Read More: Rich Harden (P – OAK), Josh Willingham (LF – OAK), Bobby Abreu (DH – ANA), Jered Weaver (P – ANA), Jordan Walden (P – ANA), Mark Trumbo (1B – ANA), Oakland Athletics, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Angels at Oakland Athletics, Sep 14, 2011 12:35 PM PDT

Mark Trumbo hit a go-ahead, two-run home run off Rich Harden in the top of the sixth inning, leading the Los Angeles Angels to a 4-1 win over the Oakland Athletics on Wednesday afternoon at Overstock.com Coliseum in Oakland. Jered Weaver allowed one run in seven innings to pick up his 17th victory of the season. The Halos are now two and a half games behind Texas in the American League West, with the outcome of the Rangers’ game against Cleveland Wednesday night pending.

Josh Willingham hit his second home run of the series, a two-run shot off Weaver in the third inning, to give Oakland a 1-0 lead. Bobby Abreu tied the score with an RBI double off Harden in the top of the sixth, and Trumbo followed with his team-leading 27th home run of the season, giving the Angels a 3-1 lead. The Halos added an insurance run in the eighth inning.

Weaver threw 115 pitches in his seven innings of work, allowing just one run, but he also had just one strikeout against two walks. The 17 wins are a new career high for Weaver. Jordan Walden pitched a scoreless ninth inning for his 31st save of the season.

The Angels are off Thursday, but open a three-game series in Baltimore on Friday against the Orioles.

For more news and information on the Angels, be sure to read Halos Heaven.

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Read More: Ryan Sweeney (RF – OAK), Coco Crisp (CF – OAK), Josh Willingham (LF – OAK), Guillermo Moscoso (P – OAK), Los Angeles Angels, Detroit Tigers

The Oakland Athletics will face off with the Detroit Tigers Tuesday afternoon at 4:00pm pacific looking to build on the momentum of their series victory over the Los Angeles Angels. The matchup features Guillermo Moscoso taking on Rick Porcello as the Tigers will look to hang steady behind the AL Central-leading Cleveland Indians.

In an interesting twist, the A’s have sat outfielder Josh Willingham for the series opener, instead going with Ryan Sweeney in left field and placing Coco Crisp in the three spot in the lineup. More than likely this is simply the A’s looking to get some quality matchups given Sweeney’s success against right handed batters. At the same time, it’s an interesting decision if the team is in fact shopping Willingham in advance of the trade deadline. One would think the A’s would want to showcase the outfielder, but there is also the idea of actually trying to win games.

First pitch is scheduled for 4:05pm pacific on CSN California.

Oakland Athletics
1. Jemile Weeks 2B
2. Ryan Sweeney LF
3. Coco Crisp CF
4. Hideki Matsui DH
5. Scott Sizemore 3B
6. David DeJesus RF
7. Conor Jackson 1B
8. Kurt Suzuki C
9. Cliff Pennington SS

Detroit Tigers
1. Austin Jackson CF
2. Brennan Boesch LF
3. Magglio Ordonez RF
4. Miguel Cabrera 1B
5. Victor Martinez DH
6. Jhonny Peralta SS
7. Carlos Guillen 2B
8. Alex Avila C
9. Brandon Inge 3B

What are your opinions.

Read More: Oakland Athletics, Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Angels, Seattle Mariners

The Oakland Athletics three game sweep at the hands of the New York Yankees has dropped them further into last place in the American League West. The A’s find themselves four games back of the first place Texas Rangers. Now that the Rangers have regained Josh Hamilton and Nelson Cruz, while retaining their hold on first place, we might see them start to pull away. They lack consistent pitching but they can sure hit the heck out of the ball.

The team that is surprising some (well, at least surprising me) would be the Seattle Mariners. They came into the season with numerous question marks and were expected to be fourth in the division. There’s still plenty of time left in the season, but for now the Mariners are managing to hang around, sitting 1 1/2 games back of first place.

The A’s now head off on a ten game road trip through Boston, Baltimore and Chicago. They have proven they can hang with these teams in the past, but given the team’s recent struggles, who knows where the team will be in the standings in ten days.

