Pitching has held Cleveland to five runs over the last 19 innings, and Ryan Rowland-Smith will try to continue that roll.
On the other hand, the Mariners have scored only seven runs in the same span - and won twice.
J.J. Putz is unavailable today, so if it comes to the ninth inning, it's proably 'closer' Roy Corcoran.
And we're off ...

Power Up ...
Adrian Beltre led off the second inning with his 22nd home run, tying Raul Ibanez for the team lead.
In this series, every run has been precious and the Mariners have tried more hit-and-run plays than they've hit home runs.
Home runs work, too.
Mariners 1, Indians 0 ...

Power Up, II ...
Another home run for Shin-Soo Choo, who has nine for the season - three in the last four games.
The Mariners always liked his promise but thought his development was a bit slow. The Indians have waited through injuries and now consider him their third or fourth outfielder.
Since the All-Star break, Choo is batting .310.
Mariners 1, Indians 1 ...

All Eyes On KC ...
The Mariners begin the day five games behind Kansas City in the race to avoid the worst record in the American League.
Does that make the mid-September four-game series in KC an epic showdown? Do you care whether the Mariners are the worst or second-worst team?
With one month left, the Royals are the only team within Seattle's range, unless Baltimore or Oakland concede a lot of games.
To the bottom of the third:
Mariners 1, Indians 1 ...

The Problem With Pitchers ...
No matter what they do on the mound, they think they can make impossible plays off of it - and usually pay for the arrogrance.
With Jeff Clement at first and one out, Miguel Cairo ladid down a perfect bunt near the third base line, and Zach Johnson pounced on it. With no chance to get Cairo, he threw anyway, a wild throw that let the runners move to second and third base.
Ichiro dumped a single into right field - hit No. 179 if you're counting - to score one run.
Jackson then tried to pick Ichiro off first, threw THAT away, and a second run scored.
Raul Ibanez singled, driving in his 31st run of August.
And then? Jackson hung a pitch and Beltre hit his second home run of the game.
To the bottom of the fifth:
Mariners 6, Indians 1 ...

Cast Your Ballots ...
Ryan Rowland-Smith is on a serious roll as a starter - the kind that has to have him seriously considered for the '09 rotation.
If he holds on today, he'll be 2-1 in seven starts, but that's deceptive. In his last two starts, he went a combined 13 innings and allowed four runs - and went 1-1.
So, think ahead. The candidates for next year are piled up like driftwood: Felix Hernandez, Erik Bedard, Jarrod Washburn, Carlos Silva, Miguel Batista, Rowland-Smith, Ryan Feierabend, Brandon Morrow and R.A. Dickey.
Pick five, any five.
To the bottom of the seventh:
Mariners 6, Indians 1 ...

That Took Awhile ...
Mariners used three pitchers to get three outs, and the Indians pushed across one unearned run but left the bases loaded.
Rowland-Smith tired and finished with 111 pitches, and it will be intreresting to see how he does next time out.
Still adjusting to starting, the last time Rowland-Smith had back-to-back 100-pitch starts he wound up on the disabled list.
Six outs from matching their longest winning streak of the season - sigh - three games.
Mariners 6, Indians 2 ...

Now It's A Race ...
Can the Mariners a) score again or b) get three outs before Cleveland scores twice?
In the eighth, Randy Messenger loaded the bases and Jose Lopez threw away a routine double play ball allowing a run.
Miguel Batista got all three outs, but the Indians crept close.
To the ninth:
Mariners 6, Indians 4 ...

The Closer ...
That would be Mr. Corcoran against the top of the Cleveland lineup.
Grady Sizemore walked on four pitches.
Jamey Carroll walked on the next four pitches.
Victor Martinez struck out.
Jhonny Peralta walked on six pitches to load the bases.
Ryan Garko grounded into a double play.
Nothin to it.
It's a Final:
Mariners 6, Indians 4 ...

The kids are coming, and when the Major League rosters expand on Monday, Mariners minor leaguers will be coming two at a time.

Although a handful of Tacoma players are expected to join Seattle during the next 7-10 days, only two will join the Mariners in Texas tomorrow – left-handed pitcher Justin Thomas and second baseman Luis Valbuena.

For Thomas, 24, and Valbuena, 22, this will be their first trip to the big leagues.

In the days that follow, the Mariners expect to call up catcher Rob Johnson and pitchers Brandon Morrow, Mark Lowe and Jarred Wells.

Thomas and Lowe will work out of the bullpen. Morrow will slide into the starting rotation against the New York Yankees in Seattle next week and Johnson – who’ll become the fourth catcher on the roster – will probably get a few spot starts behind the plate.

Valbuena will pinch run and occasionally play in the field.

If Only We Can Get To Tug ...
Ichiro singled to open the game but never got to second base and the inning ended quickly.
Today's lineup includes Raul Ibanez batting cleanup, Bryan LaHair at first, Jeff Clement catching and Tug Hullett (.182) as the DH.
On this team, there are so many options - not all of them good ones.
No score, Washburn pitching ...

The Kid Can Play ...
You love him, you hate him, he drives you crazy - but Yuniesky Betancourt can play the game.
With Kelly Shoppach at first base and two out, Andy Marte doubled off the wall in left center field.
Jeremy Reed made a strong throw to shortstop - and Betancourt made a perfect relay to the plate and Clement.
The result? Shoppach was out at the plate and the inning ended.
No score, Anthony Reyes pitching ...

They Got To Tug ...
DH Hullett put Seattle on the board with the first home run of his big-league career - a bolt over the wall in right field.
Manager Jim Riggleman likes his swing, his aggression within the strike zone. No, he's not a traditional DH, but the Mariners haven't had one of those all year.
Mariners 1, Indians 0 ...

It's Pitching & Defense ...
The Jarrod Washburn teams wanted at the deadline is back, and he just struck out the side in the fourth inning.
Washburn is using his fastball-changeup attack and is freezing Cleveland hitters with good location on both.
Can the Mariners win a 1-0 game? The last time they did was May 28 against Boston - when Erik Bedard and J.J. Putz shut the Red Sox down.
Mariners 1, Indians 0 ...

And Now, A Decision ...
Mr. Washburn has pitched a shutout through six innings, retired 12 of the last 13 Indians to bat.
He's also thrown 97 pitches, about the number he usually throws. So, does he stay in? Does he want to stay in?
Washburn is pitching so efficiently he's likely to work at least one more inning. It would save the bullpen and get the game three outs closer to Putz.
Now, if Seattle can score, it would make such decisions a tad easier.
Mariners 1, Indians 0 ...

It's Up To The Bullpen - And Batista
Miguel Batista in with two outs and a man on in the seventh inning.
Washburn gave up a hard-hit ball that Jose Lopez turned into an out with a fine diving catch, and Washburn walked Shoppach.
Riggleman went to the bullpen and Batisa, fresh off a good start last week at Safeco Field.
The Mariners needed seven outs from the bullpen after Washburn got the first 20.
Batista threw one pitch, shattered a bat, and got the first of those outs to end the seventh.
Mariners 1, Indians 0 ...

Ichiro At Work ...
Ichiro doubled to the right field corner, his third hit of the game and 178th of the season.
The Mariners immediately had Jeremy Reed bunt Ichiro to third, and Reed got the bunt down - not always a given with Seattle batters.
The Indians brought their infield in, knowing what an insurance run could mean.
Beltre flied out to right field, Ichiro trotted home and the Mariners doubled their lead.
Mariners 2, Indians 0 ...

The Big Horse ...
J.J. Putz time.
Ryan Garko spread his stance a little wider than normal and singled into right field - bringing the tying run to the plate.
Shin-Soo Choo, the former Mariner prospect, homered on a 3-1 pitch and the game was tied.
That's blown save No. 8 for Putz.
Mariners 2, Indians 2 ...

Bonus Panels ...
Tie game, extra innings, another no-decision for Washburn, who has won only five times this season.
Seattle's record in extra innings this year is 4-7.
Putz was throwing hard - 95 mph consistently - but he put one of those fastballs in the wrong spot against Choo, and the Korean outfielder hit his eighth homer of the year.
Mariners 2, Indians 2 ...

Does This Sound Familiar? ...
Ichiro walked and was forced by Reed at second base, but Adrian Beltre singled Reed to third with one out.
That brought up Raul Ibanez - and of course, Ibanez singled home the run. That's RBI No. 93 for Ibanez - his 30th RBI of August.
Who gets the chance to try and close the game? Putz has thrown one inning already, Sean Green has warmed up.
It's Green, and thanks to a two-out RBI single by reserve catcher Jamie Burke, he'll have a two-run cushion.
Mariners 4, Indians 2 ...

And The Win Goes To ...
Green has never had a big-league save, and allowed a leadoff double to Grady Sizemore.
Franklin Gutiererz grounded out. Ben Francisco lined a ball into center field, and Reed made a marvelous diving catch.
With two outs, Jhonny Peralta singled Sizemore home - and the Indians brought up pinch-hitter Victor Martinez.
Jim Riggleman pulled Green and went to newcomer Randy Messenger.
Messenger got a ground ball out on a 96 mph fastball and earned the save.
Putz got the win, his sixth.
Mariners 4, Indians 3 ...

Erik Bedard will throw a baseball again today, but it’s almost certain the left-hander won’t make another start for the Mariners this season – and that troubles both the man and the team.

No, in this lost season the Mariners aren’t trying to get another win from their opening day starter. What they needed, and Bedard was working toward, was a game against live hitters where everyone could see that he was healthy heading into the off-season.

The chances of getting that are nil, now.

Playing catch with a variety of intensities and distances, Bedard had made progress, then suffered a setback – pain in his left shoulder, which landed him on the disabled list early in July.

Now he’s throwing again, but hasn’t been on a mound in close to two months.

The Mariners are hoping to send Bedard to their Instructional League camp in Arizona to watch him pitch. Bedard isn’t wild about that idea, saying if he isn’t ready to pitch by end of the season, it might be best to just let him go home and rest the shoulder for a few months.

That’s understandable. He’s been trying to rehab the shoulder since early July, and isn’t much closer to pithing today than he was a month ago.

For the Mariners, however, seeing a healthy Bedard would help them in determining what the team must do this off-season. If he’s healthy, Bedard is the team’s No. 2 starter behind Felix Hernandez.

If he’s not, that’s one more major issue that Seattle’s general manager – whoever that may be – will have to deal with.

Bedard is doing whatever is asked of him, but neither he nor the team know whether the shoulder will hold up to game-situation pitching. It’s still possible, in fact, that the man acquired from Baltimore last off-season may need surgery.

Neither Bedard nor the team want that, so they continue to try and build arm and shoulder strength gradually. Today, Bedard will throw again.

No one is certain when he’ll pitch next.

It's Coming, It's Coming, It's Here ...
Twenty minutes before game time, with not a drop of rain in sight, Cleveland's grounds crew threw a tarp on the field and announced a rain delay.
And just when they said it would hit - about 7 p.m. (EDT) - the skies opened and rain pounded the field.
If you're wondering, they say the rain shall pass and the lads shall play.
When? The grounds crew says 8 p.m. (EDT).

That's Just Mean ...
Fans here tonight are getting a bobble head of former Mariners infield prospect Asdrubal Cabrera - now an Indians infielder.
Cabrera was traded to Cleveland in 2006 for Eduardo Perez, who's now retired.
What's tomorrow's giveaway - a Shin-Soo Chin bobble head?

Forty Is The New 80 ...
John McLaren said he wanted Ichiro to steal 80 bases this season, but that's not going to happen.
After he singled to lead off the game, Ichiro took second on a ground ball, then stole third - his 40th steal of the season. It's his third career 40-or-more steal season.
Raul Ibanez singled Ichiro home, picking up his 90th RBI.
Felix has a lead before he throws a pitch.
Mariners 1, Indians 0 ...

Bless Thy Sinker ...
Through two innings, Mr. Hernandez has allowed three singles and a walk, and needed ground ball doubler plays to end each threat.
The bad news? He's fallen behind hitters and given up those hits and the wal, signs he's not particularly sharp yet.
The good news is Felix's sinker is getting him out of trouble. It's a pitch that's working tonight, and if the others kick in he might cruise.
If they don't, he made need a double play per inning all night.
Mariners 1, Indians 0 ...

How Many U's In Rauuuuul? ...
It only SEEMS like Raul Ibanez drives in all the runs Seattle scores these days.
In thre thirdc inning, after a Yuniesky Betancourt single, Ibanez hit his club-leading 22nd home run - his seventh this month.
That gave the Mariners a 3-0 lead, and Hernandez immediately allowed a single and a double to the first two Indians to bat in the bottom half of the inning.
He may find himself tonight, but he hasn't yet.
Mariners 3, Indians 1 ...

It Just Looks Easy ...
There hasn't been an easy inning or a pitch without stress tonight for Hernandez, who has been in constant trouble yet still has the lead.
Four innings, 63 pitches. His fastball has topped out at 98 mph, and he's struck out four Indians.
He's also gotten a break - Choo was caught trying to steal third base with one out.
Mariners 3, Indians 2 ...

No Complete Game - Again ...
Felix got through the sixth inning, getting the 18th out of the night with his 114th pitch.
That's likely going to be it for the evening.
What the Mariners and other teams have found is that effectiveness tends to depart for pitchers at a certain point, and whether it's 100 pitches or 115, managers see no reason to prove it by watching good starts blow up in the later innings.
As of now, Hernandez leads the team in starts (26), innings (168), strike outs (154) and wins - eight and holding.
Look to the Seattle bullpen to protect a one-run lead the last three innings.
Yes, you have every right to be nervous. You can wager that Felix is.
Mariners 3, Indians 2 ...

To The Ninth ...
Roy Corcoran, he of ordinary talent and extraordinary heart, just put the Indians down two innings in a row.
The eighth ended with men at first and third and - warming in the Seattle bullpen, Randy Messenger.
If THAT didn't have Felix nervous, he was in a coma.
Can the Mariners win a second 3-2 victory in the span of three games?
Can J.J. Putz close? Will Messenger?
Tune in, folks. It's always something.
Mariners 3, Indians 2 ....

J.J. Time ...
One run lead, three outs needed, and the Mariners go to Mr. Putz - who's looking for his 10th save.
Forty saves last year, nine so far in '08? Humbling times for most Mariners, including J.J., who's lost so much time this season to injury.
Putz struck out Kelly Shoppach.
Outfielder Ben Francisco pinch-hit and struck out.
Grady Sizemore - he of the 31 home runs - grounded out.
It's Final:
Mariners 3, Indians 2.

My fine Mariners' fans and readers, I offer up some form of apologies for the lack of posting on the blog here, particularly in my part. With the season winding down, and my transition to my offseason work, I got a little sidetracked. But I also need to be a little more vigilant about at least getting some links to you and offering some analysis or just posting anything.

Anyway, after finishing up some WSU stuff, I snuck over the Rainiers game last night and watched the last seven innings. It was a mildly entertaining game. Matt Tuiasosopo had a big game, hitting a three-run homer and also a monster double off the centerfield wall at Cheney. Here' s Grant Clark's game story from today's paper. GM Lee Pelekoudas along with Minor league director Greg Hunter and Mariners Assistant Director of International Operations Hide Sueyoshi were there watching.

I made a quick stop in the clubhouse after the game. Had to check in with my fellow Montana native Rob Johnson, who also had a big two-run single, last night. I asked him if he thought he would get called up in September. He admitted to not being certain.

That got me thinking, who are the Mariners going to call up? Obviously, Brandon Morrow and Mark Lowe will get call ups. That's a given. But who else? Any player on the 40-man roster is eligible. Perhaps reliever Jared Wells, who was already up this season. Johnson? He got a call-up last season.

"Lee [Pelekoudas] and I have talked about it, and we have a pretty good idea. We're not ready to talk about who they are yet, because we want to let the players know before that," manager Jim Riggleman said the other day.

"But it's safe to say, as all clubs do, we'll add a couple arms just to make sure that that throughout September, guys like Green and Corcoran aren't getting overused."

I'm still waiting for an updated 40-man roster from the Ms to make any more guesses. But the last roster I looked at, players like Michael Saunders, Victor Diaz or Greg Halman.

One of the reasons there isn't too much speculation is that most of the players that would have been September call-ups have already been called up.

Anyway, let's get to some more links ...
Here's Larry's off-day story on Jose Castro and his path to his current job as Ms hitting coach.

Our intern Stephen Chen left us, but not empty handed with this feature on infielder Luis Valbuena.

