Modesto walks past JetHawks

After all, they do have the California League's best offense in terms of both team batting average (.291) and runs scored (291).

But the A's sure weren't going to pass up a gift when it was offered to them Friday night.

Lancaster reliever Juan Ramos walked the only two batters he faced, igniting a three-run, seventh-inning rally by Modesto that broke a tie game and gave the A's a 9-3 victory before 2,327 fans at John Thurman Field.

"When you come out of the bullpen, you've got to throw strikes," JetHawks manager Darrin Garner said. "He didn't throw strikes, and they had the big inning."

The win was Modesto's eighth in a row and improved its record to a league-best 35-14, while the JetHawks dropped to a leagueworst 18-31 and had a modest twogame winning streak snapped.

Ramos (1-2), who has surrendered 32 hits in 24 innings pitched, was once again burned by his lack of control Friday - this time via the free pass.

After the right-hander came in to relieve starter Brandon Parker with the game tied 3-3, it took Ramos only 10 pitches to walk the No's. 7 and 8 hitters in the Modesto lineup, Brian Luderer and Gary Thomas.

"If he had allowed two doubles, I would have had nothing to say," Garner said. "But you've got to come in and throw strikes."

Without retiring a batter, Ramos was immediately lifted for Donnie Schmidt.

But Schmidt fared only marginally better, allowing back-to-backto-back one-out RBI singles by Esteban German, Omar Rosario and Eric Byrnes to give the A's all the runs they would need. The A's added three insurance runs in the bottom of the eighth.

Kevin Jarvis started the game for Modesto in the first of three scheduled major league rehabilitation appearances in the California League. Jarvis, who had no record and a 13.50 ERA in two games with Oakland before being placed on the disabled list, is attempting to come back after having a blood clot in his non-throwing arm removed.

Although he did strike out five JetHawks during his three innings of work, Lancaster did its fair share of damage to the righthander. The JetHawks managed three hits and a walk off Jarvis, which led to the first run of the game.

After Rafael Lopez got an infield single off the glove of Jarvis, he ended up scoring on Cirilo Cruz's two-out single into right field.

Jarvis lasted 47 pitches, throwing 33 strikes. He's scheduled to face the JetHawks once again Tuesday, when the two teams return to Lancaster Municipal Stadium for their second consecutive three-game series.

The JetHawks continued to produce offensively against Jon Adkins (5-1) in the fourth inning. Rosario dropped Matt Sachse's fly ball to right field, which should have been the third out of the inning. Harvey Hargrove ended up scoring on the play, and Sachse scored on Lopez's second single of the evening to give Lancaster a 3-0 lead.

But Modesto came back to tie the game with two runs in the fourth, which came off four consecutive two-out hits, and a third score in the sixth. Jacques Landry's triple off Parker plated Byrnes with the game-tying run.