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Read More: Trevor Cahill (P – OAK), Hideki Matsui (DH – OAK), Bartolo Colon (P – NYY), Los Angeles Angels, New York Yankees

The Oakland Athletics open up a three game series with the New York Yankees Monday night sending out Trevor Cahill to face Bartolo Colon. Cahill is coming off a poor outing against the Angels in which he gave up ten hits, walked five batters and took his second straight loss. He only gave up four runs (three earned), but he lacked the control that has been key for him in 2011.

Cahill will face a Yankees lineup that leads the American League in runs scored and OPS. They have three players with double digit home run totals, with two more at nine home runs. Given the A’s struggles scoring runs this season, Cahill will have to pitch a pretty solid game if Oakland is going to take the first game of the series.

The A’s decided not to go with Ryan Sweeney against the right-hander Colon. They find themselves in a bit of a conundrum when it comes to their starting lineup. Matsui is struggling to get going with a line of .226/.282/.346. He’s generally been a slow starter so the team has to be hoping he’ll heat up with the weather in June. The question becomes how long does the team wait before making playing time adjustments?

Oakland Athletics
1. Coco Crisp CF
2. Daric Barton 1B
3. David DeJesus RF
4. Josh Willingham LF
5. Hideki Matsui DH
6. Kurt Suzuki C
7. Mark Ellis 2B
8. Kevin Kouzmanoff 3B
9. Cliff Pennington SS

New York Yankees
1. Derek Jeter SS
2. Curtis Granderson CF
3. Mark Teixeira 1B
4. Alex Rodriguez 3B
5. Robinson Cano 2B
6. Russell Martin C
7. Jorge Posada DH
8. Nick Swisher RF
9. Brett Gardner LF

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(Sports Network) – The Oakland Athletics try to continue their recent mastery
of the Baltimore Orioles this evening when the two teams resume a three-game
series at the Coliseum.

Oakland won seven of its 10 matchups with the Orioles last season and is 18-4
in the series since the start of the 2008 campaign with 10 of those wins
coming in its home ballpark.

That trend continued in Friday’s opener, as Ryan Sweeney singled in a run to
spark a three- run sixth inning to give Oakland a 6-2 victory.

Brad Ziegler (1-0) was given the win as he pitched two scoreless innings in
relief of starter Gio Gonzalez. Gonzalez went five-plus innings, allowing two
runs — one earned — on five hits and five walks with seven strikeouts in the
Athletics’ third win in their last four games.

Alfredo Simon (1-1) took the loss when he allowed three runs in two innings of
relief. Starter Chris Tillman allowed two runs — one earned — on six hits
and three walks in 4 1/3 innings as Baltimore had its five-game win streak
stopped.

“I’m disappointed, but I have to look forward,” Tillman said of his short
outing. “We’re headed in the right direction.”

Getting the call for the O’s this evening will be righty Brad Bergesen, who
hasn’t pitched since getting torched by the New York Yankees on May 19.
Bergesen gave up eight runs and five hits in just 3 1/3 innings of that one,
as he fell to 1-5 on the year to go along with a 5.64 ERA.

He did not get a decision in his only other start against the A’s, but
surrendered four runs in seven innings of that outing.

Oakland, meanwhile, will counter with lefty Josh Outman, who will be making
his second start after missing all of last season recovering from Tommy John
surgery. Outman, filling in for the injured Brandon McCarthy and Tyson Ross,
looked good in his initial outing, holding the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
to a run and five hits in seven innings, but did not factor in the decision of
his team’s 4-1 loss.

“It was quite an outing for his first time out,” manager Bob Geren said. “When
you lose a couple starters and have a guy come up and step up like that, that
was quite impressive. It was just unfortunate we couldn’t get runs for him.
One run, you have to be absolutely perfect as a pitcher.”

This will be his first-ever appearance against the Orioles.

The Sports Network

Leave your comments on the news below.

A weekend set with the Baltimore Orioles might be what the Oakland Athletics
need to string together some wins.

The A’s look to continue their recent dominance over the Orioles and match a
season high with a third consecutive victory Saturday night.

Josh Willingham(notes) went 2 for 3 with a homer and the A’s (25-27) scored three
times in the sixth inning to snap Baltimore’s season-high five-game winning
streak with a 6-2 victory Friday.

