GOODYEAR, Ariz. – Grant Balfour normally pitches the ninth inning, but Thursday he pitched the sixth in the A's 10-9 win over Cincinnati.
The A's closer, who is recovering from mid-February arthroscopic knee surgery, needs to face big-league hitters, which is why he took over in the sixth inning and motored through Devin Mesoraco, Derrick Robinson and Emmanuel Burris on nine pitches. He probably won't work the ninth inning for another week, when the A's and Giants play their annual Bay Bridge Series.
"At this time of the spring, if I wait until the ninth inning, I'll be facing Triple-A guys," Balfour said.
Even in the sixth inning, he didn't face the Reds' best. Brandon Phillips was due up, but Burris pinch-hit.
"I was really happy with the way I threw," Balfour said after hitting 94 mph on the radar gun. "I didn't feel anything with the knee, didn't even think about it."
Balfour is likely to get four more relief appearances before April 1, when he's expected to resume his role as the A's closer. But he may not pitch in consecutive games before the season starts.
"I don't know if he really needs to go back-to-back," manager Bob Melvin said. "We'll talk about that."
Anderson roughed up – A's starter Brett Anderson allowed six runs, eight hits and two home runs in 4 2/3 innings. "The results weren't awesome, but I got in my pitches and I worked on some things," said Anderson, who'll be the opening night starter April 1.
"I threw some pitches I wouldn't normally throw in a regular-season game, and some of them got hit."
Anderson continues to work on his changeup, a pitch he doesn't use much but would like to add to the fastball, curve and slider. "The change is a work in progress," he said.
Et cetera – Catcher Derek Norris raised his average to .379 with a single and two-run homer. Josh Donaldson singled, doubled and drove in two runs.
• Left-hander Travis Blackley gave up three runs in three innings but got the save. He continues to struggle, however, with a 14.34 ERA.
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