By MIKE ZEISBERGER
Correspondent
TORONTO — Paul Blackburn deserved a better fate.
For seven innings Wednesday, the kid from the East Bay appeared to be giving the Oakland A’s the type of pitching performance that appeared to be helping the team snap its losing funk, one that had seen them drop four of their previous five outings.
But Blackburn’s feel-good story was quickly wiped out by reliever Santiago Casilla, whose failure to record a single out in the ninth inning allowed the host Toronto Blue Jays to eclipse a 2-0 Oakland lead en route to a crushing 3-2 win over the visitors.