The Orioles (24-25) are 4-18 versus Oakland since the start of the 2008
season, and averaged 2.7 runs while going 1-10 at the Coliseum during that span.

The A’s hope that dominance continues as they try to win for the fourth time
in five games since dropping a season-high six in a row. Oakland scored more
than three runs once during that skid, but has done so in each of its three wins
over the last four contests.

“If we can put up four or five runs a game, I like our chances on any given
night with our pitching staff,” said Josh Willingham, who had an RBI double in
the sixth. “We haven’t helped them as much as we should have so far this year
but hopefully we can start coming around and putting some consistent games
together.”

Oakland also hopes scheduled starter Josh Outman(notes) can build off his first
major league appearance in almost two years when he faces the Orioles for the
first time.

After missing 2010 while recovering from Tommy John surgery, the left-hander
allowed one run and five hits in seven innings but did not factor in a 4-1 loss
to the Los Angeles Angels on Monday in his first outing since June 19, 2009.

Outman, who made 16 previous starts for the A’s before he suffered the
injury, won his last four starts with Triple-A Sacramento before being recalled.

“It feels like being at home. I feel like this is where I belong,” Outman
said. “I didn’t prove that in the spring, but hopefully I can show over a period
of time that this is where I should be.”

Scheduled starter Brad Bergesen(notes) (1-5, 5.64) wants to be in the Orioles’
rotation, but likely needs to bounce back Saturday from his roughest outing of
the season to keep his spot.

After he tossed a four-hitter in a 6-0 win at Tampa Bay on May 14, the
right-hander was charged with a season-high eight runs in 3 1-2 innings of a
13-2 loss to the New York Yankees on May 19.

“You’d like to see him take his (previous) outing and run with it. You
expect and you’re hoping that’s the case,” said Orioles manager Buck Showalter,
who opted to skip Bergeson’s most recent turn in the rotation. “I’ve seen him
pitch some good games while I’ve been here for a short time, and I’ve seen him
really struggle. Most of them are the result of his command of his fastball.”

One year ago Friday, Bergesen allowed four runs in seven innings and did not
factor in the decision of a 7-5 loss in his only previous appearance against the
A’s.

Willingham is 5 for 10 with a homer against Bergesen.

Matt Wieters(notes) had two of the Orioles’ six hits in the opener. Nick Markakis(notes)
singled to extend his hitting streak to 12 games, and Vladimir Guerrero(notes) also has
a 12-game hit streak.

Markakis has hit .360 during that stretch, and .340 his last 13 games versus
Oakland.

Gotta run!.

Read More: Chris Tillman (P – BAL), Ryan Sweeney (RF – OAK), David DeJesus (RF – OAK), Baltimore Orioles, Los Angeles Angels, New York Yankees

The Oakland Athletics open a three game series with the Baltimore Orioles at the Oakland Coliseum Friday night at 7:05pm on CSN California. The A’s are coming off a four game series split with the Los Angeles Angels and will be looking to gain some momentum before the AL East-leading Yankees come to town next week.

The A’s send out Gio Gonzalez to face Orioles starter Chris Tillman. Although Tillman’s overall numbers aren’t spectacular, he’s been quite solid his last three starts. Since getting blasted by Kansas City on May 5, Tillman has pitched 16 innings giving up two runs over that span against Seattle, Boston and Washington. In his brief 2+ year career, Tillman has yet to face the A’s.

The A’s are giving Coco Crisp the night off and have moved David DeJesus into the leadoff spot, while starting Ryan Sweeney in center field. The moves make some sense as those two have been the A’s two best hitters in the month of May. DeJesus has a line of .301/.370/.589 in 73 at bats, while Ryan Sweeney has a line of .372/.449/.419 in 43 at bats. The A’s are looking for any sort of offensive spark, so getting their two best bats right now into the lineup makes all the sense in the world.

Oakland Athletics
1. David DeJesus RF
2. Daric Barton 1B
3. Ryan Sweeney CF
4. Josh Willingham LF
5. Hideki Matsui DH
6. Kurt Suzuki C
7. Mark Ellis 2B
8. Andy LaRoche 3B
9. Cliff Pennington SS

Baltimore Orioles
1. Robert Andino 2B
2. Adam Jones CF
3. Nick Markakis RF
4. Vladimir Guerrero DH
5. Matt Wieters C
6. Nolan Reimold LF
7. Mark Reynolds 3B
8. J.J. Hardy SS
9. Jake Fox 1B

There is the quick update of the day.

