A's lineup: Rest for Reddick? Cespedes streaking

OAKLAND -- The A's are a season-high five games over .500. They are 12-2 in the month of July, which is the best in the majors over that span. They also lead all of baseball with 10 walk-off wins. Having beat the Yankees the last two games they guarantee, at worst, a series split against the best team record-wise in baseball. Oakland Athletics (49-44) lineupCoco Crisp, CF
Jemile Weeks, 2B
Josh Reddick, DH
Yoenis Cespedes, LF
Brandon Moss, RF
Chris Carter, 1B
Brandon Inge, 3B
Eric Sogard, SS
Derek Norris, C
Instant AnalysisChris Carter is back in the lineup and he is starting against a right-handed pitcher. That is something I'd like to see more of -- just not at the cost of playing time for Brandon Moss. Josh Reddick is getting a day of rest, meaning he is the DH. That allows Moss to play in right field. It is interesting to note that Derek Norris is batting ninth and starting at catcher. Top of the OrderCoco Crisp hit a leadoff triple in the third inning. He ended up scoring on a Jemile Weeks sacrifice fly. Crisp is batting .388 (14-for-36) over his last nine games. Heart of the OrderReddick is batting .338 (27-for-80) over his last 23 games. After Friday's game he spoke out about how nice it is to have Yoenis Cespedes batting behind him. Cespedes is hitting his stride in a major way. He has a career-high eight game hitting streak and is now batting .304 on the season. At the beginning of the series I wrote about how Cespedes will be the difference maker. He certainly has been so far. He is 6-for-8 with a home run and two RBIs in this series. The last time the Yankees were in town Cespedes was injured and couldn't play. Carter is batting .357 with three homers and seven RBIs against right-handed pitching. I'd like to see A's manager Bob Melvin work him into the starting lineup more, but he is valuable as a pinch hitter as well. Bottom of the OrderEric Sogard is being given a big opportunity for everyday playing time at the major league level. He responded with a triple in his first game back with the team. Norris is in a 0-for-27 slump at the plate and might be pressing a little bit. He started out his big league career by hitting in seven of his first eight games. Starting PitchersJarrod Parker (6-4, 3.16 ERA) gets the ball for the A's. He has allowed 10 runs in his last two starts after allowing 10 runs total in his prior eight starts. Phil Hughes (9-7, 4.22 ERA) will be on the mound for the Yankees. He has a 6.08 ERA in his career against the A's.