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OAKLAND, Calif. -- Athletics manager Bob Melvin is already starting to run out of superlatives to describe Scott Kazmir. The right-hander has been so effective in his first season with Oakland that Melvin might need to break out a thesaurus when talking about the veteran pitcher. Kazmir pitched seven innings to win his fourth straight start, Yoenis Cespedes hit his 14th home run and the As beat the Boston Red Sox 4-2 on Thursday night. "Its a broken record talking about him because were seeing basically the same game out of him," Melvin said. "I had heard last year maybe this is a 100-pitch guy top, six innings maybe. Hes been anything but. Hes been absolutely terrific." Kazmir (9-2) went into the game with the second-lowest ERA among qualifiers in the AL and extended his streak to 18 1-3 innings without allowing an earned run before Dustin Pedroia hit a two-run home run in the sixth. He struck out eight and didnt walk a batter. Over his past five starts, Oaklands right-hander is 4-0 with a 1.27 ERA. "Probably one of the best (games) I felt this year, for sure," said Kazmir, who has allowed two runs or fewer in each of his last five starts. "I was able to get ahead most of the time with my fastball and expand the strike zone with my breaking balls and my changeup. Didnt really use too many breaking balls. Just relied mainly on fastball location." Stephen Vogt had two hits and two RBIs, Jed Lowrie scored twice and John Jaso singled in an insurance run in the seventh to move the As a season-high 17 games over .500. Its the best record in the majors and continued Oaklands best start since 1990. Cespedes had not homered against the Red Sox until his two-out, solo shot off Jake Peavy in the third. Boston had played five straight one-run games heading into the series opener with Oakland. This one was tight as well. The As led 3-0 after Vogts single scored Lowrie in the fourth. Kazmir, who hasnt lost since May 23, took a shutout into the sixth that Pedroia ended with a two-out home run. It was the only mistake Kazmir made. "We faced a tough pitcher," Pedroia said. "To be honest, our at bats werent that bad. We have to find a way to have a big inning and get some momentum." Luke Gregerson pitched the eighth and Dan Otero worked the ninth for his first career save. Peavy (1-5) had a second straight strong outing but remained winless over his past 10 starts. Peavy allowed five hits over 6 1-3 innings, retired eight of the final nine batters he faced and struck out four with three walks. It wasnt enough to prevent the Red Sox from ending their three-game winning streak. Vogt hit an RBI groundout off Peavy in the second and singled in another run in the fourth. Lowrie, who walked and doubled, scored both times. Cespedes homered with two outs in the third. The Cuban slugger is batting .343 with four home runs and 12 RBIs through 17 games in June. Cespedes has driven in 49 runs already this season and could soon join teammates Brandon Moss (55) and Josh Donaldson (52) in the 50-RBI club. "When you look at the runs that weve put up this year, a lot of it has to do with those guys in the middle of the order," Melvin said. "Its pretty amazing." NOTES: Otero was in the closers role because Sean Doolittle had pitched in the previous two games. ... Cespedes has now homered against every team in the AL except Tampa Bay. ... RHP Clay Buchholz (hyperextended knee) pitched six scoreless innings during his second rehab start for Triple-A Pawtucket. ... LHP Brad Mills starts Friday in his Oakland debut. Mills was acquired in a trade from Milwaukee earlier this week. LHP Felix Doubront (2-4) pitches for Boston. Doug Kotar Giants Jersey . The Red Wings hadnt played the night before. The Boston Bruins had. A month from now, or two months from now, it doesnt matter. But right now it does matter, when you start and you play back to back, its wear and tear on you for sure, Babcock said. Oshane Ximines Cheap Jersey . Jamies number grades given are out of five, with five being the best mark. Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers (4) – He had a strong game Sunday; was very good in tight with big saves on Crosby, Malkin and Neal in-crease. http://www.giantsonlineteamshop.com/osha...ey-cheap.html.L. - Defending womens champion Alberta improved to 3-0 at the Canadian junior curling championships with a 10-3 win over Ontario in Sundays afternoon draw. Dalvin Tomlinson Cheap Jersey . Signs of a turnaround have emerged in this series at Minnesota. Brian Roberts had three doubles and a triple for the first four-extra-base-hit game of his 14-year career, and the Yankees used their bullpen to preserve a 6-5 win over the Twins on Friday. Deandre Baker Cheap Jersey . Onyshko, from Minnedosa, Man., will compete in artistic gymnastics while Hanet, from Kelowna, B.C., will compete in lawn bowling as a para-athlete. "It is exciting that our Canadian athletes are starting to arrive at the Games Village," said Chantal Petitclerc, Canadas Chef de Mission.OTTAWA -- With the Sochi Winter Olympics fast approaching, overseers of Canadas elite athletes are hoping to avoid a post-podium national embarrassment. In an effort to catch cheaters, the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport launched an anonymous snitch line Tuesday where athletes and others connected to sport can report allegations of doping. The announcement comes on the heels of last weeks revelations by Victoria cyclist Ryder Hesjedal, who admitted to doping more than a decade ago. Canadians want to be reassured that every effort is being made to prevent an embarrassing spectacle in Sochi, centre president and CEO Paul Melia told a news conference in Ottawa. Melia cited the bitter memory of the moment Jamaican-born sprinter Ben Johnson was stripped of his Olympic gold medal after being disqualified for doping at the 1988 Summer Games. "No one wants to see a Canadian athlete receive a medal on Friday only to see it taken away on Saturday," he said. "We lived that once. We dont want to live it again." To aid in the anti-doping effort, the federal government and the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic committees are contributing a combined $1 million toward the fight against illegal performance enhancements. The money will help boost testing of athletes in the four months prior to the Sochi Olympics, say organizers. It will also strengthen the investigative capacity oof Canadas anti-doping program, said Bal Gosal, Canadas minister of state for sport.dddddddddddd The announcement also comes in advance of an international anti-doping conference being held next week in South Africa, where a new code of standards is expected to be adopted by sports organizations and government around the world. A "Report Doping Hotline" (1-800-710-CCES) has been set up to encourage anyone with knowledge of doping in amateur sport to come forward. Its just one more step toward more fairness in sports, says Canadian Olympic Committee president Marcel Aubut, who acknowledged Tuesday that his committee has done little until now to address the problem. "Fairness, clean play and integrity need to become prerequisites in international Competition," he said. "Competing against the worlds best in an equitable manner is what sport is all about." Its the first time the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport and the Canadian Olympic Committee have formally collaborated to tackle an issue. Aubut said only became concerned about high-profile doping cases when he saw media coverage about it while waiting for a plane back home after travelling to Sochi in advance of the Games. Thats when he came to the realization that Canada is vulnerable to a doping scandal of its own, said Aubut. "I read about this, and it shocked me," he said. ' ' '