ANAHEIM, Calif. – Brett Anderson tossed three-hit ball over eight scoreless innings and Andy LaRoche drove in three runs to help the last-place Oakland Athletics beat the Los Angeles Angels 4-3 on Thursday.

The A’s split their four-game series with the second-place Angels, who fell to 4-7 in their past 11 games.

Anderson (3-4) struck out four and walked three to beat the Angels for the first time in six career starts. The left-hander had been 0-3 in his previous five starts. Anderson finally got some run support from his teammates, who had supplied two runs or less in seven of his previous 10 starts this season.

Grant Balfour gave up a three-run homer to Mark Trumbo with two outs in the ninth.

The Angels’ Torii Hunter, who had a hit and an RBI in each of his previous six games, failed to extend the longest such stretch of his career, going 0 for 3 with a walk.

The Angels’ only hits off Anderson were a single by Erick Aybar in the second inning, a double by Maicer Izturis in the sixth and a single by Alberto Callaspo in the seventh.

Joel Pineiro (2-1) gave up 11 hits and four runs in 6 1-3 innings — the same three totals he had in his previous start against Atlanta. The 11 hits are the most allowed by an Angels starter this season. The right-hander struck out three and walked none while falling short in a bid to notch his 100th career victory.

The A’s extended their lead to 4-0 with three runs in the fourth. Josh Willingham led off with a single before Mark Ellis singled with two outs. LaRoche followed with a double to left field, scoring Willingham and Ellis. He scored on Cliff Pennington’s single.

Oakland led 1-0 in the second on LaRoche’s groundout to third that scored former Angel Hideki Matsui, who singled to lead off the inning.

Notes: The Angels placed INF Howie Kendrick on the 15-day DL with right hamstring tightness, and signed INF Russell Branyan to a contract for the season. Branyan pinch hit in the ninth. … Angels INF Kendrys Morales underwent a second surgery in Vail, Colo., on his left ankle to clean out scar tissue, degenerative cysts and debris in the area. He won’t return this season. … The A’s closed their seven-game trip with a 2-5 record. … Oakland starters have allowed one earned run or less in seven of the past eight games.

(This version CORRECTS Athletics 4, Angels 3. Corrects to Andy in 1st paragraph. Restores previous.)

That’s all the news for today.

Read More: Daric Barton (1B – OAK), Conor Jackson (LF – OAK), Joel Pineiro (P – ANA), Los Angeles Angels

The Oakland Athletics wrap up their four-game series with the Los Angeles Angels hoping to secure a split with a win today. Brett Anderson takes the mound for the A’s and will face Joel Pineiro at 12:35pm pacific time. The game will air live on CSN California.

The A’s are giving Daric Barton a day off and starting Conor Jackson in his place. Barton is two for his last twenty with two singles and one walk. After a strong under the radar 2010 campaign, Barton has struggled immensely in 2011. He still brings the solid defense at first, but his offensive output has been just about non-existent. At the top of the order, this kind of offensive black hole can be extremely costly for an offense already struggling.

The rest of the A’s lineup remains the same, which means fans can continue banging their heads against the wall. Given how poorly the A’s have performed on offense, you’d think some kind of shake-up would be in order. The A’s have some hitters down at AAA that are performing well. Highly rated prospect Michael Taylor is off to a strong start through eleven games after a disappointing 2010. Adrian Cardenas and Jemile Weeks are both playing extremely well with a bit more time under their belts. At some point, if you’re Billy Beane and Bob Geren, don’t changes need to be made?

Oakland Athletics
1. Coco Crisp CF
2. David DeJesus RF
3. Conor Jackson 1B
4. Josh Willingham LF
5. Hideki Matsui DH
6. Kurt Suzuki C
7. Mark Ellis 2B
8. Andy LaRoche 3B
9. Cliff Pennington SS

Los Angeles Angels
1. Maicer Izturis 2B
2. Erick Aybar SS
3. Bobby Abreu DH
4. Torii Hunter RF
5. Alberto Callaspo 3B
6. Mark Trumbo 1B
7. Peter Bourjos CF
8. Jeff Mathis C
9. Reggie Willits LF

That’s all for today guys, i’ll be back to blog you tomorrow.

