OAKLAND, Calif. Jonathan Allen Jersey . -- Coco Crisp hit a go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth inning, and the Oakland Athletics lowered their magic number to clinch the AL West to four with a back-and-forth 8-6 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Thursday night. Brian Dozier hit a tying RBI single in the top half of the eighth, then Oakland rallied once more just as this club has done so many times the past two seasons. Crisp connected for his 21st home run on a 2-1 pitch from Shairon Martis (0-1). Jed Lowries three-run homer put the As ahead 6-3 in the sixth after pinch-hitter Alberto Callaspo tied it with a solo shot, but the bullpen couldnt hold the lead. Sean Doolittle (5-5) recorded the final four outs for the victory to end the 3-hour, 41-minute game in front of just 11,461 fans. Minnesota third baseman Trevor Plouffe left the game with left wrist soreness. Crisps 21 leadoff homers are tied for most in the majors. Callaspos two-out drive was his second career pinch-hit homer, his eighth clout this season and third since joining Oakland before the trade deadline. Crisp followed with a single to chase Brian Duensing (6-3), then Lowrie followed Josh Donaldsons single with his 13th home run. Stephen Vogt hit a sacrifice fly and Josh Reddick had an RBI double for the As, who remained 6 1-2 games ahead of Texas in the division race after the Rangers won 8-2 at Tampa Bay. Oswaldo Arcia homered in the seventh for the Twins, who lost for the seventh time in nine games that included dropping two of three to the As at home last week. But Minnesota is holding out hope catcher Joe Mauer will recover from his concussion in time to play again before the season ends. Dan Straily had his four-start winning streak snapped but remains unbeaten in six starts since dropping a 7-1 decision to Cleveland on Aug. 17. Straily still received a warm ovation when he exited in the sixth. Minnesota loaded the bases with one out in the fifth but Straily worked out of it. The Twins took a 1-0 lead on an unearned run in the third. Chris Parmelee beat out an infield single leading off the inning but shortstop Lowries wild throw trying to make the play sailed into the dugout as Parmelee advanced. He then beat a throw home on Alex Presleys RBI groundout. In the sixth, Straily threw two wild pitches that allowed Arcia to go from first to second and then to third. Josh Willingham drew a two-out walk and As manager Bob Melvin went to the bullpen. Dan Otero relieved and gave up Yosmil Pintos tying single and walked Parmelee to load the bases. Pedro Floriman followed with a go-ahead single against Brett Anderson. After Wednesday game, As left fielder Yoenis Cespedes received a cortisone injection to help alleviate the pain from tendinitis in his right shoulder. He was out of the lineup Thursday but doing well and Melvin hoped he would play Friday night. Twins manager Ron Gardenhire remains at 997 wins as he tries to become the eighth active manager with 1,000 victories NOTES: The Twins are 19-11 against the AL West, including 8-6 on the road. ... Reddick was caught stealing for the first time in 11 chances spanning 142 games. ... Crisp received the 2013 Jim "Catfish" Hunter Award honouring the courageous nature and spirit of the late Hall of Famer. "That caught me by surprise, but I am grateful for the award," Crisp said. ... Oakland C John Jaso, sidelined from a concussion since July 25, is still hitting on the field for a couple of days and will be re-evaluated this weekend. Then, the tentative plan is to send him to Arizona for some at-bats in instructional league to see if he might be able to return to the As before the season ends. "Itll be cool to be back out on the field and have cleats on again," he said. Pernell McPhee Jersey . In Englands first game since its worst-ever World Cup showing, Roy Hodgsons side rarely looked like scoring against unambitious opposition and the breakthrough in the friendly only came when Raheem Sterling was tripped in the penalty area. Jonathan Allen Redskins Jersey .ca presents its latest weekly power rankings for the 2013-14 Barclays Premier League season. http://www.redskinsrookiestore.com/Redskins-Geron-Christian-Jersey/ . At this point, even he isnt sure when it is going to stop. The right-hander dropped his fourth straight decision in Los Angeles 6-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday night, leaving his status very much in doubt as the Dodgers prepare for the stretch drive.TORONTO - At the ripe old age of 27-years-old Amir Johnson, the final player to have entered the league straight out of high school, finds himself in an unfamiliar situation as his 10th NBA season approaches. Johnson has never been one to pace himself, thats what has made him so valuable to the Raptors throughout his years in Toronto, and as a result hes taken a beating physically. Since coming to the Raptors, hes been remarkably durable, especially when you factor in the countless rolls of tape used on his troublesome ankles and time spent on the trainers table each season. Hes missed just 18 games in five years but by late March and April you can expect him to be hobbling around on one good ankle, if that. Up until