Here's something to make you nauseous. ESPN's Keith Law sent and scouted a Chris Tillman game and offered this report.

I found this part interesting...

Orioles pitching prospect Chris Tillman started last night for AA Bowie at Reading and easily outpitched his somewhat more highly-paid opponent, Adam Eaton. (Carl Pavano made a rehab start at Reading earlier in the week, which made me wonder, if Pavano faced Eaton would it be the most expensive Eastern League game ever player?).

Tillman started out throwing 87-88 mph, but then gradually increased his velo to the low 90s, topping out at 93. The right-hander has good life with tailing action on his fastball, and sinks it at 87-88. At 92-93, it flattens out but still has the same tailing action. His best pitch is his curveball, a very sharp breaking ball with some two-plane break and great depth. It moves quickly with tight rotation and looks a lot harder than its 74-77 mph velocity. He throws a changeup with good tumbling action, but he doesn't use it often or show much feel for it yet.

Aside from a hook at the start of his delivery, he's pretty clean overall, staying over the rubber well and then driving forward with a long stride, taking advantage of his long legs. He gets good downhill plane on almost everything he throws and keeps his head steady through the delivery.

Where Tillman fell short of absolute top-prospect status was in his command. He looks the part, with his clean delivery, but he doesn't locate his fastball welll, not even to a general part of the zone. He misses bats because his curveball is just toxic and because his fastball gets in on hitters quickly, but he needs to be more precise with the latter pitch to succeed in the big leagues.

MARINERS51 mentioned it for DAVE8557, but here it is the two part series from the SF Chronicle on the lost art of the complete game. Enjoy.

Part one : titled "DOWN FOR THE COUNT
Sadly, the art of the complete game has been lost: and Part Two: Let them learn to pitch and finish.

SI's Jon Heyman writes "Why the Yankees are done"

Really, I love it that they are done. And yes, if you know me a little, I was enjoying the fact that A-Rod was getting booed mercilessly at Yankee Stadium.

Also Mill Creek's Travis Snider has been called up by the Blue Jays.

That was because Matt Stairs was traded to the Phillies.

FOXsports Ken Rosenthal writes about the massive general manager turnover this offseason.

Some of you might not be following the drama with Pirates first-round draft pick Pedro Alvarez. But it's just another example of Scott Boras being the harbinger of evil and the man who will single-handedly destroy baseball some day.

Here's Gene Collier's column about the situation.

Finally a moment of silence, or is it a moment of celebration for .... JAY MARIOTTI.

Nice Mullet

He resigned as a columnist from the Chicago Sun Times saying that the Internet is the wave of the future. If we can only get him to retire from Around the Horn, or life in the media in general. The world would be a better place.

Mariotti, who was known never to venture into a clubhouse, had a particularly interesting feud with the White Sox. The players were ecstatic to hear of his resignation. Besides having a long standing feud with Ozzie Guillen, Mariotti also had some interesting and revolving opinions on the White Sox, check out this guy, who kept track.

His own editor wasn't exactly sad to see him go. Former co-workers didn't have much good to say. Roger Ebert offered this. Definitely a thumbs down for Jay. And longtime rival, but coworker, Rick Telander also didn't have much good to say.

There's an air show scheduled here this weekend, and planes and jets are making loud practice runs over the city.

Just like in the early '90s, when the Mariners and Indians squared off in the old stadium beneath another air show.

About the second inning, Randy Johnson was on the mound - all 6-foot-10 of him - when a jet streaked overhead.

The Big Unit ducked.

He lost that day, and every time a jet roared by, the same thing happened - Johnson would duck.

Afterward, he joked that the Indians had timed it so jets only went by when he was on the mound.

Those were the early years with Randy, when he was not quite as oood but far more personable than he would be later in his career.

Let's get to it ...

Top of 1st
1-2-3 inning for Ryan Feierabend. It's nice not having Mauer in there. And no, I don't care how Feierabend pronounces his name.

Bottom of 1st
Yuni showing some good patience from the No. 2 spot, getting a base hit on the first pitch. but nothing comes of it as third baseman Brendan Harris makes a nice diving stop on Beltre's hard ground ball and gets up and throws him out at third. Maybe it's a baseball karma for all the hits Beltre has taken away with his outstanding defensive play.

Top of Second
Feierabend gets in a little trouble giving up a soft single to Justin Morneau and then walking Randy Ruiz. Miguel Cairo tries to get him out of it, trying to turn a 3-6-3 double play, but Jason Kubel barely beats the throw, much to Cairo's disbelief. With Morneau advancing to third, Delmon Young hit a deep fly to center to score the run. Brendan Harris doubled to left to give the Twins runners at on second and third with two outs, but Feierabend got Nick Punto to pop up to third to end the inning. Twins 1, Mariners 0.

Bottom of second
Mariners go quietly, nice pop up to the pitcher by Johjima.

Top of third
Casilla with a single but Feierbend gets a nice play from Cairo at third on a hard ground ball from Morneau.

Bottom of third
Ichiro picks up his 173rd hit of the season and later scores as Yuni works the count to 2-2 (small victories) then rips a ball to the left-center gap that was just out of reach for Delmon Young. Ichiro score easily .... tie game 1-1.

Top of four
Feierabend finally kept flirting with trouble and finally got burned. A pair of singles and a two-out walk loaded the bases for Denard Span. Feierbend was ahead of Span 1-2 and threw a change-up and Span stayed back long enough and golfed it into right-center for a ground rule double to score a pair of runs. Twins lead 3-1.

Bottom of Four
The Twins two-run lead was short-lived. Beltre leads off with an infield hit and then Jose Lopez hits the first pitch he sees down the left field line and the ball stayed fair and just cleared the 331 foot sign for a two-run homer.

Top of five
Feierabend seems rejuvenated with tie game and gets a 1-2-3 inning.

Bottom of five
It's like I never left. The Mainrers get the first two runners on, and Yuni of all people successfully lays down a sac bunt. But of course, they don't score. Raul hits a rocket to first that Morneau catches and Beltre pops up to right to end the inning.

Top of Six...
pretty uneventful

Bottom of Six
A pair of two-out walks give the Ms some hope, but Cairo grounds out to second. Hey, you play Cairo you get defense, just not much offense.

Top of Seven
Feierabend works out of a jam, picking off Nick Punto and then surviving a Span single to get out. It's 3-3 and Feierabend probably won't figure in the decision unless the Mariners socre here.

Bottom of Seven
Raul is such a good teammate he makes sure that Feierbend is on line for the win, blasting an 0-1 pitch to right for his 21st homer of the season, giving the M's a 4-3 lead.

Feierabend finished with 7 innings pitched, allowing three runs on eight hits with two walks and four strikeouts. He threw 114 pitches and 76 were strikes.

Top of Eight
Well, Feierabend was in line for the win for all of a half of an inning as Sean Green came i and gave up a double, a single and another double. Cesar Jimenez came in to try and clean up the mess and that didn't work as pinch hitter Brian Buscher singled to right to score two runs. It's now 6-4 Twins.

Bottom of Eight
It's now a one-run game after back-to-back doubles from Johjima and Clement. It might have been tied but pinch runner Tug Hulett was thrown out at home by Denard Span, trying to score on Miguel Cairo's single to right. Twins 6, Mariners 5, we head to the ninth.

Here's the lineups ...

TWINS (74-58)
2 Denard Span CF
25 Alexi Casilla 2B
55 Mike Redmond C
33 Justin Morneau 1B
56 Randy Ruiz DH
16 Jason Kubel RF
21 Delmon Young LF
23 Brendan Harris 3B
8 Nick Punto SS
-----------
15 Glen Perkins P

MARINERS (50-82)
51 Ichiro RF
5 Betancourt SS
28 Ibanez LF
29 Beltre 3B
4 Lopez 2B
50 Balentien CF
2 Johjima C
9 Clement DH
13 Cairo 1B
---------------
31 Feierabend P

What's up strangers? That's right I'm back for the final game of the homestand. Sorry for the absence, but I've been busy with WSU and Pac-10 football this week.

Let's get to it really quickly ...

Pretty quiet pregame session with Jim Riggleman. Not much to report about. He talked about the dangers of maple bats, a little more about replay, Yuni batting second again today, and that's about it. Nothing earth shattering. He didn't endorse a presidential candidate or anything like that.

He did address the reason why JJ Putz come in for the save last night. Earlier in the day, Putz admitted to being a little sore, so he wasn't going to take any chances.

"If we were in the playoff race, he'd have been in there," Riggleman said.

He also talked about Brandon Morrow's tough outing yesterday in Tacoma, saying that he talked with Rainiers pitching coach Dwight Bernard, who said Morrow just had a bad game, which is going to happen.

"Everybody is going to have days like that," Riggleman said.

Morrow gave up six runs on five hits in 4 2/3 innings, here's Grant Clark's story from yesterday's doubleheader.

Rotation changes
Riggleman shifted around the rotation somewhat for this weekend's series in Cleveland ... most importantly he is waiting to start Carlos Silva. He had said that Silva was going to start on Sunday the 31st, but that would have required making a roster move. Instead, he'll wait till after Sept. 1 when they call up any player on the 40-man roster to pitch Silva. So Silva will probably start on Sept. 1 at Texas.

Here's this weekend's probable starters
Friday -- RH Felix Hernandez (8-8, 3.28 ERA) vs. LH Jeremey Sowers (2-6, 5.95 ERA)
Saturday -- LF Jarrod Washburn (5-14, 4.93 ERA) vs. RH Anthony Reyes (2-1, 2.22 ERA)
Sunday -- LF Ryan Rowland-Smith (3-2, 3.73 ERA) vs. LH Zach Jackson (0-0, 4.91 ERA)

NO TV on SATURDAY
Saturday's game against Cleveland will not be televised. FOX originally picked up the game and scheduled it for 12:55 p.m. But for obvious reasons, FOX has dropped the game and chosen to televise a different game. But since the game time is in the FOX blackout window, it cannot be televised. Cleveland could have changed the time after FOX dropped it, but chose not to, keeping it the same. SO if you want to follow the game you'll have to listen to it on KOMO 1000-AM.

Yes, he does ...
Ryan Rowland-Smith is making the sixth start of his big-league career, and he's 0-1 with a 4.78 ERA in the rotation.
That's misleading. He's had a couple of tough starts and two fine starts, including his last, when he pitched seven innings and allowed one run - and lost.
He's also the only player in Major League history with a hypenated last name.
Now you know ...

Old Friends? Not ...
Minnesota starter Scott Baker has seen quite enough of Jeff Clement.
The first time they saw one another 10 days ago, Clement went 3-for-4 with two RBI. Tonight, Clement came up with men on second and third base and no one out - and rifled a two-run single up the middle.
Clement now has 22 RBI this season. Four against Baker.
Mariners 2, Twins 0 ...

OK, You Manage ...
Adrian Beltre and Raul Ibanez lead off he fourth with singles. Do you have Jose Lopez bunt them over?
If you do, a) you're asking Lopez to do something he doesn't do well and b) if he does it, the Twins probably walk Clement.
So instead, Jim Riggleman has Lopez hit away - and he lines out.
Clement strikes out. Yuniesky Betancourt beats out an infield single to load the bases.
Bryan LaHair fouls out.
Mariners 2, Twins 0 ...

It Started With A Bunt ...
Old-school ball. Alex Casilla bunts for a hit, Rowland-Smith picks it up and throws it down the right field line. A single sends Casilla to third, but Rowland-Smith gets a double play ball from Justin Morneau and only one run scores.
Relieved? Not quite. Randy Ruiz follows with his first career home run, and the game is tied.
Mariners 2, Twins 2 ...

Not Enough ...
Mariners got consecutives from Beltre (double), Ibanez and Lopez for one run with no one out, then couldn't push home another run as Clement flied out and Betancourt grounded into a double play.
That's two point-blank opportunities squandered in a one-run game. It's the kind of thing that costs you a game.
Meanwhile, Rowland-Smith's 1-2-3 seventh is likely his last inning.
Mariners 3, Twins 2 ...

It's Up To The Bullpen ...
Rowland-Smith gave the Mariners seven strong innings and 107 pitches, and despite what Dave will argue, that's enough from a young reliever-turned-starter.
Roy Corcoran is pitching the eighth and, if he holds, J.J. Putz will get the ninth.
How have the Mariners done in games when they score three runs or less?
They 7-52.
Mariners 3, Twins 2 ...

No J.J. ...
Putz pitched in each of the last two games and won't get in this one. Corcoran, who has 78 career minor league saves - but none in the majors - is asked to end it.
Ruiz flied out. Delmon Young struck out.
Pinch-hitter Jason Kubel, who has crushed Mariners pitching this year, singled.
Nick Punto flied out.
Corcoran got the save, Rowland-Smith the win.
Mariners 3, Twins 2 ...

The Mariners are about to have their annual team photo taken at the edge of the Safeco Field infield, and not all of them will be smiling inside.

Some, obviously, won't be back next year - players like Raul Ibanez, Willie Bloomquist, Jamie Burke, Miguel Cairo and R.A. Dickey will be free agents.

Not all will return. Not all will want to.

Then there are those who didn't make it through the season to get in the photo, players like Brad Wilkerson, Richie Sexson, Arthur Rhodes, Jose Vidro.

Who is most likely to go from here depends almost wholly on who the new general manager is, whether it's Lee Pelekoudas or someone who hasn't even been contacted yet.

Whoever the GM is, he'll decide the fate of manager Jim Riggleman and the full Seattle staff.

Similarly, any GM is going to look to improve in center field, first base and the rotation.

Those who would like to leave but have no choice include Miguel Batista, Erik Bedard and Jarrod Washburn.

Those who might be offered in trade this off-season? Since it's unlikely you can move players fighting injuries or ineffectiveness, the Mariners might offer Adrian Beltre, Yuniesky Betancourt and any number of young relievers if they can improve by doing so.

One thing is certain. If you love the players on this team, you'd better have a photographic memory.

Quite a few won't be around next spring.

Who would you most like to see gone?

Yes, Miguel Batista is back in the starting rotation, at least for tonight, and no one who knows is saying why - and those who don't know can't figure it out.
It could be a showcase for the Twins or somone else, but that seems unlikley. Batista has not pitched well consistently in any role this season.
It may simply be a case of why not Batista?
R.A. Dickey didn't seize a spot in the rotation when he had the opportunity, Brandon Morrow isn't quite ready for his big-league starting debut, Carlos Silva is still down.
Batista's last start was Aug. 4 - against the Twins. He lasted three innings, allowed six runs and got no decision.

That Was Easy ...
Eight pitches, three outs, see you later - that was Batista's first inning.
Now all the Mariners have to do is score on Francisco Liriano.
No problemo...

Ichiro Marches On ...
Ichiro's first-inning single was his 172nd hit of the season, with 31 games remaining.
Another 200-hit season - his eighth in a row - seems within reach.
Ichiro stole second (No. 39), took third on a fly ball and was stranded.
And Batista?
He's thrown 20 pitches (10 balls, 10 strikes) and has put down six of seven batters.
No score ...

Hey, He Got Excited ...
Batista continues to pitch well, and after retiring Carlos Gomez on a comebacker, he ran off the field.
Oops. It was the second out.
Back on the mound, Batista walked a man, gave up a stolen base and an RBI single to Alexi Casilla.
Twins 1, Mariners 0 ...

It's A One-Run Rout ...
Batista got help in the fourth - Ichiro threw a runner out at home, but Mr. Liriano hasn't needed any. He's mowing the Mariners down.
Lots of game left, but Batista looks mortal. Liriano? Not so much.
Batista's also on a pitch count - yes, Dave, that's for you - and may not get more than six innings in.
Twins 1, Mariners 0 ...

Luck Never Hurts ...
Mariners caught a break. After catcher Jamie Burke singles, a two-base error gets him to third and Miguel Cairo singles him home for the tie.
Cairo is stranded, as Ichiro, Betancourt and Ibanez go down in order.
To the sixth.
Mariners 1, Twins 1 ...

All Hail Miguel ...
Give him credit, Batisa pitched well for six innings, but after 95 pitches is probably done. Against a team in the pennant race, he gave up only one run.
If he had his way, this would be his last game in a Seattle, but he may have waited too long to make a good impression.
Now pitching for Seattle, Sean Green.
Mariners 1, Twins 1 ...

Today's pitchers ...
Eerie how similar the lines were on Liriano and Batista: Each threw 95 pitches, went six innings, allowed five hits, one run and struck out three.
Batista walked three, Liriano one.
Now it belongs go the bullpens, which means newcomer Eddie Guardado may get the chance to face Seattle again.
With Texas, he was vintage Eddie: 88 mph fastball on the outside corner, at the knees. Try to pull that pitch, it's an easy ground ball. The Mariners - and most other teams - still try to pull it.
Mariners 1, Twins 1 ...

