OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) Though his body clock was off, Josh Phelps' timing was perfect.

Phelps' two-run home run helped Esteban Loaiza win on the road for the first time in six starts as the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Oakland Athletics 2-1 Monday night.

"This is all still new to me," said Phelps, who was called up on July 2. "This was the first time I've gone from the East Coast to the West Coast and everything seemed just a little off with the time difference."

Phelps hit his fourth home run to put the Blue Jays up 2-1 in the fifth. Chris Woodward singled to open the inning, and one out later Phelps, who was leading the International League in with 24 home runs and 64 RBIs at the time of his call up, connected on a 1-2 pitch.

"I've kept the same approach," Phelps said. "I'm just trying to get my hits early and hope the power numbers come later."

Loaiza (5-6) last won on the road May 31 at Detroit. He allowed just seven hits and one run while striking out three and walking two in 7 1-3 innings.

"I'm just trying to throw like I'm capable," Loaiza said. "I have to give it up to the defense. That's the most great plays I've seen in one game. It's like telling me they want me to win and they want to be here. They were really playing hard."

Defensive highlights included first baseman Dave Berg's foul catch to rob Miguel Tejada as he slid into the Blue Jays dugout in the sixth, and DeWayne Wise throwing out Eric Chavez at second after taking a ball off the wall in right field in the fourth.

"His accuracy continues to amaze me," Toronto manager Carlos Tosca said of Wise. "He has the ability to get the ball off the wall with something on it. That's quite a find. You have to cover a lot of ground here."

The Blue Jays beat Oakland for the fifth straight time and sixth in seven overall this season. The A's fell 2½ games behind Anaheim in the AL wild card race.

The A's are batting an AL-worst .201 (95-for-473) with runners in scoring position and two outs after going 0-for-5 Monday.

"We have to bear down more with runners in scoring position," A's manager Art Howe said. "It's tough luck one night and something else other nights. We've tried everything."

Loaiza has allowed just one run in 16 2-3 innings against the A's in two starts. He threw his only shutout of the season against Oakland on May 19. Last year Oakland pounded the right-hander for 14 runs on 19 hits in 10 2-3 innings.

"Every year is different," Loaiza said. "I've faced a lot of these guys before and you learn a lot just by watching the game."

Kelvim Escobar allowed a leadoff triple to Terrence Long in the ninth before finishing for his 24th save in 30 opportunities.

Aaron Harang (4-3) gave up two runs on five hits over seven innings. He walked one and struck out one. It was his first loss in nine starts since June 15.

"He just made one mistake and that was the difference," Howe said. "Those guys are pretty darn good when they play us."

Jermaine Dye's 13th homer of the season with one out in the second gave the A's a 1-0 lead. Dye, who began the season on the disabled list with a fractured left tibia, has seven homers in 29 games since the All-Star break after hitting just six in 61 games before. He played in his first game on April 26.

Besides Dye, Loaiza allowed just one runner past second base.

Notes: Woodward left the game with a contusion on his left wrist, a result of being hit by a pitch in the seventh. ... The Blue Jays went a season-high four games without homering until Phelps connected. ... A's 2B Mark Ellis is hitless in his last 12 at-bats leading off a game. ... Wise snapped an 0-for-12 streak with his third-inning single. ... Blue Jays OF Jose Cruz, Jr. sat out his third straight game with a twisted left ankle.

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