OAKLAND, Calif. Calgary Flames Gear . -- Sonny Grays fastball wasnt as sharp as it usually is, and the Oakland Athletics young pitcher even had a quirky replay go against him. A rediscovered curveball, stellar defence behind him and timely hitting on offence made it all a moot point. Grey allowed four hits over seven innings to bounce back from his worst start of the season and the As beat the Toronto Blue Jays 4-1 on Thursday night. "The idea is to really get that (curve) going again because I think the last five or six starts its been OK, but it hasnt been a big factor for us," said Gray, who walked three and struck out five. "We did some things a little different this week and I was able to find that again and get it going, especially early in the game." Gray (8-3) was knocked around in his previous start when he was tagged for five runs in five innings against Miami on June 28. He was much sharper this time around and got some help from Oaklands defence which turned three double plays, including one in the eighth after Josh Tholes leadoff single. Jose Reyes hit a fly out to deep right and Oaklands Brandon Moss made a strong throw back to first baseman Nate Freiman, who tagged out Thole trying to get back to the bag. "Hes still a little spotty with his fastball," As manager Bob Melvin said. "That kind of makes him at times who he is, too. He can paint you on two pitches and then miss by a foot. His curveball was a big factor today." Grey might have been in line for a shutout were it not for an odd replay in the second inning. After Toronto loaded the bases against Gray with one out, Anthony Gose hit a grounder to Freiman. Freiman appeared to tag Munenori Kawasaki as he ran for second base, but umpire Vic Carapazza ruled Freiman missed the tag and Kawasaki was safe. Freiman then threw to catcher Stephen Vogt, who stepped on home plate for a forceout with Edwin Encarnacion, the runner on third, approaching. Toronto manager John Gibbons requested the review, arguing that Kawasaki was out and that Encarnacion should be allowed to score because there would have been no force play at the plate. After a delay of 4 minutes, 27 seconds, the call was overturned and the Blue Jays were given a 1-0 lead. "We cant put runners back," crew chief Bill Miller said. "We have to go with what happened on the field, and what happened on the field was (Vogt) tagged home plate but he did not tag the runner. Unfortunately that was in direct relation to the call on the field at first base." Melvin immediately came out to argue and the As played the remainder of the game under protest. It didnt matter. Freiman doubled in Brandon Moss in the bottom of the inning, and Vogt scored on a passed ball to put the As up 2-1. Craig Gentry singled off Toronto starter R.A. Dickey (6-8) in the eighth and scored on John Jasos double. Alberto Callaspos sacrifice fly made it 4-1. "We just didnt get anything going offensively," Gibbons said. "They outplayed us, pure and simple." Dickey, who beat the As on May 24, when he allowed two runs over 8 1-3 innings in his best outing of the season, lost his fourth straight start. The knuckleballer struck out six and walked three. The loss drops the Blue Jays into a first-place tie with Baltimore in the AL East. Its the first time since May 21 that Toronto has not held sole possession of the top spot in the division. Dan Otero pitched the eighth and Sean Doolittle worked the ninth for his 12th save. NOTES: Dickey had not lost four straight starts since 2004. ... As slugger Yoenis Cespedes went 0 for 4 to snap a 15-game hitting streak. ... Oakland 3B Josh Donaldson (lower back stiffness) was held out of the starting lineup for a second straight game. ... The As activated LHP Eric OFlaherty from the 60-day DL and designated LHP Jeff Francis for assignment. OFlaherty underwent Tommy John surgery last year and hasnt pitched in the majors since May 17, 2013. ... The As reached agreement on a 10-year lease extension with the Oakland Coliseum. As part of the deal, the As will pay $10 million for the installation of new video scoreboards as well as other upgrades to the aging facility. ... Toronto OF Colby Rasmus was held out of the lineup after injuring his right wrist running into the wall during the series against Milwaukee. ... Oakland LHP Tommy Milone (6-3) faces Toronto RHP Marcus Stroman (4-2) on Friday. Custom Calgary Flames Jerseys . Ilonen birdied five of his closing seven holes in superb scoring conditions to end the day with a two-shot lead on the Fota Island course. Ilonen had just 26 putts on the occasion of his 300th European Tour event. Fake Flames Jerseys . Goodell said in an ESPN Radio interview Monday (http://es.pn/1gkbauy ) that participants played harder and made the game very competitive. Goodell says he had fun watching the game Sunday and thinks fans did, too. https://www.cheapflames.com/ . The Brazilian international goalkeeper was beaten twice in the first 12 minutes of his Reds debut in a 3-1 preseason loss to Columbus Crew in Florida earlier this week.OTTAWA – Jonathan Bernier and Nazem Kadri left the nations capital under the cloud of injuries as the Leafs pulled out a 3-2 exhibition victory. Scheduled to play his first full outing of the exhibition season against the Senators on Thursday night, Bernier departed after just a period at the Canadian Tire Centre, nursing an undisclosed injury. Kadri left two shifts into the third frame with a bruised left hand. Neither injury appeared serious, but both offered a scare with the regular season less than two weeks away. Competing for the starting job with James Reimer this fall, Berniers injury first occurred at the Leafs morning skate in Toronto, the team flying to Ottawa later that afternoon. "I wanted to give it a try," said Bernier, reluctant to offer much in the way of details as to his injury. "[But] it just felt worse, I guess, as the game was going so I just figured it was a better move to step off. Its a long season." The 25-year-old faced 11 shots in 20 minutes – yielding a goal to Fredrik Claesson – giving way to Drew MacIntyre following the opening frame. "It felt okay," he continued, "but I guess thats why I came off." Bernier didnt consider the mysterious injury to be overly concerning and hoped to play in at least two of the remaining six exhibition games. Overall, after two-plus periods in two games, the former King is feeling optimistic about his performance. "I want to play a full game and obviously that was the plan tonight, but it didnt happen," he said. "Im starting to feel better, seeing the play a little bit slower