last seasons surprising run to the playoffs it hadnt really mattered. A second-round pick out of Westchester high school in Los Angeles, Johnson began his career playing sparingly for a contending Pistons team. Eventually he transitioned to a complimentary role in Detroit before playing out four losing campaigns as a Raptor. By the spring many of his teammates would shut it down, mentally or physically or both, but Johnson kept chugging along. Last year was supposed to be much of the same, but thats not how it turned out and now here he is, participating in his 10th NBA training camp, but first in which hes expected to play a significant role for a playoff-bound club. Hes graduated from X-factor status, a tag that implicates ones game with the unreliability commonly associated with younger players. Amirs notoriously our glue guy, said Dwane Casey, a far more appropriate label for a player that has anchored Torontos defence and produced efficient offence for years. We know who he is. More than ever before, the Raptors need him on the court, as close to 100 per cent as possible during the stretch run and into the post-season if theyre to top last years accomplishments. The question is, how do you slow down a player who has been so effective operating at one speed? Amir, if he doesnt play with energy or if he tries to pace himself, that doesnt help him and it doesnt help us, Casey said. Hes an old pro and he knows how to play. Im not really concerned about him wearing down. Hes just got to stay healthy. The onus, at least to some degree, will be on Casey and the coaching staff to monitor Johnsons usage and perhaps scale back his minutes, not excessively but sporadically throughout the year, something they implemented last March as the forward battled a series of late-season aches and pains. The teams added depth and versatility should help Casey ensure that all of his regulars - including Johnson, DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry - are kept fresh. Patrick Patterson was one of the leagues premier reserves after last seasons trade and figures to have an expanded role in his first full campaign with the Raptors. Tyler Hansbrough has earned praise in camp, having added a jump shot and improvving his spacing and overall court awareness. Paul Richardson Jersey. James Johnson can also shift over to power forward, something Casey has experimented with in camp and feels comfortable deploying when they play small. Well watch his minutes, said Casey, but no ones playing that [many] minutes at the position to be overly taxed energy-wise. Johnson is doing his part to prepare for what could be his most grueling year, beginning with his work and innovative approach during the summer. The Raptors forward did not require surgery on either of his tender ankles, to his relief, instead he spent time at the P3 training facility in Santa Barbara, Calif. to help prevent the recurrence of similar injuries. It started with football players and now they expanded to a bunch of basketball players, he said of the cutting-edge sports clinic. What they do is strap you into these little light bulb suits, like they do in video games, and they have a screen where they show you every movement you do. So I was jumping up and down, sliding, seeing which way I land and they break it down to where you can see your skeleton and your bones move in slow motion, when you land and how you land. It could be something where you can just adjust your foot and kind of turn it a different way and that prevents you from maybe rolling an ankle or hurting your back. There, Johnson received feedback on how to refine some bad habits in his movement on the court - running, jumping, landing, etc. Its something he still works on implementing ahead of games and before practice. It takes repetition, but you can get used to it. So I did that this summer and I think it worked out great for me, he said, having also worked with Hall-of-Famer Hakeem Olajuwon on his post moves. Ive been working, strengthening, conditioning and keeping my body healthy. It didnt take long for Johnson to give the Raptors their first scare of the young campaign - if you can even call it a scare, given how often he hits the deck and pops back up. Johnson went down, battling for a rebound late in the second quarter of Fridays exhibition win over the Thunder. It wasnt my ankle, it was actually my foot, he clarified after sitting out the remainder of that game as a precaution. But Im fine. Perhaps his new and improved footwork, coupled with the possibility of reduced playing time, will lesson the threat of injury for Johnson in this all-important upcoming season - its also a contract year for him - but that risk will always be a factor and presumably higher than most on account of the way he plays the game. Whether theyre used to it or not, his teammates and coaches will always cringe when they see Johnson sprawled out on the court, but its par for the course. He may end up their intentionally - after diving for a loose ball or taking a charge - or otherwise, but as long as he continues to pop back up, the Raptors will live with the frequent scare. Hes that valuable. 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