Cliff Pennington's two-run triple in the fourth inning proved to be the difference as the Oakland A's secured a 4-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles on Friday night.

The A's pushed across runs in the second and third. Jake Fox's sacrifice fly off Kevin Millwood (0-2) made it 1-0 in the second, and Ryan Sweeney's ground out stretched it to 2-0 in the next frame.

Pennington's triple gave the A's a 4-0 lead against an Orioles team that hasn't been able hit in key situations and now has lost eight in a row.

The Orioles got a two-run homer from Ty Wigginton, one of the few players who has regularly produced. That cut the lead to 4-2 in the fifth, but Baltimore could do no more against Dallas Braden in seven innings.

Braden (2-0) gave up just two runs on three hits. Andrew Bailey closed it in the ninth for his first save as the A's improved to 8-4.