Advantage, Twins ...
Against Green, Twins put together a rally that includes a pair of two-out singles, and they take the lead.
Minnesota's hitters rarely try to do more than they're capable of, and it shows. When singles will do the job, they hit singles.
Patience at the plate, along with an idea of what's needed, make them a dangerous team year after year.
Now pitching, Mr. Guardado.
Twins 2, Mariners 1 ...

Not So Fast ...
Adrian Beltre doubles, Jose Lopez gets aboard on an E-6 and Jeff Clement grounded into a ninth inning double play - as the tying run scored.
The Mariners aren't going quietly.
Maybe they won't go at all.
Mariners 2, Twins 2 ...

Goodbye, baseball ...
Adrian Beltre's sixth career walk off home run ends the game in the 11th inning, coming with Raul Ibanez aboard.
That's 49 wins.
Mariners 4, Twins 2 ...

Mark Lowe was optioned to Triple A Tacoma today and replaced on the roster by reliever Randy Messneger. One of the main reasons is that Lowe will be unavailable for the next few days after taking a line drive off the foot from Frank Thomas. The Mariners needed an arm in the bullpen. Still, Lowe has been a little off as of late.

This month he has allowed 14 earned runs on 20 hits in his last nine games (8.2 IP) to raise his ERA from 4.08 on July 30 to 5.73.

Messenger is a veteran reliever with plenty of big league experience. He was picked up midseason by the Rainiers.

Here's the official release from the Ms.

SEATTLE, Wash. - Seattle Mariners Vice President & General Manager of Baseball Operations Lee Pelekoudas announced today that the Mariners have optioned right-handed pitcher Mark Lowe to AAA Tacoma. To take his spot on the Major League, 25-man roster, the club has selected the contract of right-handed pitcher Randy Messenger from Tacoma.

Messenger will wear #26 and will be in uniform for tonight's 7:10 p.m. game vs. the Minnesota Twins.

Messenger, 27, was 6-0 with 1 save and a 2.38 ERA (6 ER, 22.2 IP) in 12 relief appearances for the Tacoma Rainiers. He signed with Seattle as a minor league free agent on July 10 after being released by San Francisco on July 9. He went 3-4 with 3 saves and a 4.83 ERA (22 ER, 41.0 IP) in 29 appearances for AAA Fresno prior to being released.

The right-hander combined to go 2-4, 4.20 (30 ER, 64.1 IP) in a career-high 60 appearances split between the Florida Marlins and San Francisco Giants in 2007. He was acquired by San Francisco on May 31 in exchange for RHP Armando Benitez.

In parts of three Major League seasons with the Marlins and Giants, Messenger has combined to go 4-11, 5.01 (90 ER, 161.2 IP) with 1 save.

Lowe, 25, made 50 appearances in relief for Seattle this season. He compiled a 1-4 mark with 1 save and a 5.73 ERA, striking out 46 in 55.0 innings pitched. Lowe did not allow a run in 32 of his 50 appearances this season, and worked 2.0 or more innings 10 times. Lowe recorded his only win this season April 29 at Cleveland, and collected his first Major League save April 11 vs. Los Angeles (AL). He has struggled this month, allowing 14 earned runs on 20 hits in his last nine games (8.2 IP) to raise his ERA from 4.08 on July 30 to 5.73 today. Lowe's previous career-high for appearances was 39 in 2006, split between A, AA and the Majors. He spent most of the 2007 season on the disabled list after undergoing elbow surgery on Oct. 6, 2006.

When the Mariners lock up with the Minnesota Twins the next three games, they're almost certain to run into an old friend - Eddie Guardado.

The left-handed reliever who once closed for the Mariners was acquired from the Texas Rangers today for the Twins stretch run.

It cost the Twins 21-year-old right-hander Mark Hamburger, a Class A closer.

For those with short memories, J.J. Putz credits Guardado for teaching him how to handle the role of closer - and for refining Putz's propensity for the practical joke.

Putz showed Guardado how well he'd learned by a) taking his job, through no fault of his own and b) sneaking into Guardado's hotel room, stealing his underwear and hanging it from doorknobs up and down the hallway of the Four Seasons.

Welcome back to a pennant race, Eddie. Watch you boxers.

A year ago, Felix Hernandez won his 10th in the teams 131st game, and Miguel Batista already had 13 wins.
Felix will look for a team-leading No. 8 today, and tomorrow Batista - 4-12 - will make his 20th start.
Why?
One theory is the Twins have interest in Batista, having seen him pitch in Minnesota last week. Perhaps a deal could be made before post-season rosters are set Sept. 1.
Another theory is that, until Brandon Morrow arrives, there's not much to choose from between Batista and knuckle ball specialist R.A. Dickey.
Meanwhile, Jack Hannahan homers off Hernandez in the first inning.
Athletics 1, Mariners 0

Give 'Em Six Good Ones ...
When the Mariners get a 'quality' start - six innings and three earned runs or less - they have a .600 winning percentage.
They've had 55 of those starts this season, an gone 33-22 in them.
Felix has 14 of those, and the team is 10-4 in them.
He's pitching well today, but through two innings the Mariners haven't yet reached base.
If you spot Seattle's offense, please call Jim Riggleman.
Athletics 1, Mariners 0 ...

Felix vs. Jack Hannahan ...
Coming into the game, Hannahan had six at-bats aginst Mr. Hernandez and three hits.
Today, in two at-bats, Hannahan has homered twice - once off the right-field foul pole.
Don't be surprised if Mr. Hannahan doesn't have to move his feet during his next at-bat. He seems entirely too comfortable in the box against Felix.
Athletics 2, Mariners 0 ...

One Hit Equals How Many Runs ...
In this case, the answer is 'two.' After a pair of walks to Kenji Johjima and Bryan LaHair, Miguel Cairo picked up Seattle's first hit today - a two-run triple.
Ichiro then singled him home.
As of July 31, Ichiro was batting .197 with runners in scoring position. In August, however, Ichiro is hitting .470 with RISP.
Mariners 3, Athletics 2 ...

Short In The Bullpen ...
Reliever Mark Lowe is out for 3-4 days, minimum, after being hit in the left foot by a Frank Thomas line drive Saturday.
"I think I saw the ball a few feet away, but maybe not," Lowe said.
He's on crutches today with a bad bruise but not break.
That leaves the Mariners with a choice of setup men without much experience: Sean Green, Roy Corcoran and lefty Cesar Jimenez.
Felix may not want to come out of this one.
Through four:
Mariners 3, Athletics 2 ...

Play Deeper ...
Oakland has four hits against Hernandez and three of them are home runs. After Rob Bowen tied the game at 3-3, the Mariners turned to the long ball.
Johjima hit his fifth of the season into the Athletics bullpen. It's one of the reasons Joh is starting again today. Jeff Clement has a bruised knee and can't catch, but rather than start Jamie Burke, the Mariners are giving Johjima the chance to hit again.
Burke will likely start Monday.
Into the sixth:
Mariners 4, Athletics 3 ...

On Pitch Counts ...
"Ligaments and veins and arteries haven't changed in the last 20 years," Jim Riggleman said before the game. "I'm not quite sure why we've gone to pitch counts."
The answer: team trainers have more input, and to save arms, they univesally believe in limiting the number of pitches thrown.
So Felix, for intance, is just over 100 pitches through six innings.
He's trying to talk his way into working the seventh, but even if he does, he'll be on a short leash.
Like it or not, baseball has gone conservative with most Major League starters.
This will make the decision easier: Jose Lopez hits a three-run home run in the bottom of the seventh.
Mariners 7, Athletics 3 ...

On To The 8th ...
Corcoran on to pitch.
Raul Ibanez has slumped this home stand, going 1-for-12, but he remains one of the more clutch hitters on the team.
With two out and a man on third in the seventh inning, Ibanez singled home his 88th RBI.
He may be 2-for-13 at the moment, but he's still the man Seattle wants up when it needs a run.
Mariners 8, Athletics 4 ...

And The 9th ...
Corcoran pitching, gives up a leadoff single. Coach Mel Stottlemyre trots to the mound to chat - and give J.J. Putz a few moments more time to warm up.
Two outs later, Corcoran is still pitching and clearly wants to finish and pick up his first career save.
After 78 minor league saves, the 5-foot-10 right hander comes within one out, walks a man and is lifted for Putz.
Three pitches later, game over. Putz gets his ninth save.
Final:
Mariners 8, Athletics 4. ...

OK, I'm back from Pullman, but Doug Pacey has the game tonight and Larry will be up tomorrow.

Here's some notes from him ...

Seattle Mariners reliever Sean Green was given a break at the beginning of August.

One of the American League leaders in appearances, the Mariners wanted to let right-hander rest his arm. Green didn’t pitch for five days.

Turns out, the well-earned time off was the wrong decision.

“With all the right intentions, we sat him longer than we should have,” Seattle manager Jim Riggleman said. “And it just seems that from that point on he hasn’t been as sharp.”

Since Green has returned from his five-day break, he has seen his earned run average climb nearly a full point to 3.64 from 2.88.

On Friday, Green, who leads the American League with 61 appearances, had one of his worst outings this season.

With a 4-1 lead, he replaced starter Ryan Feierabend at the start of the sixth inning. Green hit the first two Oakland batters, then sandwiched two singles around a fielders’ choice before being pulled. By the time the inning ended, the Athletics had taken a 5-4 lead and all four runs were charged to Green (3-3).

Riggleman said that Green’s unconventional delivery means that every so often he will “throw behind someone” but he can “come right back and throw quality strikes.”

“I think he’s getting closer,” Riggleman said, “but last night was just a bad night.”

Green (3-3) has thrown 64.3 innings this season. Riggleman said he expects Green to be able to make 80 appearances and throw 100 innings a season.

“I think Sean is a guy who can approach that,” he said.

Bloomquist update

Nearly two weeks after being put on the 15-day disabled list because of a strained right hamstring, Willie Bloomquist said he will not return unless he is confident his leg is fully healed.

“It has to be 100 percent,” he said. “Without question.”

Bloomquist, who is in the final year of his contract with the Mariners, said he plans to return before the end of the season.

Beltre DHing
Riggleman said that Adrian Beltre will DH tonight because of a sore shoulder a result of a diving for a ball. Here's the lineup...

Ichiro RF
Betancourt SS
Beltre DH
Ibanez LF
Lopez 2B
Balentien CF
Johjima C
LaHair 1B
Cairo 3B

P Washburn

Greetings Mariners fans from Pullman, WA. Actually right now I'm in Lewiston, ID, but I spent the day in Pullman covering WSU football in preparation for what I'll do when the Mariners season mercifully comes to an end. Larry, who was on the road the last week and a half, has the day off. So that leaves intrepid young intern Stephen Chen, to cover the game. Since young Stephen doesn't quite have this whole blog thing figured out. I figured I'd post a few things he told me. And then do a game thoughts by watching the game on TV ... just like you guys....

Quickly a few things from Stephen ...

Carlos Silva threw today and feels better, he could be about two weeks away. Erik Bedard didn't throw today, but did feel improved.

A quick question: Do you think Silva's girth somehow inhibits his success? He's a big man. I saw him destroy some quadzilla burgers from In and Out this spring And he was big in Minnesota, but maybe that hinders him somewhat? I will say this, the guy does run and I seeing working out all the time. So maybe he's just a guy that won't be skinny.

What's strange is that Bedard is the opposite. He's probably one of the fitter pitchers on staff. He's built pretty well and is easily in better shape than Yuni or Lopez.

Anyways I'll stop rambling ...

GAME THOUGHTS START HERE:

Top of First
Nice start for Ryan Rowland-Smith. The big thing with him is being able to spot his fastball in the lower half of the strikezone. Since it rarely goes above 91 miles per hour, he can't leave it up in the strike zone, or it will get crushed. But when he can throw it low in the zone, get some strikes early it makes his breaking stuff and change-up that much more effective.

Bottom of First
Raul strikes out with an ugly swing to end the inning, but think about what the Mariners record would be without him, since he's accounted for 25 percent of the Mariners runs this season. Remember last season when everyone thought he was done as a hitter. But this year's he's healthy and hitting. He still lacks a few things defensively, but then again so does the Mariners shortstop, second baseman, catcher and one of their centerfielders.

Top of second
Big Hurt strikes out looking. Remember when everyone was clamoring to sign him after he was released. See sometimes total apathy isn't a bad thing. Or is it?

Rowland-Smith gets in a little jam, a possible double play comes up short, but I respect Rowland-Smith's hustle. But the Big Aussie gets out of the inning with a strikeout on Carlos Gonzalez.

Bottom of the second
I fixed it SharkHawk. I'm a little rusty.

I'm listening to Dave Niehaus explaining the new instant replay rules for home runs and my eyes just went crossed, can you imagine how confused he is by this whole scenario.

The inning ends with Kenji Johjima hitting into a double play on a soft ground ball to third. Shocking. I'm just stunned. He never does that.

Top of third
Rowland-Smith shakes off a walk, coaxing a double play to end the inning.

Bottom of third
Ichiro gets hit No. 169 of the season. But nothing really comes of it.

Top of four
Jack Cust strikes out as much as Richie (if he was still playing), but the difference is that Cust occasionally will hit a home run.

Bottom of four
Raise your hand if you are bored. It's almost as boring as being in Lewiston, ID on a Thursday night. Nice read by Wlad on the pick-off. To be fair, I think Smith might have balked-- even though no umpire will ever call it.

I skipped the fifth because, well, nothing happened.

Top of Sixth
Rowland-Smith finally gets tagged for a homer by Emil Brown. Leaving a changeup up and in is never a good thing.

Frank Thomas just gets tossed with an 0-1 count. The ump has a sweet mustache. Here's some real insight from Blowers, "Frank, must have said the magic word." I'm no lip reader but it looked like about 12 magic words.

For Sharkhawk: It looks like mostly WSU football and hoops with some Hawks sprinkled in. But I did cover a Huskies practice (if you call it that since you can't go watch practice) yesterday and wrote a story on former minor league baseball player turned walk-on Tripper Johnson.

Nice dig by Cairo to end the inning.

Bottom of sixth
Ichiro gets on with a lead-off double and fails to score. Shocking. I'm stunned.

Top of Seven
Nice job by Rowland-Smith to get out of a minor jam. Not a bad start for him, granted the A's are far from a juggernaut. But still after watching the craptastic starts last week this is great. But even after allowing one run after six, there's no guarantee he'll be able to get a win.

Top of Eight
Green comes in for Rowland-Smith who allowed just the one run on just four hits with six strikeouts. Nice effort by the Mariners offense to get him a lead for a chance for the win. The again Greg Smith is in Cy Young contention with his 5-14 record coming in.

Bottom of Eight
Mariners will be seeing Brad Ziegler in the eighth. Ziegler has given up like one run the whole season.

The sidearmer allows a couple of runners and then makes Beltre look bad.

Seattle strands their sixth and seventh runners of the game.... Mojo's Risin'

Top of Nine
Jeremy Reed makes his first appearance at first base since college and he makes an error that eventually leads to a run. Mariners down 2-0. Might as well be 20.

Bottom of Nine
Lopez showing his wheels and Jack Hannahan showing off the scattergun feature on his throwing arm. A hit and a walk loads the bases for Betancourt who unloads them with a double play. That pitch wasn't a strike it wasn't close. It's just typical. That was three hours of my life I'm not getting back.

Fight, fight, fight ...
Mariners have been swept nine times this season and are trying to avoid another today.
Last-minute lineup change for White Sox - Jim Thome scratched, and Ken Griffey Jr. now batting fourth.
And we're off ...

Ichiro Leads Off ...
With a ground ball single, his 164th hit of the season. Every year about this time, Ichiro says, his stomach begins to hurt as he worries about getting 200 hits.
After today, the Mariners have 36 games remaining and - as of this moment - Ichiro needs 36 more hits.
Jeremy Reed followed Ichiro with a single, but a double play grounder and a strikeout left Ichiro at third base.
Here Come The Sox ...

Advantage, Chicago ...
Sox open up with a single and double, then an R.A. Dickey knuckler gets by Jeff Clement for a passed ball and a run.
Junior shoots a single into right field for another run an the Sox just keep building their lead - getting a three-run home run from Alexi Ramirez.
After one inning:
White Sox 6, Mariners 0 ...

