Veteran pitcher Bartolo Colon will get the starting nod for the Oakland Athletics as the set to host the visiting Boston Red Sox for some Sunday evening action on the diamond at 4:05 p.m. ET.
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Via ESPN:
Colon (12-3, 2.69 ERA) has been especially good over his last 10 starts, going 9-1 with a 1.48 ERA to climb within one win of tying Matt Moore and Max Scherzer for the most in the majors. He received his third All-Star nod, with the previous two coming in 1998 and 2005.
"I've never had a year like this," Colon, who also won the AL Cy Young Award in 2005, told MLB's official website. "I believe this year is my best year. It was always in my thoughts, but I never imagined having the kind of numbers that I do right now before the All-Star break."
Third in the AL in ERA, Colon outpitched fellow All-Star Jeff Locke in Monday's 2-1 win at Pittsburgh. The right-hander allowed one run and seven hits in seven innings.
"He probably has one of the best personalities I've ever played with," center fielder Coco Crisp said. "He just goes about his day and does the best he can and doesn't let too many things bother him. He's been doing good for us the whole year and is fun to play behind."
Colon, Oakland's lone All-Star representative, still has a chance to pitch in Tuesday's Midsummer Classic despite starting Sunday.
"As an organization, based on his age and where we are with him and how much we lean on him, that we would like him to get the time off," manager Bob Melvin said. "Pitching on Sunday, you look at it and say, 'Is that prudent?' But we'll leave it up to him. It's his decision."
Colon went the distance in a rain-shortened 13-0 win at Boston on April 23, striking out seven over seven innings of three-hit ball. He is 1-1 with a 1.90 ERA in four starts against the Red Sox since 2011.
Colon has had David Ortiz's number over the years, holding him to six hits in 46 at-bats (.130) in their matchups. Dustin Pedroia (2 for 13) and Jacoby Ellsbury (2 for 9) also have struggled.