than the first game." Kadri, meanwhile, managed to defeat Jean-Gabriel Pageau in the faceoff dot early in the third before he too was forced to depart. The 23-year-old took a puck awkwardly off the hand late in the second frame, suffering from a "little bit of bruising" shortly thereafter. "He just felt that he couldnt grasp his stick," Leafs coach Randy Carlyle said of Kadris exit from the game. X-rays came back negative on the prospective second line centre, a huge sigh of relief to the organization with the October 1 opener in Montreal fast approaching. The Leafs are already dealing with injuries to Colton Orr (bone bruise) and Frazer McLaren (finger) and appear to have just gotten past an early issue with Joffrey Lupul (back). Injuries to the likes of Kadri and Bernier thus would only add to the concern. At this point, it appears the club may have dodged a pair of bullets. Five Points 1. Time is now for Colborne Randy Carlyle issued a challenge of sorts to a player on the bubble ahead of Thursdays game with the Senators. "Joe Colbornes got to separate himself from some people here," Carlyle said of the 23-year-old, paired with James van Riemsdyk and David Clarkson at the outset of an eventual win. "The time is now for a player like Colborne to show that hes got the necessary assets and attitude and commitment to make an impression in the NHL." So far, that case remains muddled. While he boasts a real shot to crack an NHL roster for the first time in his career, Colborne, as of yet, has done little to "separate himself" at camp. He has yet to consistently demonstrate the capacity in which he could be of use at the next level. On Thursday night, the Calgary native totaled 15-plus minutes opposite Ottawa, mustering just one shot while falling on 11 of 16 draws. Before the injury to Kadri, he had been shifted away from the power duo of van Riemsdyk and Clarkson and onto a unit with Nik Kulemin and David Broll. "The bus only goes by so many times and you want to be on that bus," Carlyle continued, though speaking more generally about the process of earning a job. "Youre going to get so many opportunities. Who knows when the last one is... If you want to ride to downtown you want to get on the bus." Following Thursdays game, Carlyle said he thought Colborne "played okay". 2. Rielly Watch Morgan Rielly suited up for the third of the Leafs three exhibition games, totaling 20 minutes alongside Paul Ranger. Looking to crack the NHL as a 19-year-old, Rielly has focused his attentioon this fall on proving his worth in the defensive zone. Flames Jerseys 2021. "Obviously I knew that would be an area of the game that I would have to concentrate on," he told TSN.ca of the physical aspect of defending. "And I put quite a bit of hard work in terms of training into that area in order to be okay down low and what not. I feel like its going pretty well so far." Rielly got his first taste of the professional game with the Marlies this past spring, the B.C.-native playing in 14 games before adding eight more in the playoffs. The experience, defending against bigger and stronger competition, proved beneficial, handing the fifth overall pick an early lesson ahead of his first full training camp this fall. "I was pretty happy with the way that I played in terms of handling the puck and on the power-play and that kind of stuff," he said of the American League experience, "but when it came to playing in our own end, having to play against some older players down low I knew that that was an area I had to improve. "I kind of realized that if I wanted to make the jump I had to keep getting stronger and I think thats an area I put a lot of work into and Im happy with the way it went." 3. Positive impressions continue from Raymond For the second time in as many games Mason Raymond offered a burst of the speed that may well earn him a place on the Leafs roster. Raymond broke free of Chris Wideman by just a step, enough to tap in a cross-ice feed from the streaking James van Riemsdyk in the second frame against Ottawa. "It feels good," he said, "but yeah I need to continue to build on that." A veteran of six NHL seasons, Raymond finds himself in the uncomfortable and unusual position of being without a contract, toiling on a professional tryout with the Leafs. "Its different, but those are situations you cant control," Raymond said of his current standing. "This is reality, this is a situation that Im in and youve got to make the most of it. Again I dont know why it happened or what it is, but as I said thats reality and you just have to go out and control what you can control and put your best foot forward." 4. Gunnarssons health At issue for the entirety of the 2013 season, Carl Gunnarsson is feeling good about his hip after a weeks worth of training camp. Inked to a three-year contract in the summer, the 26-year-old told TSN.ca that while the injury would still require treatment throughout the year, it felt considerably better from where it began last season. "Not saying that Im not going to have to get treatment or stay on top of it every day because thats what its going to be," Gunnarsson said, noting the need for regular treatment, including electronic acupuncture. "I think thats how it is for every injury. If you have a knee surgery or you strained your ACL or whatever it might be, youve got to stay on top of that. Some guys play with braces or whatever it might be. I feel way better from last year so thats a good feeling coming into this season. Hopefully its going to stay on this level and whenever we get a couple days off just treat it the way it needs to be treated." 5. Depth in Marshall Kevin Marshall has quietly made a positive impression on the Leafs coach through the first week of training camp. Formerly of the Flyers, where he played in 10 games, Marshall adds depth for the club on the back-end. "You notice him in his battle and compete level," Carlyle observed of Marshall. "When you can surround your organization and fill your organization with people that have that attitude towards playing it makes everybody better because youve got to compete for your space on the ice and youve got to compete for your job." A second round selection of Philadelphia in 2007, Marshall spent last season in the American League, splitting time between Hershey and Toronto, the latter as a Marlie for 24 games (including the playoffs). With T.J. Brennan added in the offseason via free agency, the Leafs now boast 10 defenders with NHL experience – including the unsigned Cody Franson – a valuable commodity over the grind of 82 games. ' ' '