Oakland @ Philadelphia preview

Last Meeting ( Jun 25, 2011 ) Oakland 4, Philadelphia 1

THE STORY: Roy Halladay hopes the third time is the charm. After receiving two straight no-decisions, the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner will once again vie for his 10th win of the season when the Philadelphia Phillies host the Oakland Athletics on Sunday. Fellow Phillie Cole Hamels was denied in his bid for his 10th win of the campaign with Saturday's 4-1 loss to the Athletics. Philadelphia saw its eight-game home winning streak come to an end, while Oakland snapped a three-game skid of its own.

TV: 1:35 p.m. ET, WB17 (Philadelphia), Comcast SportsNet California (Oakland)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Athletics LH Josh Outman (3-1, 2.86 ERA) vs. Phillies RH Roy Halladay (9-3, 2.51). Outman collected his second straight victory when he handcuffed the New York Mets on Tuesday. The 26-year-old St. Louis native permitted two runs on four hits and struck out four in a 7-3 victory. Coupled with seven scoreless innings against the Kansas City Royals on June 15, Outman has lowered his ERA from 4.15 to 2.86. He has posted quality starts in five of his six outings this season. Halladay pitched well in his last outing, allowing one run on four hits in six innings. The Phillies' bats, however, finally awoke from their slumber after Halladay departed en route to a 10-2 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday. Halladay, who is riding a four-game winning streak, has posted a 6-4 career mark against the Athletics. The Phillies have emerged victorious in Halladay's last seven starts.

ABOUT THE ATHLETICS (35-43): Far removed from the days of the "Bash Brothers," Oakland entered Saturday's game with an American League-worst 40 homers. Adam Rosales went deep in the third inning for Oakland, which has hit one home run or less in 29 consecutive games. Veteran Hideki Matsui, who has 499 career homers between Japan and North America, has gone deep four times in his career against Halladay. Rookie Jemile Weeks recorded his third three-hit performance since June 8. Oakland pitchers have yet to record a hit in 16 at-bats in interleague play.

ABOUT THE PHILLIES (48-30): Philadelphia's pitching staff is carrying quite a number of injuries - whether manager Charlie Manuel wishes to admit that or not. Veteran righthander Roy Oswalt is expected to be sidelined until August with a bulging disc in his back. An under-the-radar injury is one being nursed by closer Ryan Madson. Manuel begrudgingly admitted to the media following Friday's game that Madson is dealing with a "tingling" in his hand and/or fingers. Madson is only supposed to be sidelined 3-to-4 days. Carlos Ruiz returned after having root canal surgery to collect an RBI single. Philadelphia has mustered only four runs in its last three games.

FINAL PITCH: After combining to go 1-for-13 in Friday's victory, the Phillies' Nos. 1-4 hitters went 1-for-14 in Saturday's loss. Jimmy Rollins went 0-for-4 for the second straight day, while Ryan Howard and Placido Polanco went 0-for-3 on Saturday. Chase Utley, who had the lone hit of the quartet Saturday, was denied an extra-base hit by a fine tumbling catch by Conor Jackson.