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OAKLAND -- The A's first two-game losing streak since late June came to an end as the A's achieved their first August victory. Oakland is once again nine games over .500 after defeating the Blue Jays 4-1 behind eight shutout innings from Bartolo Colon.At the PlateTwo of the A's most consistent hitters entered the game in a serious funk. Seth Smith was 0-for-his-last-18, and Josh Reddick was stuck in a career-worst 0-for-21 skid. They both wasted no time snapping out of it. Smith smacked a one-out line-drive single to right field scoring Eric Sogard from third base. Smith's hit gave the A's a 1-0 lead. The slumping Reddick followed with a two-run blast to right field. Reddick's 23rd homer leaped out of the park like Michael Jordan in a slam dunk contest. The A's had a big chance to score in the fifth inning. Coco Crisp led off with a fly ball to left field that got lost in the lights by Rajai Davis. Crisp ended up speeding to third as Davis did his best to prevent Crisp from continuing home. Smith followed with a soft ground ball back to pitcher Henderson Alvarez. As Alvarez threw to first, Smith grabbed his hamstring and came up lame and left the game. The team announced he has a strained left hamstring. Next, Reddick was walked intentionally and then Yoenis Cespedes worked a walk to load the bases. Brandon Moss came up and hit a grounder up the middle off Alvarez that was scooped up by Yunel Esconar, who turned the inning-ending double play. Chris Carter entered the game as the designated hitter after Smith left the game. He led off the seventh inning with a walk. Carter now has 15 walks since the All-Star break which ranks him second in Major League Baseball. Carter would come around to score on an RBI single by Brandon Inge that extended his Oakland season-high hitting streak to 12 games. Starting Pitching ReportColon was dialed in on the mound. After holding Baltimore to 5.2 scoreless innings in his last start, he didn't allow a run again on Thursday. He has now pitched 16.1 consecutive scoreless innings over his last three outings. Colon is interesting to watch. He has a goofy personality off the field, but is robotic and efficient on the mound. He just goes up there and chucks pitches in the strike zone, and challenges hitters. Colon, 39, is a stabilizing force in an A's starting rotation full of rookies. He scattered seven hits and just one walk over eight innings. He threw 96 pitches. Colon's biggest threat came in the sixth inning when the Blue Jays loaded the bases with two outs. He was able to get Davis to ground out to end the threat. Colon followed up that inning with a tidy seven-pitch, three-up three-down seventh. He didn't allow a single extra base hit in the process of earning his eighth win. Bullpen ReportSean Doolittle took over in the ninth inning. He gave up a leadoff double to David Cooper, then allowed an infield single off the bat of Davis after he failed to cover first on a ground ball hit to Moss. Davis is very fast and Doolittle fell off the mound to the third base side on the throw. Doolittle struck out Yan Gomes then left the game with runners on the corners and one out. Ryan Cook entered in relief of Doolittle. He induced a ground ball up the middle but the A's couldn't turn two to end the game with the speedy Moises Sierra hustling down the line. Brett Lawrie made things interesting hitting a single that brought the game-tying run to the plate. Cook was able to get the final out, though, with runners on the corners. In the FieldCespedes made a good read on a ball hit toward the left field gap. He took a straight line to the ball and made a rolling catch. He looks like he is starting to get the hang of left field. At the very least, he looks more natural there. Inge made a spectacular play to rob the speedy Davis of an extra base hit. He used his quick reflexes to pivot right and leap outward snaring the ball in the web of his glove, he then fired to first to get Davis. AttendanceThe A's announced an attendance of 10,823. My policy is not to comment on attendance. That is all. Dot RaceWhite wins the dot race.Up NextProfessional baseballs strikeout leader Dan Straily will take the mound for the A's in his Major League debut. Straily has 175 strikeouts this season between Double-A and Triple-A. Straily is yet another player with a feel good story to join the A's. Get to know him here in a one-on-one video interview.