Junior Marches On ...
Griffey hit a two-run home run, the 609th of his career. That ties Sammy Sosa for fifth on baseball's all-time list.
White Sox 8, Mariners 0 ...

Chicago Marches On ...
Dickey is gone after two innings and 53 pitches, giving up eight runs.
The Sox didn't seem to notice he'd left - they've pushed home two more runs against Jake Woods.
Seattle, meanwhile, got an RBI single from Raul Ibanez, who now has 22 RBI in 17 August games. If he doesn't drive them in, it seems the Mariners don't score.
With all that production, the Mariners have won five times this month.
Whie Sox 10, Mariners 1 ...

Ibanez Marches On ...
Raul's two-run home run is his 20th of the season, gives him 87 RBI this year. On the current Seattle roster, hitters have a combined 32 homers against Chicago.
Ibanez has hit 16 of those.
White Sox 10, Mariners 3 ...

Who's That Lefty ...
The Mariners are being buried, and have been out-scored in three games here, 33-8.
Now, the Sox are adding to the Mariners woes - they've brought in Horacio Ramirez in relief.
Yes, THAT Horacio Ramirez.
White Sox 15, Mariners 3 ...

Limping Home ...
Not the finest six games ever played on the road, and the Mariners went 1-7 against the Angels, Twins and White Sox.
Now they come home to face Oakland in a four-game series, with lefties Ryan Rowland-Smith,
Ryan Feierabend and Jarrod Washburn starting the first three games and Felix Hernandez the last one.
Can Seattle (46-80) gain ground on Oakland (57-69)?
Meanwhile, it's final.
White Sox 15, Mariners 3 ...

After playing first-place teams like " the Angels, Twins and White Sox and Rays over the last few weeks, someone asked manager Jim Riggleman if he worried the Seattle Mariners might have a let down when they face Oakland Thursday.

"We shouldn't, they're the team ahead of us, and they're a long way ahead of us," Riggleman said.

"I haven't seen anyone on this team quit."

Clearly, this isn't the Mariners team that opened the season - five players in the lineup today began the year in the minors.
Jeremy Reed, Jeff Clement, Wladimir Balentien, Bryan LaHair and R.A. Dickey were in Tacoma opening day, but they're part of a youth movement that includes Tug Hullett, Cesar Jimenez, Roy Cocoran, Ryan Feierabend and Jake Woods.

"I've been with teams where you knew you didn't have a chance," Riggleman said. "That's tough for players to keep it going. Here, though, we do have a chance every day.

"Guys are playing for more than pride. There are guys here playing for jobs, for careers, to establish themselves as major leaguers.

"I reminded them all, giving up is unacceptable."

Down Memory Lane ...
Back in the American League, back in center field, Ken Griffey Jr. is batting seventh tonight for Chicago.
He and Felix Hernandez have never faced one another, so it will be interesting to see - scouts say Junior has trouble catching up to a good fastball. Felix throws one.
Should be fun to watch ...

And Round One Goes To ...
Runners on first and third base, no one out, no score. Junior vs. Felix.
Griffey lines out deep to right field, where Ichiro catches it but has no play.
RBI, Junior.
White Sox 1, Mariners 0 ...

Trouble In Center ...
Wladimir Balentien is a better corner outfielder than a center fielder, and he looks uncomfortable at times in center.
In the third inning, he misplayed a line drive by A.J. Pierzynski and it was charitably ruled a double.
That set up an inning in which the Sox scored two runs, then got to the next Junior vs. Felix showdown.
This time, with two on and one out, Junior grounded into a 4-6-3 double play.
White Sox 3, Mariners 0 ...

Man On Third, One Out ...
You know the litany by now. Adrian Beltre doubles, moves to third on a ground ball. With the chance to cut Chicago's lead, Balentien strikes out. Kenji Johjima pops out.
Beltre stays at third.
The Sox come up and Nick Swisher hits a 3-2 pitch out.
White Sox 4, Mariners 0 ...

Run, Lads, Run ...
Even when the Mariners get hits with runners in scoring position, it doesn't always lead to a run.
Twice tonight, they've singled with men on second base - and neither scored.
Miguel Cairo singled in the first inning with Ichiro on second, but he was held at third base. And in the sixth, Jose Lopez singled after a Raul Ibanez double - and Ibanez was held at third.
Both stayed at third base.
Now pitching for Seattle: Mark Lowe.
White Sox 5, Mariners 0 ...

It's Over ...
Another night, another loss - the Mariners are 1-9 in their last 10 games.
They've now been shutout five times.
White Sox 5, Mariners 0 ...

Go Ahead - Try Not To Smile ...
Ken Griffey Jr. is one of those people who makes your cheeks hurt - you can't help but smile when he's talking, laughing and having fun.
Before the game tonight, he was hugging half of the Seattle traveling crew, from players to broadcasters, from coaches to writers.
Back in a pennant race with the White Sox, he's playing some center field, doing some DHing. Tonight, he's on the bench against left-hander Jarrod Washburn.
The sense of joy he gets from baseball - and the joy he spreads being part of it - is infectious.
Now, Buehrle vs. Washburn ...

Advantage: Washburn ...
No, he hasn't taken the mound yet, but Washburn has an early lead.
Slumping Jose Lopez, in an 0-for-18 slide, singled home two runs with two outs, then stole second and scored on Wladimir Balentien's double.
Buehrle has thrown 30 pitches and gotten two outs.
Mariners 3, White Sox 0 ...

It's The Little Things ...
Jeff Clement doubles. Yuniesky Betancourt bunts him to third - no, that's not a typo. And then, with one out and a man on third, the Mariners waste the opportunity.
Ichiro and Miguel Cairo each strike out, and that runner on third is left there.
Mariners 3, White Sox 0 ...

It's The Little Things, Part II ...
Jermaine Dye doubles. Jim Thome gets him to third base and Paul Konerko's infield single scores him.
That's how you manufacture runs.
Then Nick Swisher hammers a home run and it's a tie game.
Mariners 3, White Sox 3 ...

Getting A Little From A Lot ...
The first three Mariners who came to the plate in the fifth inning singled - Ichiro, Cairo and Ibanez, who picked up his 84th RBI.
No outs, runners at firest and third and...
And nothing. Beltre struck out. Lopez lined out. Balentien walked to load the bases.
Johjima popped out.
One run likely won't be enough.
Mariners 4, White Sox 3 ...

It Wasn't Enough ...
Waste chances to score and look what happens. Washburn walked the No. 9 hitter and leadoff hitter Orlando Cabrera homers.
White Sox 5, Mariners 4 ...

By A Long Shot ...
The carnage continues, and Washburn gave way to Batista and the White Sox are having their way with the Mariners.
A one-run lead that should have been more is now a five-run deficit.
Advantage: Buehrle.
White Sox 9, Mariners 4 ...

About That Rotation ...
Felix Hernandez starts Tuesday night, and the Sox know all about him.
What their hitters wondered about today was the Wednesday starter - knuckle ball specialist R.A. Dickey.
Even for big-league hitters, there's a fear of the unknown, and Dickey and his pitch are wild cards. No one likes facing a knuckler, a pitch that can make hitters and catchers look foolish.
White Sox 9, Mariners 5 ...

It's A Game For Kids ...
Ryan Feierabend is making his first start for the Mariners this season, but he should feel right at home.
On the 25-man roster today, Seattle has 11 who played in Tacoma this year.
Why wait for September to call up the kids? Well, more are coming - including Brandon Morrow, who's with the Rainiers now.
Clearly, the future has begun for the Mariners.

Um, Can You Mix In An Out? ...
Feierabend threw nine pitches and loaded the bases with no one out, listened to pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre - who visited the mound - and then allowed an RBI single to Justin Morneau.
Probably not the start he imagined.
Feierabend got one out, then gave up a two-run double to Jason Kubel.
As R.A. Dickey began throwing in the bullpen, the Twins got another two-run double.
Still just one out.
Twins 5, Mariners 0 ...

And Then, There's The Seattle Offense ...
Raul Ibanez doubled with two out in the first inning, Kenji Johjima doubled with two outs in the second and in the third the Mariners went down 1-2-3.
The Ibanez double was his 37th of the year, one behind his single-season career high.
Both Seattle base runners have been stranded at second base.
Twins 5, Mariners 0 ...

Ichiro Pitches In ...
Another inning, another Twins run and R.A. Dickey looks like he'll start the fourth inning.
Feierabend was helped by Ichiro in the third, when the right fielder ended a Minnesota rally by throwing Adam Everett out at second base.
Twins 6, Mariners 0 ...

Knuckling Down ...
Dickey, who is supposed to start Wednesday in Chicago, is pitching - and Johjima is trying his best to catch him.
In the fifth inning, however, a passed ball moved a runner up and two wild pitches allowed two more runs.
Should they have been caught? Both were knuckle balls and Joh had no idea where they were going.
Twins 8, Mariners 0 ...

Chicks Dig The Long Ball ...
After Raul Ibanez singled with one out - his third hit of the day - Adrian Beltre hit a home run so deep that left fielder Delmon Young didn' even glance back at it.
One out later, rookie Wladimir Balentien homered to straightaway center field.
Johjima then hit one out down the left field line.
No. 20 for Beltre, No. 7 for Balentien, No. 4 for Johjima.
To the bottom of the sixth:
Twins 8, Mariners 4 ...

Oh, That Raul ...
Finally coming to the plate with men on base, Ibanez doubled home a run with his fourth hit of the game.
That's 20 RBI in the month of August, along with eight doubles, a triple and four home runs.
Ibanez now has a new single-season career high: 38 doubles.
Twins 10, Mariners 6 ...

Those Fightin' M's ...
That's what a Minneapolis columnist called this team in the paper today, and they're living up to the billing.
Bryan LaHair picked up an RBI, and Ichiro dropped a bunt single that the Twins threw away for an error and another run.
Now Ibanez is 5-for-5 today, and the Twins are bringing closer Joe Nathan into the game in the eighth.
Games like this, much as you marvel at the comeback, you wonder 'what if' this pitcher or that had just held the game in check.
They didn't, and it looks like eight runs is not going to be enough today.
Twins 10, Mariners 8 ...

Unbelievable ...
J.J. Putz gives up a run, but the Mariners STILL get the potential tying run to the plate.
With one out in the ninth, Balentien doubled and Johjima walked. LaHair lined out to center field.
Jeff Clement pinch-hit for Yuniesky Betancourt - who had two hits and a walk in the game.
Clement singled to load the bases and bring Ichiro to the plate.
Ichiro grounded out on the first pitch.
Final:
Twins 11, Mariners 8 ...

Ken Griffey Jr. is waiting in Chicago for the Seattle Mariners, and when he plays against them this week, it could be for the last time.

The Mariners passed on acquiring Junior early this year, thinking their future wouldn't be served by bring back a 38-year-old future Hall of Famer in his last years.

Or months.

When the White Sox traded for Junior 12 games ago, they knew they weren't getting the Griffey of the '90s.

As a member of the White Sox, he's batted .241 without a home run and with three RBI. He has DHed as often as he's played center field.

Is this Junior's last season? That decision will be his - someone will offer him a contract for next season, but not for what he's been used to making.

Does a man with more than 600 career home runs, with more than 1,750 RBI want to play a diminished role for another team?

Much depends upon the next five weeks.
If Griffey can help the Sox win their division by helping them win even a few more games than they might have without him, that will factor in.

And should the team get to the post-season - and Junior rises to the challenge and has an impact - that might bring him back.
On the other hand, win or lose this year, Junior may want to go out while most fans remember his best seasons.

He was, in his prime, as good as any player in the game and might well have been the best of his era.
Junior was also unique - a man whose joy on the field spread into the stands, throughout a clubhouse.

Whether he plays beyond 2008 may depend upon whether he still feels that joy.

Ryan Feierabend has been called up from Tacoma to start today's game - and Carlos Silva has gone on the 15-day DL.

Silva, 1-14 since mid-April, told the Mariners he had a tender right elbow after losing Friday night.

"If the season was different, he could have pitched through it," manager Jim Riggleman said. "But we have the luxury of giving him some time, trying to get him ready for later in the season."

Feierabend, a 22-year-old lefty, had gone 7-1 in Tacoma and earned he start before Silva's revelation

Was it a face-saving move for Silva, who didn't want to come out of the rotation and pitch in the bullpen?

You have to give him the benefit of the doubt. If a player says he's hurt, there's no reason to doubt him - and Silva has made every start through a dreadful summer.

That summer may now be over for him.

Sign That Animal ...
In pre-game festivities, the Twins had a softball-hitting home run contest, and one of the contestants was former Mariner and former Twin Jeff Cirillo.
Hitting from just behind second base, Cirillo hit two home runs in seven swings. Then the Twins mascot - a bear named 'T.C.' for the Twin Cities - stepped up and hit four out.
One of the bear's shots was massive, hitting high off a Kent Hrbek banner hanging in the upper deck.
The Mariners now want to put Jarrod Washburn back on waivers and, if the Twins claim him again, ask for the bear.
Just kidding ...

What, You Thought It Would Be Easy? ...
Sean Green came into the eighth inning to protect a lead and was gone eight pitches - and two strikes - later.
He walked tghe leadoff hitter, gave up a sacrifice bunt and was gone. With Cesar Jimenez pitching, a Carlos Gomez single tied the game.
To the ninth:
Mariners 6, Twins 6 ...

Run, Ichiro, Run ...
Ichiro Suzuki singled to open the game, then stayed put to give the next two left-handed hitters in the lineup a bigger hole on the right side of the Twins infield.
With the Twins holding Ichiro, Jeremy Reed struck out and Raul Ibanez flied out.
That brought up the right-handed hitting Adrian Beltre - and Ichiro stole second base.
It was his 38th steal of the year, but just the fourth since the All-Star game.
Beltre walked, Jose Lopez popped out.
Mariners didn't score. ...

How To Lose Close Games ...
With two outs, one on and one run in, Delmon Young popped up in foul territory and first baseman Bryan LaHair couldn't make the play.
Young then singled. So did Randy Ruiz - and the Twins pushed home a second run with two outs.
Twins 2, Mariners 0 ...

The Loveable Lunk ...
Richie Sexson was released by the New York Yankees, and - just as he did in Seattle - he left without dropping by the clubhouse one last time.
Batting .250 with six RBI - four coming on one swing last week - Sexson didn't make many friends during his stay.
What's next fot Sexson? Probably an invitation to come to spring training as a non-roster player for one team or another.
His days as a productive regular seem behind him. His playing days may be, too. ...

Let's Turn Two ...
The Mariners are making their outs two at time now, hurrying this game right along.
In the second, fourth and fifth innings, they've grounded into double plays against Scott Baker.
Rookie Wladimir Balentien grounded into two of those, and Ichiro grounded into a third to end the Mariners fifth.
Twins 5, Mariners 0 ...

Take This Shutout & Shove It ...
Baker took a shutout into the sixth, but Seattle chased him. Jeremy Reed doubled, Raul Ibanez walked and Adrian Beltre doubled home one run.
Jose Lopez popped out for the third time, but Jeff Clement's second single pushed home two more runs and that was it for Baker.
Yuniesky Betancourt's two-out double - on the first pitch he saw after Bryan LaHair walked - scored Clement.
So Ichiro came up with runners at second and third base ... and Ichiro singled both home and the Mariners have a lead for the first time since they got off the plane here.
Mariners 6, Twins 5 ...

Sunday's Starting Pitcher ...
Taking the spot R.A. Dickey had taken from Erik Bedard, lefty Ryan Feierabend will make his first big-league start of the season.
He's earned it.
With the Rainiers this season, Feierabend has gone 7-1 with a 2.04 ERA in 13 starts. Sidelined by a tender elbow, he went on the DL, but has made five starts since coming off - and gone 3-0 with a 1.81 ERA.
He's 22, and in late-season callups the past two seasons has gone 1-7 with a 6.92 ERA and had control problems.
He's been a strike-throwing machine in AAA this year.
Let the kid pitch. ...

Bottom Of The Ninth ...
Tie game, with Sean Green and then Cesar Jimerez combining to give up the tying run in the eighth.
Now comes the ninth, and Jimenez makes two good pitches that turn into opposite field singles for Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau. Neither hit hard, both perfectly placed.
So, first and second, no one out and Miguel Batista on the mound.
Around the Sound, fans are screaming at their television sets.
A bunt moves the runners up.
Does anyone in the hemisphere believe Batista can get out of this? Certainly not Twins fans.
Riggleman brings Ichiro in to play a fifth infielder and orders Mike Lamb intentionally walked to load the bases.
Fly ball, left field, run scores.
Twins 7, Mariners 6 - Final ...