(Sports Network) – Behind Torii Hunter’s resurgent bat, the Los Angeles Angels
take aim at a series victory over the Oakland Athletics this afternoon in the
finale of a four-game set in Anaheim.

Hunter and Alberto Callaspo ripped back-to-back homers off A’s starter Trevor
Cahill in the fifth inning of Wednesday’s matchup, leading the Angels to a 4-1
victory. It marked the sixth game in a row for Hunter with an RBI, with the
outfielder driving in eight in that span.

The 35-year-old Hunter is batting .409 (9-for-22) over his last six games
after managing just one hit in his previous 24 at-bats.

“I’m just trying to settle in and focus,” Hunter said. “Cahill is one of the
best pitchers in the American League. We were able to capitalize on a couple
of his mistakes. He doesn’t make many.”

Ervin Santana threw six innings of one-run ball for the Angels, who have won
four of six and sit a half-game behind the Rangers for first place in the
American League West. The Athletics are three games back of Texas.

Coco Crisp brought in the lone run for Oakland, which has dropped seven of
its last eight games, while Cahill allowed all four runs — three earned — in
six innings of work to fall to 6-2.

The A’s have been held to just a single run or less in five of their last
seven games, batting .214 as a team in that span.

Oakland’s Brett Anderson and Joel Pineiro of Los Angeles will square off this
afternoon in a rematch of a May 16 contest in which neither starter factored
into the decision of the Athletics’ 5-4 victory in extra innings. Anderson
allowed three runs over 6 2/3 innings while striking out seven, and Pineiro
was charged with three runs over seven innings.

Anderson’s no-decision is part of his current five-start winless stretch that
has seen him go 0-3 with a 5.04 earned run average since his last victory on
April 24. Following his outing versus the Angels, Anderson took the loss in
San Francisco on Saturday despite allowing just one first-inning run over his
five-frame outing.

“You don’t want to ever give up a run in the first inning,” Anderson told
Oakland’s website. “You walk the leadoff guy and he comes around to score, and
it’s kind of unfortunate, but you have to put that behind you.”

The 23-year-old is 2-4 with a 3.18 ERA in 10 starts this season and 0-2 with a
4.55 ERA in five career starts versus the Angels.

Pineiro, meanwhile, picked up his second straight no-decision on Saturday
versus the Braves. The right-hander gave up season highs of four runs and 11
hits over 6 2/3 innings, with all four runs allowed coming in the seventh
inning. The big blow came on a three-run homer.

“The only slider I hung was the home run. It seemed like all the pitches I
left up were in that one inning, and they made me pay for it,” said Pineiro.

Pineiro, 32, is 2-0 with a 2.67 ERA and is still sitting on 99 career wins. He
is 9-8 with a 4.12 ERA lifetime when facing Oakland.

Oakland has won four of six over Los Angeles since a six-game series losing
streak, but has dropped 10 of its last 12 at Angel Stadium.

The Sports Network

Feel free to leave your comments below.

ANAHEIM, Calif. —
Angels 4, Athletics 1

Torii Hunter and Alberto Callaspo hit back-to-back homers, Ervin Santana allowed one run in six solid innings, and the Los Angeles Angels beat the Oakland Athletics 4-1 Wednesday night for their fourth win in six games.

Reggie Willits’ first hit of the season was a run-scoring double for the Angels, and Peter Bourjos added an RBI single. Los Angeles has won two of three in the four-game series with its upstate AL West rivals.

Santana (3-4) yielded six hits and two walks in his second straight victory after winning just once in his first nine starts.

Hunter and Callaspo connected in the fifth inning against Trevor Cahill (6-2), who couldn’t join Boston’s Jon Lester as the AL’s only seven-game winners.

(Copyright ©2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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Read More: David DeJesus (RF – OAK), Guillermo Moscoso (P – OAK), Josh Outman (P – OAK), Dan Haren (P – ANA), Los Angeles Angels

The Oakland Athletics finally got one in the win column as they defeated the Los Angeles Angels 6-1 on Tuesday night. The A’s got a strong debut from Guillermo Moscoso and a big night from outfielder David DeJesus as they won for the second time against Dan Haren.

