OAKLAND, Calif. — There have been plenty of nights this season when the Oakland Athletics struggled to score runs. That's what made the team-wide outburst against Jered Weaver and the Los Angeles Angels so rewarding.
Kurt Suzuki went 4 for 5 with a homer and four RBIs, and Jack Cust homered and drove in three runs to help the A's snap the Angels' six-game winning streak with a 10-1 victory Tuesday night.
Ryan Sweeney added three hits and three runs scored for the A's, who finished with a season-high 18 hits and reached double figures in runs for the first time since an 11-0 victory over Cleveland on April 25.
"Up and down the lineup everybody was putting some good swings on," Suzuki said. "We were getting some balls to fall. That's the game. Sometimes you hit line drives and they get caught, sometimes you place them in the right spot. It was nice. Everybody was looking good tonight."
Vin Mazzaro (2-0) was the main beneficiary of the offensive output, getting the win in his second start of the season. Mazzaro, replacing the injured Brett Anderson in the rotation, made a strong bid to stay there for a while. He allowed one run, five hits and no walks in five innings.
"It was very important," he said. "I was really excited to be back in the rotation. I wanted to take full advantage of it. I thought I did a pretty good job and kept the guys off-balance."
Mazzaro was on a 90-pitch limit because he had pitched exclusively out of the bullpen since being called up from the minors on May 20. He escaped his only real jam in the fifth, allowing just one run after the Angels put runners on second and third with no outs.
Jerry Blevins got a key strikeout of Erick Aybar to end the seventh with two on and Oakland up 3-1. The A's then broke the game open with four runs in the seventh and three in the eighth.
"You look at the box score and we didn't pressure those guys," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "They pitched well. We had the one inning with runners on second and third and nobody out and they did a great job of minimizing the damage. We didn't get too many good looks at them."
Suzuki's homer in the seventh was the big blow for Oakland, making the score 6-1. That ended the night for Weaver (5-3), who matched his career high with 12 hits allowed to go with six runs in six-plus innings.
Weaver hadn't allowed an earned run in his previous two starts but was touched early by two-out RBI singles from Cust, Eric Patterson and Gabe Gross.
"I felt like I made some good pitches and they were able to put swings on them and they happened to get hits," Weaver said. "The ball had eyes it seemed like a few times. I made one bad pitch and it happened to be a three-run home run. Mike [Napoli] called for a slider and I shook him off and threw a two-seam fastball that came back over the plate. It just wasn't a smart pitch."
Cust hit his second homer off Trevor Bell in the eighth following an RBI single by Suzuki. That was Oakland's 12th homer already this month after hitting just 15 each in April and May.
Gross, getting the start in center field in place of the injured Rajai Davis, snapped an 0-for-13 slump with his third-inning single to right field that scored Sweeney. Bobby Abreu's throw home beat Sweeney, but plate umpire Bill Miller ruled Sweeney slid into home before Napoli could slap on the tag. Napoli immediately argued the call and Scioscia bolted out of the dugout to complain, but the run still counted.
Gross later tweaked his back sliding into home when he scored on Mark Ellis' RBI single in the seventh. He said he was sore but hoped he would be able to play Wednesday.
NOTES: Patterson was involved in a couple of odd plays. He reached on a single in the fourth when his popup landed between three Angels between home plate and the mound. He had another infield single in the eighth but was hit in the side of the face on the throw from 2B Kevin Frandsen. … This marked the 17th straight start that Mazzaro failed to go more than six innings, extending his Oakland record. … Oakland RHP Justin Duchscherer sent manager Bob Geren a text saying the season-ending surgery on his left hip went well. … Players on both teams gathered around TVs in the clubhouse before the game to watch the debut of Washington phenom Stephen Strasburg.