Two batters have Carlos Silva was introduced to a nice Metrodome crowd, he was behind, 1-0. Back-to-back doubles.
The sinker didn't sink to either Denarc Span or Nick Punto, and the first out Silva got was a running catch at the wall in left field by Raul Ibanez.
A Twin throughout his career until this season, Silva remains popular here.
If he keeps getting hammered, the crowd will love him even more.
Twins 2, Mariners 0 ...

The Mariners offense hasn't yet realized the off-day is over. Against Francisco Liriano, they've gone nine up, nine down.
The lineup includes Miguel Cairo (.240), Adrian Beltre (.250), Wladimir Balentien (.214), Kenji Johjima (.216) and Jeff Clement (.209).
So far, Liriano doesn't seem overwhelmed.
Twins 2, Mariners 0 ...

Walks and errors lead to runs, and the Mariners have given up enough that way this season to be dubbed leaders in the field.
This time, however, it was the Twins.
With two outs, Liriano walked two and, along with a Miguel Cairo hit, the bases were full.
Jose Lopez then grounded to third, where Brian Buscher had the ball clank off his wrist.
Two runs in, neither earned. The Mariners have one hit.
Mariners 2, Twins 2 ...

Any time you wonder why the Mariners record is what it is (46-74), they show you.
Immediately after seeing the game tied, Silva walked the first batter he faced, then gave up a home run.
After that? Three consecutive singles for another run - all with no outs.
Silva looks beaten.
Twins 5, Mariners 2 ...

The night is over for Silva, and he all but made sure it was over for all the Mariners.
The final line: he got 10 outs, allowed nine runs.
It may be time for the Mariners to pull the plug on Silva's season. He's lost 14 games and his focus. He's a Mariner lost at sea, and the kindest thing would be to let him finish the year as the bullpen long man trying to find something there.
Yes, he'll be back in '09 - and a starting pitcher, no doubt.
But Silva and this season are lost causes now. The team would be better served looking at someone else each fifth day.
Twins 9, Mariners 2 ...

The night is over for Jim Riggleman, too.
On a pop fly to right field, Ichiro Suzuki made the catch and, in taking the ball out of his glove with his right hand, dropped it. Umpire Mark Wegner said it was a dropped ball and ruled the batter safe.
Replays showed the catch had been made and the ball dropped in the exchange from glove to throwing hand.
Riggleman went out and argued, and for the first time since he was named manager in June, he was ejected.
At this point, there are probably a lot of guys in the Seattle dugout who wouldn't mind being tossed, too.
Twins 9, Mariners 2 ...

The night is over for Beltre and Jose Lopez, too.
With the game a blowout and the lads playing on Astro turf, the Mariners decided simply to get their legs off the field. Let Cairo, Tug Hullet and Bryan LaHair play on the stuff.
Ugly game ...

The night is now over, period. Silva sat on a couch for 30 minutes after the game, unapproachable.
Then he showered, walked to his locker and declined to speak to the assembled media.
Oh, good. ...

Waiver periods drive fans insane, and can take writers right along with them if they're not cautious.

Over the last few days, there's been a lot of speculation - some of it reported as fact - that the Seattle Mariners turned down this offer or that one from the Minnesota Twins in exchange for Jarrod Washburn.

It happens every August, when teams put players on waivers and the press, the internet and talk radio begin guessing.

Last year, for instance, it was widely reported the Mariners had put Richie Sexson on wavers - true - but had pulled him back when other teams claimed him.

Wrong. No one made a waiver claim on Sexson last year.

This week, lots of Mariners were on waivers, and more than a few were claimed. Washburn was, indeed, claimed by the Twins.

And Minnesota offered Seattle pitcher Boof Bonser ....

Or not.

People from both teams, a bit stunned by the internet stories, insist Bonser's name never came up.

One name did - the Twins initially mentioned trading pitcher Nick Blackburn if the Mariners were willing to eat some of Washburn's salary next season.

Before the Mariners responded, the Twins withdrew that offer.

Did the Mariners demand too much? They asked for a player back, yes. They were willing to eat some of Washburn's salary, yes.

General manager Lee Pelekoudas, however, has stayed true to what he said before the trading deadline: The Mariners would not make a move unless it improved the team, now or down the line.

No salary dumps.

Why not move Washburn for nothing and use his salary next season - over $10 million - on someone else?

Because, the team believes, there's no guarantee Washburn's money would bring them closer to winning than keeping Washburn as a No. 4 or No. 5 starter next year.

If the Mariners cannot get a piece of the puzzle for Washburn, they think they're better off keeping him.

That means Washburn almost certainly will finish he season as a Mariner.

The Mariners will be granting him his unconditional release. After designating him for assignment on August 5th, the Mariners had 10 days to decide what to do with him.

After designating a player for assignment, the club must make one of the following contractual moves:

* Place the player on waivers (which can only be done within the first 7 days of the 10-day period)
* Trade the player
* Release the player

After nothing happened on the first two fronts, it looks like the last option was left.

Here's the official release

MARINERS RELEASE DESIGNATED HITTER JOSE VIDRO

Vidro was Designated for Assignment on August 5.

SEATTLE, Wash. -- Seattle Mariners Vice President & General Manager of Baseball Operations Lee Pelekoudas announced today that the Mariners have placed designated hitter Jose Vidro on irrevocable waivers for the purpose of granting him his unconditional release. Vidro had been designated for assignment on August 5 when Wladimir Balentien was recalled from AAA Tacoma.

Vidro, 33 (turns 34 Aug. 27), batted .234 (72x308) with 11 doubles, 7 home runs and 45 RBI in 85 games with Seattle this season. Acquired prior to the 2007 season from Washington, Vidro combined to hit .285 (244x856) with 13 home runs and 104 RBI in 232 games as a Mariner.

Greetings blog readers ...

I'm sure you noticed by checking the paper today or the blog last night that Larry wasn't in Los Angeles. As I wrote earlier, he was under the weather pretty and wasn't able to make it to LA, and since I was in mid-air heading out here to the disgustingly humid mid-west, we had to go with a stringer for the coverage.

Larry will be in Minnesota for Friday's game, but Heather Gripp, who covered last night's game for us, will cover tonight's game as well. A big thanks to her for doing so.

HERE'S SOME BREAKING NEWS ...
According to Ken Rosenthal of Fox sports, both Raul and Washburn have been claimed on waivers.

Here's a rundown of how the waivers system works that I quickly pulled from the net ...

1. A team may "ask for waivers" on a player by sending notification of that fact to the MLB offices.
2. The MLB offices publish to all teams the information that the player has been put on waivers. A claim is published for 3 days. If no team makes a waiver claim, the player "passes (or clears) waivers" and may be traded to any team.
3. If more than one team puts in a waiver claim for the player, priority of waiver claims is determined as follows: teams in the same league as the team asking waivers, in order from worst record (as of the claim date) to best, then teams in the other league, in the same order). The highest priority claim stands, others are dismissed.
4. The team which asked for waivers may now
* pull the player back from waivers, which ends the process,
* trade the player to the claiming team (they may not negotiate with any other team), or
* allow the claiming team to take the player for the standard waiver fee of $50,000.
5. If they negotiate a trade with the claiming team, any player(s) being sent in return must either clear waivers or be delivered to the team after the end of the regular season.
6. A "10-and-5" man may veto a trade or a waiver claim transaction; if he does, he stays with the team which waived him.

If a team pulls a player back from waivers, they can ask for waivers on him again that season, but the second time the waivers are "irrevocable". The only difference is that, in step 4 above, they do not have the option of pulling a player back from irrevocable waivers.

Here's her story from last night's game ... and here's the notebook that talks about Jose Lopez's benching, which manager Jim Riggleman finally admitted to.

I didn't get to see Yuni's error last night. So I won't comment about it, but remember, I advocated for him to be sent to Triple A on KJR a few weeks ago because of how much he regressed as a player and I will say that his effort in getting better has been minimal. But more on this later.

* Here's the game story from the LA Times. The picture in the story is quite amusing.

* The Rainiers returned home and snapped a three-game losing skid, even getting a few runs off of the Dodgers' hard-throwing prospect James McDonald.

* Michael Saunders hit a homer in Canada's trouncing of China in the Olympics.

* The US didn't fare quite as well, getting upset by South Korea.

* Here's a little longer story on the Mariners' Cup that's taking place at Safeco.

* Tim Lincecum got hit in the knee with a line drive last night. Pretty scary stuff, but it appears he didn't break anything. It's just a bone bruise. It still looked like it hurt though.

* For those people hoping that Brian Cashman might be the Ms GM next year, it appears the Yankees may have some interest in keeping him, according to SI's Jon Heyman.

* Yahoo's Jeff Passan list his 25 success stories from this season. Strangely, nothing about Richie Sexson, Jose Vidro or Kenji Johjima is on there.

* SI's Tom Verducci writes about the impact of instant replay.

Greetings from muggy Minnesota! I know what you're thinking: "Aren't the Mariners in LA?" Yes, I just never had much of a sense of direction. And also I'm out here to play some fastpitch softball at the national tourney (something I cleared with the bosses before I switched over to the Mariners).

Larry was supposed to travel to LA yesterday, but he got hit by a case of the flu. There's nothing worse than the flu in the summer. He's not going to cover the games against the Angels – we've got a stringer lined up for that – so the blog won't have the usual game updates. Hopefully, that should return with Larry in Minnesota.

Even though I'm on vacation, I'll still try and post some stuff on here. I might even try and take in a few games on the weekend when the Twins are out here (if my team isn't playing).

Anyway, there's been a lot of debate in the Mariners' blogosphere lately surrounding Carlos Silva's comments, Jim Riggleman's comments and the perceived efforts of some of the players. It's something I contemplated a lot on the flight out here. And I have a few thoughts on it, that I'll post later.

If you're in the Minneapolis area, I highly recommend you check out one of the Joe Senser's sports bars. Good food, plenty of TVs and good atmosphere.

Anyway let's get to some links ...

I wanted to post this yesterday, but didn't get a chance to. Anyway, we had our second installment in our series on team blueprints the Mariners can follow. It was on the Tampa Bay Rays. Here's what the cover looked like.

Here's my story that ran with it. At the bottom is a chart of how each player on their 25-man roster was acquired along with the keys to their success.

The Rays clubhouse was a pretty enthusiastic place, but that happens when you're in first place. But we're going to find out a lot about the makeup of that clubhouse with the injuries to Carl Crawford and most recently Evan Longoria, who went on the DL yesterday.

Columnist John Romano believes that Longoria is impossible to replace.

Because of the injuries, Buster Olney thinks that the Rays will try and put a waivers claim on Raul Ibanez, but that the Red Sox will block that move by making a claim of their own.

Boston is in position to place waiver claims and block players from the Rays, as they did with Brian Giles. As colleague Peter Gammons reports, Raul Ibanez was placed on waivers over the weekend, and presumably, the Red Sox will place a claim on the Mariners' outfielder, rather than let him slide to the Rays.

From today's paper ...

Here's my story on Ryan Rowland-Smith, who's transition to a starter is an in-season audition for next season.

The voice of the Rainiers, Mike Curto, covered Brandon Morrow's second start with the Rainiers. The surface numbers weren't fantastic - Morrow (0-1) threw 51 pitches, but he lasted just 22/3 innings. He gave up five hits and three runs while walking two - but as this post from the Lookout Landing points out, those numbers aren't that important.

* There was some talk about the White Sox potentially picking up Jarrod Washburn with the recent injury to Jose Contreras. However, GM Ken Williams had so such ideas.

Elsewhere ....
* Adam Dunn was traded to the D-backs in some older news.

* Lou Piniella isn't happy with Kosuke Fukudome's recent performances. You know what that means, produce or else.

* Former Mariner Greg Dobbs set a pinch hitting record with the Phillies.

* Jamie Moyer plowed over an umpire running the bases. I'm not sure how that's possible since Moyer weighs about a buck-fifty.

* A knuckleballer replaces a knuckleballer in Boston.

First of all let's get to the Jose Lopez situation.

Manager Jim Riggleman wouldn't come out and say what everybody already knew - he benched Lopez for yet another mental mistake in the field.

"I don’t think I really want to address that right now,” Riggleman said. “I appreciate the question. You take a regular out of the ball game it the middle of the game it’s going to raise questions.”

Um really it doesn't. We all pretty much understood, even if Lopez had hit a homer in his previous at-bat, some times enough is enough. Riggleman did say he would discuss the situation in the future.

“I haven’t talked to Jose yet, so after I talk to him I’ll find the right words to explain to you guys, but I want to get those words to him first,” Riggleman said.

Well that wasn't entirely true, I was told Riggleman spoke with Lopez briefly before doing his postgame press conference, which probably is a reason we heard this from Lopez.

“I can’t say nothing right now,” he said. “I don’t know why, but I can’t say nothing right now.”

Lopez did say he had "no idea" why he was pulled out of the game, which is ludicrous. It was a build up, starting with a failure to cover second on a ground ball with a runner on on Friday, last night's attempt to flip the ball out of his glove on a double play, today's failure to catch a routine throw down from second.

Lopez may not remember, but managers do.

As for R.A. Dickey, he thought his knuckleball was good, but he said he was behind in the count too much to use it effectively.

“I had a good knuckleball, but I just wasn’t able to get ahead of hitters today,” Dickey said. “Two three-run homers to the eight and nine hitters tells the story.”

Yes, yes it does.

But the Mariners as a whole didn't play particularly well. I mentioned earlier some bad at-bats as well. Riggleman pretty much summed it up.

“Today we took a step backward,” Riggleman said. “We played a real bad ballgame. I don’t know how else I can say it. It’s not in-line with how we played lately.”

I also have a Willie Bloomquist update
He was in the clubhouse after the game on crutches and talked with us briefly.

He said it felt like "somebody shot him the back of the leg."

As to when it happpened?

“I’m not sure if it was the last step before I hit the bag or the one after,” Bloomquist said. “It was kind of between there. It all happened real fast.”

When told of Riggleman's comment about him being not back for the rest of the season, Bloomquist wasn't surprised.

“My goal is to be ready before the end of year, but I’m not going to be stupid about it,” he said. “I understand that my legs are my game. I need to make sure it’s healthy if and when I go back out there.”

Probably the most frustrating thing for him is knowing that the chance to play with regularity is gone.

“You have no idea,” he said. “This game has a way of humbling you one way or another. The thing with injury is that it’s out of your control. But I was getting a chance to play a little bit and it was looking like I would have played a lot down the stretch, so it’s frustrating.”

From the Mariners post game notes ...

RAYS NOTES:
• The Rays pick up a game on both the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees who both lost today and now have a 4.5 game lead in the AL East division. Also, their 71st win today sets the franchise high win total for a season.
• The Rays hit three or more home runs in a game for the 10th time this season. In those games the Rays are 8-2.
• Shawn Riggans hit his 5th career home run, two of which have come against the Mariners. Riggans homered off of Erik Bedard on 4/8/08 for his first career home run.
• Cliff Floyd went 3x4 with a BB and continued to hit well against the Mariners. In his career, Floyd has batted .349 (15x43) with a double, 4 home runs, 7 RBI and 8 runs scored against Seattle. This was also Floyd’s first 3-hit game of the season, with the last coming 6/14/07 vs. SEA while a member of the Chicago Cubs.
• Willy Aybar clubbed his 5th and 6th home runs of the season, which is moves him past his career high of 4 in 2006 while with Los Angeles (NL) and Atlanta. This was the first multi-home run game of his career.
• B.J. Upton stole his 36th base of the season keeping pace for second in the AL with Ichiro Suzuki. Upton and Ichiro are two behind Boston’s Jacoby Ellsbury who also stole a base today for his 38th on the season.
• Carlos Pena hit his 2nd triple of the season and logged his 37th extra base hit of the season.
• Rocco Baldelli returned from the DL and made his first appearance since 5/15/07 against Texas. Baldelli also drove in his first runs since 5/3/07 vs. MIN when he hit a 2 run home run.

