A's acquired him in a trade.

''It's a good start but it's just one good start,'' Detwiler said. ''It's a good step in the right direction. I walked in last night ... and I felt like I had been here for a long time. I was welcomed with open arms and that helps a lot.''

Axford retired three batters for his second save.

Chris Davis had two hits for Baltimore.

The Orioles entered the day percentage points ahead of Toronto but fell a game behind the Blue Jays, who beat Tampa Bay 7-0 earlier Wednesday.

''It's the time of year we can't find a break,'' Baltimore third baseman Manny Machado said. ''We're all struggling right now. Real teams will come out of it. We know we're better than this.''

Marcus Semien and Yonder Alonso hit consecutive doubles in the third inning for the game's only run.

The A's had lost eight of nine and were swept in three games by the Chicago Cubs before stunning the Orioles.

Baltimore starter Yovani Gallardo (4-4 ) allowed one run in six innings with six strikeouts and two walks.

NAILED AT THE PLATE

Detwiler gave up a single and a double to the first two hitters he faced and threw two wild pitches in the first inning but escaped without allowing a run. Adam Jones was thrown out sliding into home by Oakland second baseman Max Muncy in the inning. Jones tried to score on J.J. Hardy's double over the head of right fielder Danny Valencia and was initially ruled safe by home plate umpire Chad Fairchild. The A's challenged and the call was overturned when replays showed Jones' front leg above the plate when he was tagged out.

''I think the slide helped us out some, that (Jones) was above the plate,'' Melvin said. ''You don't think at that time that's going to be a key play in the game but it ended up being one.''

TRAINER'S ROOM

Orioles: T.J. McFarland (left knee inflammation) pitched three scoreless innings for the Gulf Coast Orioles. McFarland is scheduled to pitch next for Single-A Frederick on Monday.

Athletics: Former closer Sean Doolittle (strained left shoulder) will throw off a mound this weekend and will need to face hitters at least twice before beginning a rehab assignment. ... Left-handed reliever Patrick Schuster was designated for assignment.

UP NEXT

Orioles: RHP Chris Tillman (14-4) faces the A's in a mid-day game at the Coliseum. Tillman will try to become the first Baltimore pitcher with at least 15 wins since Bud Norris and Wei-Yin Chen in 2014.

Athletics: RHP Andrew Triggs (0-0) will come out of the bullpen to make his second career start in the series finale.