"Not even the sight of the A's could cure Tim Lincecum's lingering ills Friday night.

The Giants ace, who had dominated Oakland in six previous starts, was beaten 5-2 by the host A's. It was his fourth consecutive start without a victory.

Even though he pitched a bit better than in his previous three outings, Lincecum's June swoon continued. He hasn't won since May 27 and has lost his past two starts. He has allowed 18 earned runs in his past 21?1/3 innings (7.59 ERA).

Lincecum (5-6) reached the seventh inning for the first time in three starts, but by then had surrendered three runs (two earned) on five hits. Command was the biggest issue, as he walked five even though he struck out seven. He left the game having issued a four-pitch walk with nobody out in the seventh.

Manager Bruce Bochy thought Lincecum threw well, but the pitcher was tougher on himself, even though he did feel he made some strides.

"I let guys get away from me with the walks and all, but I got back to just being more aggressive, kind of letting things go and not worrying about what I was doing mechanically," he said. "But I felt like I was battling the whole time as opposed to cruising, which is what I would like to do. I just have to be better; it's that simple.""