MARINERS NOTES:
• R.A. Dickey has allowed 8 runs twice in his last four starts after allowing 8 runs on 8 hits today. He also allowed 8 runs on 10 hits on 7/26 vs. BOS when he also allowed two home runs. Dickey tied a season high with 6 strikeouts
• Jeremy Reed has hit safely in 11 of his last 12 games during which he is batting .386 (17x44) with 4 2B and 8 RBI. Reed also stole his first base of the season. On the current homestand Reed is batting .407 (13x32) with 3 doubles, 5 RBI, a triple and 6 runs scored in 9 games.
• Seattle pitchers allowed 3 homers today; have now allowed 3+ HR’s 7 times this year. Seattle is 0-7 in those games.
• Ichiro extended hitting streak to 16 games, batting .403 (27x67) with 11 runs, 3 triples, 9 RBI, 5 walks during streak.
• Jose Lopez batted .385 (15x39) on the homestand with 3 doubles, two home runs and five RBI’s.
• Jose Lopez hit his 10th home run of the season and has now reached double-digit home run totals in three consecutive years (10 in 2006, 11 in 2007, 10 in 2008). Lopez is now tied for second in home runs by American League second basemen with Mark Ellis, Dustin Pedroia and Alexei Ramirez, who are all behind Ian Kinsler’s 14. Despite driving in one run today he fell behind Kinsler for RBI by an AL second basemen after Kinsler drove in 3 today.
• Tug Hulett was recalled prior to today’s game; Willie Bloomquist placed on DL with strained right hamstring.
• Ichiro kept pace with B.J. Upton for second place in AL stolen bases with 36.
• Jeff Clement’s 3 passed balls in a game ties a club record set by Jerry Narron 10/4/80 at TEX.

PREGAME
A few quick things that I didn't mention in my earlier post. Raul is DHing today. That means Wlad in center and Reed in left (which seems kind of backward to me).

The Rays have placed Carl Crawford on the 15-day disabled list and activated Rocco Baldelli. Those are both huge stories. Here's the most updated story.

Baldelli's return from a mitochondrial disorrder is interesting. I saw him play when he first came up and I thought this guy was going to be an all-star. Check out this story on his comeback.

Top of first
Well defensively the Mariners look sharp early on. Jeff Clement was charged with an error on the pop up. He should have caught it. But Beltre probably should have called him off on the play. R.A. Dickey works out of the jam though.

Bottom of first
Shocking the Mariners strand a runner in scoring position. They are hitting .244 as a team with RISP, while Beltre, who seems to have the approach: "swing as hard as possible" is hitting .208 with RISP.

Top of second
The Rays jump to a 3-0 lead on Willy Aybar's three-run home run right down the left field line. Dickey battled him to a 3-2 count, but his knuckleball on the payoff pitch stayed up and floated and Aybar hit it out of the park.

Bottom of Second
It's now 3-1 as Jose Lopez continues to swing the bat well hitting his 10th home run of the season on a solo shot to left off of Edwin Jackson. That's one more run than the M's scored against Jackson in April when he pitched eight shutout innings, allowing just two hits.

Top of third
The Rays add another run as a lead-off walk to Cliff Floyd comes back to haunt Dickey. Baldelli gets his first hit and RBI of the season with a liner over the head of Betancourt.

Bottom of third
A lead off single from Yuni amounts to little. Jeremy Reed popped a bunt attempt to catcher Shawn Riggans. Here's Riggleman's comment about the Mariners bunting woes today.

Bunting is kind of a lost art throughout the game. That is an indictment all of us throughout the game, instructors, coaches, managers, all of us. It’s rampant throughout baseball. We put an exclamation on it last night with the poor execution. Really just we have to get back off the cage off not a batting practice pitchers arm, but a machine that’s firing, -- get in there and get back to work. It’s really one of those things that is done over and over in spring training but that’s useless in all of this. It’s got to be maintained and we’re going to have to do it.

Top of fourth
The lead is pushed to 5-1 as another walk comes back to bite Dickey. This time Aki Iwamura drew a walk and stole second. On the throw down, the ball skipped into center and he moved to third, scoring easily on BJ Upton's single.

The official scorer credited the error to Jeff Clement, but I disagree completely. I watched the replays, the throw was perfectly fine. There might have been small short hop, but Lopez needs to catch that ball. If he does, the runner is out. It's the failure to do these simple things that lead to losses.

Clement is having a tough time with Dickey's knuckler, he also had a passed ball later in the inning.

Bottom of fourth
Apparently Jim Riggleman agrees with me about Lopez catching the ball. Because after Adrian Beltre led off the inning with a single, Tug Hulett pinch hit for Lopez. Hulett, a dirtbag of a player (that's a compliment), had a nice at-bat, just missing a home run, fouling off some pitches and drawing a walk. But it led to nothing. Jeff Clement swung at a low pitch that led to a 1-6-3 double play. It was an uncharacteristic pitch for Clement to swing at, but I think he was trying to make up for the inning before. Balentien flew out to left to end the inning.

Top of fifth
The official scorer agrees with me and the rest of the press box. They changed the scoring, giving the error instead to Lopez. That might be the best aspect of the inning, because Dickey gave up a three run bomb to catcher Shawn Riggan and it's now 8-1. Its hard to tell how well Dickey's knuckleball is moving from the press box, but his command overall even with his other pitcher hasn't been great. He has four walks and has already thrown 110 pitches, 67 for strikes.

Top of seven
I took an inning off. Not much happened. The Rays got another run and lead 9-1.

What's more frustrating is watching Seattle hitters and their approach against Edwin Jackson. I don't know if I would call it an approach, I would call it hacking. Jackson came in with 57 walks in 130 innings pitched. He's notorious for falling behind hitters and giving free passes, but he has only two walks today - both to Tug Hulett - while the rest of Seattle has swung at just about everything he throws up there. It's why Jackson beat the Mariners in Tampa and he's doing the same thing here.

Perhaps even more frustrating is that the free swinging mentality is getting contagious. Jeff Clement, who in the past has been patient and willing to take pitches and walks, is now swinging at the first pitch all the time. It's not a good trend.

On a positive note, that was a great catch by Bryan LaHair to end the inning.

Top of Nine
I really have lost the will to post anything analytical or quippy about this game. About the best thing I can say is that it won't last as long as last night's game. But it feels longer at this point.

I'm certain many of you stopped watching about an hour ago.

Bottom of nine
For Visitingfan: Baldelli went 1-for-4 before being lifted for Gabe Gross. He looked pretty good, but I think the Rays will be relatively careful not playing too much, too soon.

As for Erik Bedard, he played catch today. It was back-to-back days for him. Nothing major, and I don't think it was a very long game of catch. But it is improvement.

South Kitsap's Jason Hammel is in to pitch the final inning for the Rays.

Rays (70-46)
Aki Iwamura 2B
B.J. Upton CF
Carlos Pena 1B
Rocco Baldelli DRF
Cliff Floyd DH
Ben Zobrist SS
Eric Hinske LF
Willy Aybar 3B
Shawn Riggans C
----------------
Edwin Jackson P

Mariners (45-72)
Ichiro RF
Reed LF
Ibanez DH
Beltre 3B
Lopez 2B
Clement C
Balentien CF
LaHair 1B
Betancourt SS
-----------
Dickey P

Willie Bloomquist has been placed on the 15-day disabled list with a strained hamstring. He is scheduled for an MRI on Tuesday, according to Mariners trainer Rick Griffin.

Manager Jim Riggleman admitted that Bloomquist might be done for the season.

"It's a very significant pull and I don't know if we'll see him the rest of the year," Riggleman said. "Willie plays so hard that if you get him back, you know he's going to go hard, you have to make sure the thing is absolutely 100 percent healthy or he will pull it again. We want to just to let him get strong."

Infielder Tug Hulett was called up from Triple A Tacoma. Hulett got the call late Saturday night in Tucson and took an 6 a.m. flight to Seattle.

"It's kind of like last time, a late night call and an early game and a very early flight," he said.

Also from the morning meeting with Riggleman ...

* Ryan Rowland-Smith will remain in the rotation indefinitely and will start Saturday in Minnesota.

* Riggleman was a big fan of Joe Maddon's use of the extra infielder last night. Riggleman said his college coach at Wake Forest used a similar tactic that he learned from watching the Dodgers when Walter Alston was the manager.

If the Mariners were to do a similar shift, Riggleman said he would most likely use Ichiro - who came up as a shortstop in Japan - as his extra infielder.

* With the injury to Bloomquist, Wlad Balentien will probably platoon with Jeremy Reed in centerfield. Both players will also see some time at DH. Riggleman said that he wants to play Balentien some in left, so Raul might get an occasional DH stint along with Ichiro every once in a while.

* Riggleman wasn't exactly pleased with Jose Lopez's defensive decisions last night (don't get me started on this), but he point to Loopez's decision to try and make a glove flip on a play as one of the myriad of little mistakes that have plagued the team this season.

* As for Yuni's failure to get a sac bunt down last night, Riggleman blamed baseball as a whole for failing to make it a priority to work on bunting enough. He believes there needs to be some level of quality practice at things like bunting, because just working on it during spring training.

Yes, I know I am running about an hour behind. Perhaps it was because I was finishing up the rest of my Rays story, perhaps its because my ears still have a ringing in them from the Motley Crue concert last night, perhaps I just fell behind watching the Mariners put up five runs in two innings. Do you know how many games we've sat through where they've failed to score five runs or more in a game this season? 76

Jim Riggleman wasn't too happy with Carlos Silva for calling out his teammates after yesterday's loss.

Here's Silva's comments to a group of reporters.

"Maybe Chief (Silva's nickname) has to come and grab somebody in his neck and pin them to the wall. I'm very close to doing that, so write that down."

"Maybe half of the team wants to do the best they can ... I can talk about the starting rotation, we want to do our best every time we cross that line, you know? But maybe half of the team doesn't have that mentality. They only think to finish strong and to put up the numbers. That's great, but that affects us. As a team, that doesn't work out.
"Maybe instead of moving a runner, they want to get a base hit just because of the numbers. Instead of to get a ground ball, maybe I want to strike him out because of my numbers, you know what I mean? That's what we're doing right now."

Here's some of Riggleman's comments ..

I’m very disappointed. A couple of things I read just really didn’t make any sense. It was just very strange to me.

When I hear somebody say something about selfish play, I challenge anyone to go in there and look at the tape of every game from March 31 to the present time and show me an example of somebody being selfish. I’ll stand corrected if somebody points it out, but if you say someone is selfish you’ve got to show me something specific.

More importantly, he shouldn’t have said it to the writer. He should have said it to me, he should have said it to the teammate he’s directing it at.

The one thing he was talking about, not using a ground ball to move a runner, we’ve done a great job of that. But again, any time you're not successful at dong that, it’s the intent that you have to question. I know the intention has always been to do it but sometimes you don’t get the result. It’s just like you don’t intend to give up walks or base hits, but you give them up.

It’s just a wrong way to send a message. You don't do that in the paper, you do that internally.

I admire him more for doing when he’s 4-13, to tell you the truth. If you’re 13-4 and saying stuff, it’s kind of like, ‘I’m gong good, so I can say anything I want.’ But again,whether you’re struggling or going good, you just don't do it publicly.

The stuff that was said was so convoluted, I don’t know who it was directed at. Until you give a specific example.

I’m going to talk to him and a couple other guys. He used the phrase “the starting pitchers. We’re focused but some other people aren't” That’s ridiculous.

--- thanks to Kirby Arnold for the transcript.

So on to the game.
Ichiro in the lineup tonight as a DH - a day off for him - goes yard to start the game off of starter Matt Garza. It was the second time this season and 27th of his career. The Mariner add another run on a Adrian Beltre's fielder's choice.

Bottom of second
RBI singles from Ichiro and Yuni Betancourt and a double plate that scores a run that pushes the lead to 5-0.

Top of three
Ryan Rowland-Smith looks pretty solid early on, but he did give up a monster solo homer to right to Gabe Gross. It was hit so far, Ichiro barely moved.

Top of five
I'm very impressed with Rowland-Smith. Look the guys going to give up hits. That's going to happen, but he has enough moxie to NOT overthink the situation and try and do something else.

The best example came when a hit, an error by Jose Lopez and a walk loaded the bases. It got so bad that Miguel Batista of all people started warming up. But Rowland-Smith didn't back down to Carlos Pena, the Rays' top home run threat, and struck him out on a great breaking ball to end the inning and earn quite an ovation from the Safeco faithful.

Top of Six
Rowland-Smith works himself into a two-out bases loaded jam and manager Jim Riggleman decided to bring in fellow lefty Cesar Jimenez instead. That move has since backfired.

Jimenez gave up a hard hit ground ball to Aki Iwamura that a diving Jose Lopez had bounce off his glove to cut the lead to 5-2. Jimenez then gave up a double to BJ Upton to score two runs and cut it to 5-4.

And just when the game should only be tied afer Jimenez gave up another double, Betancourt applies a lazy tag on Carl Crawford's ball hit to right. If Betancourt puts the tag down with some authority, then Crawford was out at second and Upton's run doesn't count. But even though the all clearly beat the runner there, Crawford - replays show - slid in before Yuni put the tag on him.

It's now 7-5 as Carlos Pena ripped a shot off the right-field wall, to score a run. Pena tried to advance to second, but Wlad Balentien fired a perfect throw to second and this time Betancourt got the ball and glove down in time. Two runs too late, though.

Bottom of six
Kenji Johjima gets a rare hit to right field. How rare? According to baseball-reference.com, Joh has just 35 opposite field hits in his career. 35. And how does Betancourt follow that up by swinging at two balls well inside and popping up to shortstop. And I'm not even the least bit surprised by that at-bat because it's been happening all season.

Bottom of seven
Another wasted opportunity for the Mariners. Runners on first and second with no outs and Grant Balfour comes in gets a ground ball from Beltre, a strikeout of Jose Lopez and a broken bat fly to center from Wlad Balentien.

On the plus side, several members of Balfour's family are here, presumably from his native Australia. And every time he gets an out, they chant: "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oy, Oy, Oy!"

Top of eight

Divish, who do the Mariners have within the organization that looks to challenge Betancourt for playing time at SS? After watching him this season, I think he has become complacent there, and I think we can do better. He really doesn't compliment Lopez well at all. He showed so much promise with the glove a few years back, but the mental focus doesn't seem to be there.

I realize we signed him long term already, probably premature, but it is not a contract that should prevent us from having some flexibility there, correct? Again, who do we have in the minors? Thanks for responding, because I'm sure you will get right on it ;)

Touche Snydro, Touche. Well the shortstop prospects are not looking so good for the Ms in the immediate future. Yes they have Triunfel, who is at Class A high desert. He is only 18 years old and about three to four years away from seriously being considered. And most feel that he projects as a second baseman or third baseman or even outfield (think Alfonso Soriano, who he's built like). He's already committed 25 errors at short this season.

After that there isn't much, the Rainiers have used Oswaldo Navarro, Tug Hulett and Luis Valbuena, none of whom are every day shortstops at the big league level, not much else at Class AA. It looks like the M's are stuck with Yuni for awhile. And as I type this he just popped up a sac bunt attempt.

Ichiro bails him out with a single up the middle to tie the game. That was his 1,742 hit as a Mariner tying him with Ken Griffey Jr. second all-time. You don't need to be a rocket scientist to figure out who leads 2,247 hits.

Top of Nine
JJ works himself into a little trouble and manages to get out of it with a couple pop ups. He is not the JJ of last season, but I still think he could get back there with a prolonged stretch of steady work and a prolonged stretch of healthiness.

We head to the bottom of the ninth.... Is it walk-off time?

Bottom of 10th
That is what is so frustrating about Yuni, he makes a brilliant leaping catch and then starts off the inning with a single. But really, if he makes more than a lackadaisical effort on a simple play, none of this is necessary.

Bloomquist showing some hustle is injured on the play. He's had a sore heel all week, but I don't know if that was his heel that he hurt on the play. Wash into run, not surprisingly they walk Raul to get to Beltre and now they are brining in a sixth fielder to the infield. Basically Beltre has to hit it to left to end the game. Instead he hits it to third for a 5-2-3 double play.

Ichiro has moved to right from DH so that means a Mariner pitcher will have to hit.

This game will never end.

Top of 11
I take back my last sentence, because Batista comes in walks the lead-off hitter. The Rays textbook it and move him to third and get a sac fly to go up run....

HMMM my lead is looking like this...

Even though Miguel Batista was scratched from making his scheduled start on Saturday, he still found a way to take the loss in an 8-7, 11-inning defeat to the Tampa Bay Rays at Safeco Field.

Now Playing Center Field ...
Jim Riggleman came up with a new lineup tonight, one with Jeremy Reed DHing and rookie Wladimir Balentien in center.
Balentien's bat has him in the lineup, and though he's only started in center field one other time, the Mariners want to take a look at him there.

