Harden strikes out 11, leads A's past Blue Jays

OAKLAND, Calif (AP) - Rich Harden matched his career high with 11 strikeouts and didn't allow a hit until the fifth, Josh Willingham hit a two-run homer, and the Oakland Athletics beat the Toronto Blue Jays 2-0 on Friday night.

Harden quickly recovered from a shaky start and Willingham's drive in the first off Brett Cecil (4-6) held up as the A's bounced back a day after being shut out 7-0 in the series opener. They won for just the third time in eight games.

J.P. Arencibia singled to left with one out in the fifth for the first hit off Harden (4-2), who recorded his 11th career 10-strikeout game and first since Sept. 5, 2009, at the New York Mets.

Harden won consecutive decisions for the first time this season, and both came against the Blue Jays. He pitched seven strong innings at Toronto on Aug. 9.

Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista walked in the first, third and eighth innings to give him a majors-leading 102. He reached 100 free passes in his 113th game, fewest ever by a Blue Jay. The last major leaguer to reach 100 walks in 115 games or fewer was former San Francisco slugger Barry Bonds in 2007, the year he broke Hank Aaron's home run record.

Harden struck out 11 for the fourth time. He last did it on July 31, 2009, at Florida while with the Chicago Cubs. Oakland (56-69) avoided falling to a season-worst 15 games below .500, where the club was Monday. The A's are 3-5 on this 10-game homestand.

Willingham hit his 21st homer with two out in the first and it was all Harden needed. Willingham's 71 RBIs match the A's season high from last season done by Kevin Kouzmanoff and Kurt Suzuki.

Harden looked to be headed for a rough night after committing a fielding error on the first play of the game only a day after the pitchers went through pregame fielding drills. Then, Harden allowed back-to-back walks before striking out the side to leave the bases loaded.

Harden needed 23 pitches in the first and only nine in the second. The error was Oakland's 12th over the last 10 games. The hard-throwing right-hander beat Toronto for only the second time over 10 career starts. Harden, who didn't pitch until July 1 after a stint on the 60-day disabled list, allowed two hits in seven innings and walked four in an impressive 115-pitch outing.

Grant Balfour pitched the eighth and Andrew Bailey finished the three-hitter for his 16th save in 18 opportunities.

Cecil, who lost to Harden and the A's in that Aug. 9 matchup but also won at Oakland on May 10 for his first major league victory, had his winless stretch reach four starts after three straight winning decisions.

Oakland tied the season series at 4-4 and is trying to avoid losing a fourth straight season series with the Blue Jays.

NOTES: Carlos Delgado reached 100 walks in 130 games in 2000 for Toronto. ... Jays callup RHP Joel Carreno slept in a Washington, D.C., airport Thursday after his flight was canceled. He didn't want to risk not getting to Oakland and the big leagues. He was promoted from Double-A New Hampshire on Thursday. ... A's RHP Michael Wuertz, on the DL since July 30 with right thumb tendinitis, is set to throw off the mound for the first time in his rehab sometime this weekend. ... Toronto LHP Brian Tallet, who strained a chest muscle by sneezing, pitched for Class-A Dunedin on Thursday and came out of it fine. Manager John Farrell expects him to go again Sunday in the minors. "He had a very clean inning, 11 pitches," Farrell said. "He's healthy." ... A's LHP Gio Gonzalez (9-11) tries to snap a career-worst 0-5 streak over his last five starts. He is 1-6 with a 6.29 ERA since the All-Star break. ... Toronto RHP Henderson Alvarez goes Saturday for the Blue Jays looking for his first win in his third start. He made his big league debut against the A's.