Skid reaches nine

OAKLAND, Calif. – Dana Eveland altered his delivery and might have changed his future with the Oakland Athletics.

Eveland pitched seven strong innings and got all the support he needed on Richland product Travis Buck’s first home run since being called up from the minors as the A’s beat Seattle 2-0 on Friday night, the Mariners’ ninth straight loss.

“The biggest thing was I was able to work on my delivery,” said Eveland, who spent nearly three weeks in the minors last month. “I stopped going over my head Nolan Ryan-style and just simplified everything.”

Eveland (9-8) pitched in and out of trouble all game but got out of a jam each time. The left-hander scattered seven hits, hit a batter and matched his career high with seven strikeouts to lead the A’s to their fifth victory in six games.

Joey Devine pitched the eighth and Brad Ziegler the ninth for his 10th save in 11 tries. The Mariners loaded the bases with two outs before Ziegler got Yuniesky Betancourt to ground out to end the game.

The A’s did all their scoring in the second inning off Felix Hernandez, who pitched effectively but couldn’t overcome another lack of offensive support. The Mariners have been shut out four times this season with Hernandez (9-11) on the mound.

“This felt like the other ones, they’ve all been frustrating,” Seattle interim manager Jim Riggleman said. “We keep putting the hits out there, we just don’t get the RBI. We’ve had a heck of a time driving in runs.”

A’s designated hitter Jack Cust struck out for the 186th and 187th times this season to break the American League record.

Oakland, 9-4 in its last 13 games, is 21/2 games behind second-place Texas in the A.L. West.

Seattle has not scored in its last 26 innings.