ANAHEIM -- Dallas Braden pitched seven masterful innings, Daric Barton homered, and the A's beat the American League-West-leading Los Angeles Angels 2-1 Monday night.
Braden (4-3) allowed a run and seven hits without recording a strikeout or walk. The 25-year-old left-hander, who made his first nine appearances this season in relief before going to Triple-A Sacramento, is 3-3 in seven outings since being inserted back into the rotation July 22.
Last year, he was 0-8 with a 7.91 ERA over his final 13 starts after beating Baltimore in his big league debut.
Brad Ziegler followed Joey Devine out of the bullpen and pitched a hitless ninth inning for his fifth save in five chances. The rookie right-hander has allowed only two runs in 45 innings.
Jered Weaver (10-10) allowed two runs and three hits in seven innings and struck out eight. One of the runs against him came on his second wild pitch of the season.
The Angels' starting lineup was missing two of its primary offensive weapons, Garret Anderson and Vladimir Guerrero. Anderson was held out after getting taken out in the first inning of Sunday's 5-3 win over Minnesota because of a sore left knee, but he pinch-hit in the eighth and grounded out.
Guerrero was given the first of two days off by manager Mike Scioscia, who discussed it with his slugging right fielder a couple of weeks ago. The A's have an all-left-handed rotation, and Guerrero is batting 42 points lower against left-handers than righties.
Barton, who has batted in every spot in Oakland's starting lineup this season except cleanup, was in the No. 9 hole this time with a major league-worst .211 average. But his first time up he homered to right field on a 3-2 pitch for his sixth homer, giving the A's a 1-0 lead in the third inning.
Frank Thomas scored Oakland's second run on a wild pitch in the fourth after drawing his second walk and advancing on a double by Jack Hannahan.
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