Tough News For Kenji ...
The Mariners have told Kenji Johjima - who signed a three-year contract extension in April - that he's no longer a starting catcher.
That job, they say, belongs to Jeff Clement, at least through the end of the season, and that if Johjima wants to win the job back, he'd better come up with another approach at the plate by next spring.
Signing Johjima to the extension made no sense and wasn't a baseball decision. That order came from Japan.
Along with Clement, the Mariners are deep in young catching prospects, from Rob Johnson in Tacoma to Adam Moore in West Tennessee.
It's why Mariners players were stunned when Seattle extended Kenji.
They had good reason to be ...

Dividends In Center ...
Balentien's fifth home run of the season just banged off the upper deck in left field, and it's hard to remember a recent Mariners farmhand with his power.
If he can hit for average AND keep that power, Seattle will have found at least one bat in its quest for 2009 offense.
Mariners 2, Rays 1 ...

Argh & Arghhh Again
Carlos Silva isn't pithing particularly well, but he's had little help behind him.
Ichiro over threw the cutoff man on an RBI single, allowing two runners to move up a base.
Then shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt made a fine stop, looked both runners back - and threw a ball away for a two-base error.
Ugh.
To the bottom of the third:
Rays 5, Mariners 2 ...

If They Can Just Get To J.J. ...
Mr. Putz may not have a game to save tonight, but the Mariners might want him to pitch, anyway.
Why? In his last three appearances, J.J. is 3-0, that's why. He's the first Seattle reliever to win in three consecutive appearances in 30 years.
Mariners aren't having much success when it matters most against James Shields - and Raul Ibanez is 0-for-3.
Fans have let out an audible moan after each of those outs.
To the Sixth:
Rays 5, Mariners 3 ...

Mendoza Line Special ...
Jeff Clement is heating up - he's gone 9-for-23 this home stand, pulling his average from .167 to .201.
Over that same stretch of games, Kenji Johjima has only seven at-bats. That's meant almost not work for reserve Jamie Burke, who's had one at-bat in the past nine games.
After givin up a leadoff single in yhre seventh, Mr. Silva has been pulled in favor of Jake Woods. Silva deserved better tonight.
Rays 5, Mariners 3 ...

On To The Ninth ...
Grizzled veteran closer vs. Balentien, Bryan LaHair and Betancourt. The kids are getting a baptism by fire.
Rays 5, Mariners 3 ...

In the midst of a lost season, Raul Ibanez remains one of the most driven of the Seattle Mariners, a man whose work ethic doesn’t change month to month, week to week or even day to day.

And this month, Ibanez has gone from solid to stratospheric – with 15 RBI over his last five games.

That’s put the 36-year-old outfielder in line for his third consecutive 100-RBI season, entering the second week of August with a .290 average, 18 home runs and 78 RBI.

Which leads to just one of the many questions facing the franchise – can it keep Ibanez, who will become a free agent at years end?

Certainly not at the salary Ibanez makes now. At $5.5 million per season, he’s eighth on the Mariners payroll list, behind Ichiro Suzuki, Adrian Beltre Jarrod Washburn, Carlos Silva, Erik Bedard, Miguel Batista and Kenji Johjjima.

Ibanez has never complained.

Asked earlier this year about what he expects in the off-season, he said he wanted a four-year-contract, and though he’s likely to get an offer or two in that range, a three-year deal seems more like what Seattle would request.

For how much? The bidding for a man coming off three consecutive 100-RBI seasons – and being a good citizen and clubhouse force, to boot – would probably start in the $10-$11 million a year range.

Money isn’t supposed to be a problem for the Mariners next year as they try to rebuild and compete. The issue is, at the moment, who will be allowed to spend it.

Manager Jim Riggleman says he’d love to have Ibanez back – “who wouldn’t,” he asked – but Riggleman may not be back, so his opinion may not matter. Similarly, general manager Lee Pelekoudas will finish the season, but knows the job is wide open to competition beyond that.

Ibanez and the team could discuss a contract extension, although it now seems fairly late in the game for the Mariners to be making those overtures. Johjima, for example, signed his three-year extension in April.

And he’s not even a starter, any more.

Far more likely, Ibanez will test the market and list to offers, including one from Seattle this winter. For a team that knows it must add punch to its lineup for 2009, losing Ibanez would only mean the Mariners need to add yet another bat.

The Cincinnati Reds have hired former Mariners GM Bill Bavasi. The Reds send out this release this afternoon.

BILL BAVASI JOINS REDS' FRONT OFFICE

Named Special Assistant to Walt Jocketty

CINCINNATI - Cincinnati Reds President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Walt Jocketty today announced the hiring of former Anaheim Angels and Seattle Mariners general manager Bill Bavasi as a special assistant.

Bavasi, 50, will advise and assist Jocketty in matters related to the front office, Major League field and support personnel and scouting.

"We're excited Bill has joined our organization," Jocketty said. "Over his career of more than 30 years, he has worked in almost every facet of baseball operations. We will benefit from his experience and insights."

Bavasi was the vice president/general manager for the Angels from 1994-99 and executive vice president and general manager of baseball operations for the Mariners from November 7, 2003 through June 15 of this season.

Bavasi began his professional baseball career in 1974 with the San Diego Padres. He was named Angels general manager after 14 years in their player development department and helped lay the groundwork for that club's 2002 World Series championship. He spent the 2002-03 seasons as the Los Angeles Dodgers' director of player development before he was hired by the Mariners as their GM in November 2003.

His father, Buzzie Bavasi, was general manager of the Angels and the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers and president of the Padres. His brother, Peter, was general manager of the Padres, founding president of the Toronto Blue Jays and president of the Cleveland Indians.

An exciting win last night for the Mariners. When Raul stepped to the plate, I looked at Larry and Kirby Arnold of the Everett Herald and said, "home run."

Damn, I'm good.

How locked in his Raul right now?

From today's game notes ...

* Anyway here is Larry's game story from last night.

* Here's his game notebook that talks about Miguel Batista not starting on Saturday.

* Here's how the St. Pete Times covered the game</strong>. And here is how the Tampa Tribune covered the game.

Get the King untracked ...
Felix Hernandez won his seventh game of the season July 18 and hasn't won since, going 0-1 with a pair of no-dedisions.
Going back to June 17, Hernandez is 2-2 with three no-decisions.
He hasn't allowed more than three earned runs in any of those starts, so a few more runs by the Seattle offense will likely give the team its first 8-game winner of the year.
Oh boy ...

The Boy & The Bubble ...
The Mariners bullpen was having a little fun in the first inning - someone stuck an immense bubble, and the gum it was blown in - atop the hat of rookie Jared Wells.
As bullpen coach Norm Charlton lectured Wells, J.J. Putz tried to add a paper cup to the bubble, but Wells caught on.
He's now sitting cautiously in the pen, perhaps a litle less trusting that 20 minutes earlier.
A lesson learned ...

Another (Yawn) Hitting Streak ...
Ichiro Suzuki is at it again, and his first inning single gave him a 13-game hitting streak during which he's batting .396.
Any significance?
Well, since Ichiro came into the majors in 2001, he's strung together 28 hitting streaks of 10 games or more. That leads all of baseball.
Miguel Tejada is second (25), followed by Derk Jeter (22).
The man can hit ...

Out of Control ...
If teams only scored when they put the ball in play, Tampa would be sitting on zero.
Young Felix, however, helped them in the fourth inning with two walks and a wild pitch that pushed home the games only run.
Throw strikes.
Rays 1, Mariners 0 ...

Into New Territory ...
Hernandez is pitching a marvelous game, but that one inning may beat him because Andy Sonnanstine is pitching 43even better.
Hernandez has had some tough luck this season, but he's never lost when allowing just one run.
Through seven innings, however, Seattle has three hits - two by Jose Lopez.
Rays 1, Mariners 0 ...

Oh, Those Babies ...
That thud you may have heard a moment ago was Wladimir Balentien's double banging off the wall in right center field - about a foot from going over.
Fellow rookie Bryan LaHair singled him to third, and Yuniesky Betancourt got Balentien home with a sacrifice fly.
Some of these kids can play.
Mariners 1, Rays 1 ...

To the ninth ...
J.J. Putz in, Felix out after quite a night.
He went eight innings, allowed four hits and a run.
His earned run average dropped from 3.04 to 2.94, but he got another no-decision. Without the wild pitch, he'd be winning, 1-0.
And the Mariners still don't have an 8-game winner.
Meanwhile, Putz is in trouble - first and third, one out. ...

Nothing But Smoke & Mirrors ...
J.J. Putz looked like his '07 self in getting out of trouble in the ninth. With runners at first and third base and one out, he struck out Cliff Floyd and Dioner Navarro.
He got Floyd on a 98 mph fastball, then Navarro on a pitch that broke away from him at 88 mph.
To the bottom of the ninth, tied. ...

Raul - Again ...
The hottest Mariner delivered the fourth walk-off home run of his career to lead off the ninh inning, and it was good for his 16th RBI in his last five games.
Putz gets the win, and under Riggleman this team is now 20-23. ...

Yes, it's THE Erik Bedard playing catch with Jim Riggleman watching.

"He’s throwing freely," Mariners manager Jim Riggleman said. "The ball looks good out of hand. It’s a big change from 10 days when I saw him first throw. He threw 50 times. He will throw again Saturday and Sunday."

Excuse Tampa's staff for wondering just who is starting against them Saturday in Safeco Field - the Seattle Mariners are listing that game starter as TBA.

That's code, of course, for NOT Miguel Batista.

It's Batista's spot in the rotation, but it now belongs to someone in Tacoma, lefty Ryan Rowland-Smith. Formally, the Mariners can't list him yet because he's not on the 25-man roster.

Whether Rowland-Smith gets the rest of Batista's starts or not is a thornier question. Clearly, Rowland-Smith looks to be a bigger part of Seattle's future than Batista, who has a year left on his contract.
In the past, however, the Mariners have started pitchers just to showcase them in hopes that a few good games will make a trade easier.

Batista can and will pitch out of the bullpen. Rowland-Smith will be given the chance to fail or succeed for at least 3-4 starts, and by then there will be other options.

The team isn't likely to start Rowland-Smith, Brandon Morrow and, say, Ryan Feierabend in any one stretch, but Seattle wants to see something from each.

For now, it's Rowland-Smith.

By September, the rotation could be unrecognizeable.

So a few of us writer types were sitting around the table at the Safeco Press Dining Room wondering about whether or not Washburn could still be traded and how it all works.

We all believed it was a distinct possibility considering that the Yankees just watched Joba Chamberlain leave his last start with a sore shoulder. Chamberlain is going to miss his next start for certain, but perhaps more frightening as to the severity of Chamberlain's injury is that he is meeting with Dr. James Andrews, and that's not usually a good thing.

So the need for Washburn could be possible. But how much will his last start - a disaster - and to start influencetheir decision. That's a good question. Do the Yankees 6 1/2 out again want to try youngster Ian Kennedy again, or do they bring in a veteran like Washburn on a waiver trade?

2:01 -- Well it doesn't look like Washburn is helping his chances any. He gave up a single to Randy Ruiz and then Adrian Beltre booted a ball at third to start the problems. Light-hitting Adam Everett delivered an RBI single to score Ruiz. Washburn then loaded the bases with a walk to No. 9 hitter Carlos Gomez. It looked like he might get out of it, but Denard Span took advantage of a poorly executed 0-2 pitch, lacing a triple to right to score all four runs. Twins 4, Mariners 0

2:20 -- Jeff Clement leads off with a single but he is quickly erased as Wlad Balentien hit into a 6-4-3 double play.

I talked with Balentien a little and he knows the scouting report on him: Soft breaking pitches away and then fastballs on his hands once he's down in the count.

"I've been getting better at laying off that pitch and waiting to get better pitches to hit," he said.

As for still trying to be aggressive at the plate Balentien said he just needs to be aggressive on good pitches, and he thinks he's been better at recognizing good pitches.

This will be his second time around this season. And for many players it does get easier. Balentien admitted that the circumstances surrounding his first call up were far different.

"The first time when I came up, the team was struggling and I wanted to do so much to help out," he said. "I kind of created more pressure that I put on myself. Now it's a different situation. I just have to play the game, do what I do and try to be myself."

2:40ish -- Mariners get a run as Jeremy Reed walks and then later scores on Beltre's RBI single. The Mariners are now down 4-1.

3:01ish --- the Mariners get two more runs as Yuni was hit by a pitch and Ichiro singled. Jeremy Reed drove in Betancourt with a single, while Ichiro scored on a fielder choice. Twins 4, Mariners 3.

3:21 -- Jarrod Washburn just worked himself out of some self-imposed trouble. He walked Brendan Harris and Adam Everett after getting two outs quickly in the sixth. But he was able to come back and strike out Carlos Gomez to end the threat. Washburn is at 102 pitches, Twins lead 4-3.

4:00 -- Just when it looked like the Mariners might have a chance to pull it out late, Mark Lowe gives up back-to-back singles and then a two-run double to Brendan Harris. It is now 6-3. It would be easy for a pessimist to say -- "Well this is what happens when you don't have Brandon Morrow." You won't hear that from me. The season is a wash, and what does one win mean any way? Morrow is where he should be at. Sure the relievers the Mariners send out there aren't as good, obviously, but its time to start thinking about next season. Twins 6, Mariners 3 still in the eighth.

4:13 -- The eighth is finally over. Jared Wells, who made his Mariners debut, didn't have the easiest of times. The Twins executed a nice squeeze to score their seventh run of the game. Wells then walked Nick Punto to load the bases. But he struck out Mike REdmond on a nasty 3-2 slider and then got Justin Morneau to fly out to end the inning. Twins 7, Mariners 3, to the bottom of the eighth we go.

* I know it was brought up on USS Mariner: Why didn't manager Jim Riggleman go to Sean Green in the eighth inning instead of Roy Corcoran. It was the first question asked today by MLB's Jim Street.

"Green had an achy feeling and a little tightness in his shoulder," Riggleman said. "We decided to shut him down for a couple of days. It was one of those things where he said, "I can pitch." But we decided to stay away from using him."

Green is listed on the active pitchers today and Riggleman said he felt better and could use him today if necessary.

* Also Wlad Balentien is starting in center today (lineups below). Is this the end of the Bloomquist/Reed platoon? Not entirely. Bloomquist injured his heel running out a ground ball two days ago and has been bothered by it. Riggleman said that's why he didn't pitch for Jeremy Reed last night with a lefty on the mound.

* As we sat and talked with Riggleman, Raul Ibanez was out there taking voluntary batting practice on the field. So I asked Riggleman about Ibanez's work ethic and how hard he pushes himself.

Riggleman said this: "I'm extremely impressed. But it just goes to show you what everybody should be doing. He's always done it. But everybody should be doing it."

Hmm, perhaps like the starting shortstop, who was instead lounging on the couch in the clubhouse while Ibanez, Beltre, Lopez, Balentien, Cairo, Reed and others were out hitting on the field.

"Why wouldn't you go through your career and look back and say I did everything I could do when I was playing," Riggleman said. "It's blatantly obvious that throughout the game a lot of players aren't doing this."

Like perhaps Yuniesky Betancourt?

So is it a matter of experience?

"I think a little bit, those players are smart enough to realize they can't leave any stone unturned," Riggleman said. "There's a desire in the heart and the brains in your head that you need to do it, but it's also having the desire to do it."

Is it a case where either a young player figures it out or they don't?

"That's the point, some young guys should see it and realize that's he does it," Riggleman said. "He never misses a day out here. He's in the cage constantly. He's in the weight room. He's back looking at tape. He's dedicated to his trade. Tony Gwynn was like that. Tony hit on the field every day. He was in the video room constantly. His attention to details of his game was off the chart."

If that isn't an indirect shot at Yuni, I don't what it is. Riggleman will never come out and say that Yuni needs to work harder, he's too professional to do that. But when he said these things, he was clearly passionate in his belief.

Let's get to the links

A big thanks to Doug Pacey for covering for me yesterday. An editor's note: because of all that went down these two days, my Rays story is running Sunday.

Here's Doug's game story about the Seattle Rainiers, er, Mariners.

Here's the notebook which dealt with all the moves yesterday.

Here's how the Minneapolis Star Tribune covered the game. Gamer and Notebook., which discusses the Twins bullpen issue.

The Tacoma Rainiers are streaking ... Rob Johnson continues to hit, going 2-for-4 with a homer. Andy Baldwin (8-5), who was acquired in the Jamie Moyer trade, is now 6-1 in his last eight starts.