Although Moscoso had made relief appearances for the Texas Rangers in 2009 and 2010, his start against the Angels marked his first career major league start. Moscoso followed up Josh Outman’s strong Monday performance with a strong performance of his own. Moscoso lasted six innings and gave up three hits and three walks, but no runs. As with Outman, Moscoso bought himself at least one more start while Tyson Ross and Brandon McCarthy continue to recover from their respective injuries.

The A’s offense had a big night thanks primarily to David DeJesus. In four at bats, DeJesus had two home runs and drove in four runs. Josh Willingham joined in the phone with an RBI double that knocked in Daric Barton and Cliff Pennington.

The six runs were more than enough to get the A’s back in the win column. After Brian Fuentes went off on Bob Geren Monday night, the six runs meant there was no save situation for either Fuentes or Balfour to handle. Joey Devine, Craig Breslow, an Brad Ziegler each threw an inning of relief to close out the game.

The A’s and Angels play game three of their four game series Wednesday evening at 7:05pm. The game is going to be on CSN California and will feature Trevor Cahill faving facing off against Ervin Santana.

If anybody needs tickets to games, remember to click the tickets link at the top.

Read More: Oakland Athletics, Los Angeles Angels

The Oakland Athletics enter the second game of a four game set with the Los Angeles Angels badly in need of a win. The team has lost a season high six straight games and now sits three games out of first and in last place in the AL West. The A’s recalled Guillermo Moscoso from Sacramento to start in place of Tyson Ross and he’ll get to face Dan Haren in his first ever major league start.

The big news Monday night was Brian Fuentes ripping into manager Bob Geren for his use of the A’s closer. Fuentes has felt a lack of communication has led to his being used in situations he was not expecting heading into the season. While Andrew Bailey has worked back from surgery, Fuentes has worked as the closer, but has been called in a variety of situations outside of save situations.

After Monday night’s game, Geren indicated he had been planning on using Grant Balfour in a potential save situation Monday night. Apparently Fuentes did not get the memo on that one, leading to the outburst. Fuentes and Geren supposedly cleared the air, although Fuentes still sounds pretty steamed. It will be interesting to see who Geren goes with if the A’s can get into a save situation. Of course, to do that would require a few runs from the offense.

Oakland Athletics
1. Coco Crisp CF
2. Daric Barton 1B
3. Josh Willingham LF
4. Hideki Matsui DH
5. Kurt Suzuki C
6. David DeJesus RF
7. Mark Ellis 2B
8. Andy LaRoche 3B
9. Cliff Pennington SS

Los Angeles Angels
1. Maicer Izturis 2B
2. Erick Aybar SS
3. Bobby Abreu DH
4. Torii Hunter RF
5. Alberto Callaspo 3B
6. Mark Trumbo 1B
7. Hank Conger C
8. Alexi Amarista LF
9. Peter Bourjos CF

That’s all the news for today.

Read More: Guillermo Moscoso (P – OAK), Tyson Ross (P – OAK), Los Angeles Angels

The Oakland Athletics made their second move of the week to fill in their injured starting rotation, calling up Guillermo Moscoso from the AAA Sacramento Rivercats. Moscoso will take Tyson Ross’ spot in the pitching rotation while Ross rehabs his oblique strain. While Moscoso has made relief appearances at the big league level, he has never made a start, and gets to make his starting debut against Angels ace Dan Haren.

Moscoso made seven starts and eight total appearances for the Rivercats this season before being recalled. In total, Moscoso finished 3-2 with a 4.02 ERA. He’s struck out 43 batters and walked 13 over 40 1/3 innings and will be looking to follow in the footsteps of Josh Outman. Although the A’s lost, Outman put together a strong pitching performance in his big league return from Tommy John surgery.

Prior to joining the A’s, Moscoso made 11 total appearances in 2009 and 2010 for the Texas Rangers. In those 11 big league appearances, Moscos has an ERA of 4.30, giving up seven earned runs in 14 2/3 innings. The A’s acquired Moscoso from the Rangers this past January in exchange for Ryan Kelly.

Gotta run!.

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