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		Matsui homers in A's 5-3 win at Target Field By Morris Phillips April 10, 2011

	From the Twins’ perspective everything is topsy turvy from punchless hitters to pitchers that can’t seem to throw strikes. Of course, from the A’s perspective a carefully retooled roster is starting to click on all levels, a nice assessment coming from Sunday’s 5-3 win over Minnesota along with the season’s first series victory. The A’s impressed in all three phases, but a majestic home run from Hideki Matsui in the fourth inning created the biggest buzz. The free agent slugger signed to bring punch the middle of the A’s lineup finally loaded up after an alarmingly slow start to the season. “You knew it was going to come, and to see that performance from him today… that ball jumped out of here,” Manager Bob Geren said of Matsui’s big contribution. Brandon McCarthy pitched 7 1/3 strong innings to get the win, his first in the big leagues since September 2009. McCarthy was also signed as a free agent in the winter, but with Rich Harden, Josh Outman and others figuring to be more promising fifth starter options, McCarthy had to turn a few heads just to get a turn in the rotation. After Sunday, he may be unlikely to relinquish his spot. Time and time again, the former Texas Rangers starter broke off some effective breaking balls that had Twins’ hitters flailing or hitting harmless ground outs. When McCarthy allowed a ringing double to Joe Mauer in the eighth, he departed, but the A’s were in control at that point, up 5-0. Reliever Jerry Blevins allowed a run scoring ground out and a two-run shot to Jim Thome to bring the Twins within 5-3. But Grant Balfour and Brian Fuentes came on just as they did on Saturday to shut Minnesota down with Fuentes picking up the save. Prior to a breakout four-run sixth inning, the A’s were still searching. In the previous 22 innings, Oakland had just two runs to their credit, along with 1-0 win, and another nail biter figured to be unavoidable. But Josh Willingham opened the sixth with a laser shot down the left field line that put Oakland up 2-0. Three more hits and two sacrifice flies in the inning put the A’s up 5-0 and for the moment all the negative focus shifted from the Oakland dugout to the Twins. In winning 94 games in 2010, the Twins did a bunch of things exceptionally; most noticeably they raked in their new outdoor digs as the AL’s best hitting home team. But so far in 2011, the Twins have whiffed, leaving the first three sellout crowds at Target Field wondering what happened to the AL Central champs. On Sunday, 10 hits were more like what was expected, but McCarthy repeatedly shut down Twins’ threats, keeping the home team off the scoreboard until the eighth inning. On defense, Ron Gardenhire felt his defense was let down by a pitching corps that allowed five walks and threw the entire team’s rhythm of kilter. “We’re pitching away from contact a little too much. We have a team that pitches to contact. Get them to swing the bat early. Right now the games, you can see it, you can feel it… The game is dragging.” Gardenhire said. Last year, the A’s visited Minnesota twice in the final two months of the season and caught the Twins on a roll, dropping four of six. This year, the A’s are done with Target Field early and things turned out much more favorably. Now, Oakland (4-5) moves on to Chicago with the momentum of winning three of their last four. On Monday, Dallas Braden goes for Oakland and Mark Buerhle gets the call for the White Sox.