* Here's an Adam Jones update.

* The Angels, a free swinging bunch (not quite as bad as the Ms) are starting to learn patience at the plate.

* Also Richmond Lockwood Sexson, Richie, to most, hit a grand slam yesterday, but the Yankees still lost.

Twins (62-51)
2 Denard Span RF
8 Nick Punto 2B
55 Mike Redmond C
33 Justin Morneau 1B
16 Jason Kubel LF
56 Randy Ruiz DH
23 Brendan Harris 3B
12 Adam Everett SS
22 Carlos Gomez CF
------------
53 Nick Blackburn RHP (8-6, 3.56 ERA)

Mariners (44-69)
51 Ichiro RF
8 Jeremy Reed DH
28 Raul Ibanez LF
29 Adrian Beltre 3B
4 Jose Lopez 2B
9 Jeff Clement C
50 Wlad Balentien CF
39 Bryan LaHair 1B
5 Yuniesky Betancourt SS
-------------
56 Jarrod Washburn P (5-10, 4.77 ERA)

From our intern Stephen Chen, who was at Cheney Stadium:

Brandon Morrow pitched 1 2/3 innings, giving up one hit, a long double to center to Dallas McPherson, and no runs. He was solid but not spectacular. Three weak groundouts and a popout to first. He threw 34 pitches, 21 for strikes. All but three pitches were fastballs. His fastballs were consistently around 94-95 mph. He topped out at 98 mph in his eighth pitch of the game.

Slightly longer bottom of the first--15 minutes--as the Rainiers scored 3 runs. Morrow threw three balls to start the second inning, but his velocity was good and he didn't have too many control problems after that.

Here's some more from Mr. Chen after talking with Morrow:

"I haven't thrown out of the windup all year so I felt a little inconsistent, but I thought it went pretty good," Morrow said.

"I wanted to throw more offspeed pitches, but I was falling behind because I was out of the windup," Morrow said.

Morrow is slated to throw a bullpen in Tucson on Friday and make his second start Monday. Morrow said he expects his pitch count to be bumped up to around 50.

An update to when Brandon Morrow will be making his first start for the Rainiers. It will be Wednesday (August 6th -- as in tomorrow Snydro) at 11:30 a.m. at Cheney Stadium against the Albuquerque Isotopes. He will be on a 35-pitch limit.

We will obviously have somebody there covering the game.

If you are looking to go to the game as a cheaper alternative to the Mariners' game. Here's a link to buy tickets.

A quick programming note: I have been pulled from the line-up for tonight's game coverage because of a tender left elbow and I must finish this Rays story. Of course, all this stuff happens on a day when I'm not up there. It's like the McLaren tirade. Anyway, our prep guru Doug Pacey is at the game. Since he doesn't have access to this blog (one of the few guys that doesn't) he's going to email some of the reaction to the moves today and I'll post it on here.

An update from Doug: Wlad is starting tonight at DH

A quick poll question: Where does today rank in the best days of the season for the Mariners?

The other contenders would have to be opening day, Richie's release, McLaren's rant and Bavasi's firing.

It says something about the season the Mariners are mired in, that a player being sent down and another player being designated for assignment ranks among the best days.

But really it's important for this reason - the Mariners finally showed some notion that they need to start focusing on 2009 and beyond. Sure they've been saying this for the last month, but they hadn't made the significant moves to signal that change in thinking. That ended today with Morrow being sent down to be stretched out and Vidro being shipped.

With Vidro gone, there is no excuse for Balentien, Clement and LaHair not to be getting a plethora of at-bats. Even when there are left-handers on the mound for Clement and LaHair.

I watched Balentien hit a home run last night. Teams are still pitching him the same away, offspeed away and then busting him in on his hands with fastballs. Balentien is still susceptible to some ugly swings where he's back on his heels and just waving at pitches away. But he has been been a little better about laying off those pitches consistently, especially with two strikes.

I won't lie and say that I'm convinced he's going to be a better hitter at the major league level the second time around this season. One of the scouts at the Rainiers game last night was not impressed with Wlad's swing or his on-field antics (throwing helmets and bats and saying things to fans). But Balentien will go in more prepared and with a better idea of what he needs to do to be successful. Besides he has proven he can hit at the Triple A level, he needs to do so with at the big league level.

I expect him to play left field or DH, he played in center field on Tuesday night, but I don't know that I would use him there extensively.

As for Morrow, I talked with the Rainiers and manager Daren Brown hasn't slotted Morrow into the rotation. Sean White was just placed on the seven-day disabled list and he started on Saturday. It looks as though Morrow would most likely make his first start either Saturday or Monday in Tucson. Ryan Feierabend is scheduled for Friday, Saturday is a TBD (to be determined), Ryan Rowland-Smith is set for Sunday (though hopefully he's up in Seattle pitching instead of Miguel Batista), and Monday is listed as a TBD.

It will be interesting to see how Morrow handles his pitch count. Remember because he throws so hard, hitters tend to take more pitches and foul off more pitches, which will drive up his pitch count quickly. He must be able to throw his slider and changeup a little more often and consistently for strikes. It will also be interesting to see what his velocity is like early in games and late in games.

Either way it's a good move for the Mariners. They know Morrow has the ability to be a closer, but they didn't draft him for that. They needed to at least give him an extended look as a starter and see if its a role he would not only be comfortable in, but succeed in.

Feel free to post any other moves you think they should make ... logical ones, please.

Now let's get to some links...

* Here's Larry's gamer from last night's crazy comeback win.

* Larry actually spoke with Erik Bedard. That doesn't happen often, but here's his notebook with Bedard's comments about his injury.

* Here's the game story from the Minneapolis Star Tribune. And here's the gamer from the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

* Matt Tuiasosopo's grand slam and Rowland-Smith's solid pitching propelled the Rainiers to their seventh straight win.

* Former Mariner Greg Dobbs has become a pinch-hitting star with the Phillies

* Adam Jones' season could be done. Apparently he broke his foot during his series with the Mariners. He has been placed on the DL and will be out at least four to six weeks.

* Charlton Jimerson hooked up with another team. Good luck to him.

* Joba Chamberlain is going to see Dr. James Andrew about his sore left shoulder. That has to be scary for Yankee fans. Could Jarrod Washburn become valuable to the Yankees again?

* ESPN Page 2's Jim Caple has a story on closers being the most overrated position in baseball.

* Prince Fielder has sort of apologized for the altercation between him and Manny Parra in the Brewers dugout during last night's game.

Another big roster move for the Mariners today as they just sent out a release saying Jose Vidro has been designated for assignment by general manager Lee Pelekoudas. He will be replaced on the 25-man roster by Wladimir Balentien, who has been called up and is available to play tonight.

Seattle now has 10 days to trade, release, option or assign Vidro outright to the minors.

"We appreciate all of Jose's hard work and professionalism," Pelekoudas said in the release. "We wanted to have every opportunity to try and trade him. Even though that opportunity may still exist, now that we've passed the July 31 deadline it was important for us to continue our transition into a club that is looking towards the 2009 season, even as we try to win as many games as possible this season."

This will be Balentien's second stint with the Mariners this season. He batted .196 (21x107) with 4 doubles and 4 home runs in 32 games from April 30-June 16. In 44 games after being optioned back to AAA Tacoma, Balentien batted .270 (46x170) with 12 home runs and 35 RBI. He leaves Tacoma with a current 8-game hitting streak (.333/11x33, 3 HR), including a solo home run last night.

Vidro, 33 (turns 34 Aug. 27), was batting .234 (72x308) with 11 doubles, 7 home runs and 45 RBI in 85 games. Acquired prior to the 2007 season from Washington, Vidro combined to hit .285 (244x856) with 13 home runs and 104 RBI in 232 games as a Mariner.

The Mariners just announced they have optioned right-handed pitcher Brandon Morrow to Triple-A Tacoma to stretch him out so that he can become a starter. To take Morrow's spot on the roster, right-handed pitcher Jared Wells from the Rainiers was recalled.

"We have long viewed Brandon as a starter," acting GM Lee Pelekoudas said. "He pitched his way onto the team in 2007, giving us an opportunity to acclimate him to the majors in a relief role and, at the start of this season, we thought his greatest value to the team in 2008 was in the bullpen.

"However, as our season progressed and it became obvious we were not going to reach the goals we had entering this year, we began internal discussions on the best time to convert Brandon back to a starting role. We believe that giving him time to stretch out in Tacoma and then, hopefully, make some starts for the big league club before spending the 2008 off-season preparing to come to camp as a starting pitcher for 2009 is the best route for his development."

Morrow, 24, made 40 appearances in relief this season. He compiled a 1-2 mark with 10 saves and a 1.47 ERA, striking out 47 in 36.2 innings. Morrow, the No. 5 overall pick in the 2006 draft, is third in the American League in ERA among relievers. He did not allow a run in 35 of 40 appearances this season, and converted 10 of 12 save opportunities.

Wells, 26, was recalled from Tacoma on July 10 but did not appear in a game for the Mariners before being optioned back to Tacoma on July 11. Wells has 18 combined saves in AAA, tops in the Pacific Coast League.

He was acquired by Seattle from San Diego in exchange for RHP Cha Seung Baek on May 28 of this season. Wells was 0-3, 6.83 with nine saves in 25 relief appearances with the Rainiers since joining the club after the trade.

Ok, so I took a break from writing my Rays story and drove the 1/2 mile from my house to Cheney Stadium to watch Ryan Rowland-Smith's start tonight (I know, I have a problem if I'm going to random Triple A games on my nights off).

Anyway, Rowland-Smith didn't have his best command tonight. But overall it was a pretty solid start with Mariners Director of Player Development Greg Hunter and Director of Baseball Administration Jim Na on hand watching.

Rowland-Smith worked six innings, two runs on six innings with three walks and two strikeouts. Of the two runs - one came on a sacrifice fly and the other on an RBI single to left.

The only time he was really hit hard was when he fell behind in counts. And it wasn't as though he was missing badly with his spots. The home plate umpire was a little tight with his strike zone. Rowland-Smith threw 101 pitches, 66 were strikes.

Perhaps my favorite aspect of Rowland-Smith's performance came in his final inning of work. He got himself in trouble walking the lead off hitter, giving up a single and then a two out work walk to load the bases. He then gave up an RBI single to Chase Lambin. But just when the inning could have gotten out of hand, Rowland-Smith bowed his neck a little and struck out Brett Hayes looking on a perfect 2-2 fastball on the outside corner at 90 miles per hour.

So it raises an obvious question with a simple answer: Who would you rather have starting games at this point: Rowland-Smith or Miguel Batista?

I think I know the answer.

Other notes from the game ...

* The Rainiers hit back-to-back home runs as Matt Tuisasopo crushed a grand slam to left off of Chris Seddon. Wlad Balentien followed with a solo home run to left.

* Rob Johnson continues to hit, he has two doubles this game

Who needs the outfield? ...
Two of baseball's fastest men are playing at Safeco Field tonight - the No. 1 and No. 2 players in the American League in infield singles.
Twins center fielder Carlos Gomez leads the AL with 41 infield singles, and Ichiro Suzuki is second with 31. No one else has more than 25. ...

How Not To Pitch ...
Hey kids, don't try this at home. Miguel Batista needed 23 pitches to get through the first inning - and 13 of those were balls.
Batista, working deliberately, walked two and gave up an RBI double, and didn't seem to want to challenge many of the first six men he faced.
First inning walks to get into the heart of the order? Batista knows better.
Twins 1, Mariners 0 ...

Morrow's Future Is TBA ...
Manager Jim Riggleman admitted tonight that he may have spoken too soon when he saw reliever Brandon Morrow would soon be starting in Tacoma.
The organization hasn't determined just where Morrow is best suited, or where his highest value to the team lies.
"He started in college, but that doesn't really count," Riggleman said. "J.J. (Putz) started in college, too."
There are many cases of great relievers coming out of poor starters - everyone from Mariano Rivera to Goose Gossage.
Where Morrow's long-term future lies, the Mariners have not yet decided. ...

How Not To Pitch, Part 2 ...
Batista got ahead of Nick Punto, 1-2, then threw a waist high fastball that became a home run.
Two singles and a walk later, he was in trouble neck deep - and the Twins burned him with a pair of sacifice flies.
Heading for the bottom of the third:
Twins 4, Mariners 0 ...

How Not To Pitch, Part 3 ...
Before getting an out in the fourth inning, Batista gives up a double and a walk and is lifted.
In all, he ot nine outs, allowed seven hits and four walks, six runs. Batista threw 82 pitches - 41 strikes.
Don't be surprised if Ryan Rowland-Smith is brought up from Tacoma to make a start in Batista's place.
It's August, and Batista's ERA is 6.80.
Twins 6, Mariners 0. ...

Patience Needed ...
The Mariners have talked and talked to Yuniesky Betancourt about learning the strike zone, but at the plate he remains one excited puppy.
If the pitch is in the air, he's swinging.
Fifth inning, one out, Kenji Johjima at second base. Rather than work the count for a hitter's pitch, Yuni swung at the first pitch Glen Perkins threw - a fastball about eye high.
He flied out. The Mariners didn't score.
After 5:
Twins 6, Mariners 0 ...

You Can't Shut Out These Guys ...
Raul Ibanez, Adrian Beltre and Jose Lopez singled to load the bases with no one out, so of course it seemed likely they might even chase Perkins.
They didn't.
Instead, Jose Vidro grounded into a double play, with Ibanez scoring, and Bryan LaHair flied out.
Twins 6, Mariners 1 ...

Look Up 'Scrappy' - It's a Mariners Team Photo ...
Bases loaded, one out, Raul Ibanez hits the seventh grand slam of his career. Beltre doubles, Lopez singles him home, tie game.
Spotting the AL Central's first place team six runs, then coming back for the tie?
Priceless. ...

The Way It Was Envisioned ...
Pinch-hitter Jeff Clement singled home the go-ahead run in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Down in the Seattle bullpen, Brandon Morrow is warming up for the eighth. That means almost certainly that J.J. Putz - so effective on Sunday - will have the ninth inning.
Mariners 9, Twins 6 ...

Reaching double figures ...
A 10-run inning can do a lot of things, and this one did. Morrow sat down, J.J. is probably napping.
Cesar Jimenez is in and will likely finish.
Mr. Ibanez has driven in six runs - all in the same inning.
Mr. Batista will not lose.
Amazing.
To the bottom of the eighth:
Mariners 11, Twins 6 ...

It's been exactly one month since Erik Bedard threw a pitch for the Seattle Mariners, and likely will be at least another month before he's ready to pitch again.

Sidelined by a shoulder impingement, Bedard is playing catch this week and looking ahead.

"I'm not comfortable with the thought of not pitching again this season," Bedard said. "I kind of have to throw just to know I'm fine.

"One start wouldn't be enough to know I'm back at full strength - you've got to make a couple of starts to see how you bounce back."

For now, playing catch is 'baby steps,' he said.

"I've been doing a lot of weight work and things off the field, but without doing anything baseball related, it's tough to feel part of the game. You lose sight of what pitching is like."

When Bedard has been healthy, he's pitched relatively well - 6-4 with a 3.67 ERA in 15 starts.

"When the Orioles were in town I was talking to a few of them, and I told them, 'The one thing I didn't want to happen happened here - I got hurt,'" Bedard said. "You come to a new team and you want to show them what you can do. The worst thing possible is an injury that keeps you off the mound. I know there are people who don't believe I'm hurt."

Bedard will play catch three days this week, then be re-evaluated. If there is no problem, he'll increase the intensity of throwing until he's ready to begin working from a mound.

"I don't want to go into the off-season not certain I'm healthy," Bedard said. "This year has been tough enough. I don't want to go through a winter like that."

Larry is covering tonight's game as I work on the second part of our series on other teams in baseball the Mariners can emulate. The first story ran on Sunday and it focused on the Minnesota Twins.

Here's what the cover looked like on Sunday's section front.

As for my story. There was a lot more I could have written about, like the decision to draft Joe Mauer over Mark Prior, or some of the mistakes the Twins have made as well. Realistically, the Twins' success may stop at the divisional level. As they are currently constructed, and even in their stronger teams in the past, they seem to a player or pitcher short of being a legit World Series contender. But all in all, I think Mariners fans would gladly take seven of eight seasons with records over .500 and three playoff appearances.

Let's get to some more links ...

* Here's Larry's game story from today's paper that leads with the strong performance of JJ Putz. Apparently the sooner JJ returns to form, the sooner the process of converting Brandon Morrow to a starter begins.

* The game notebook talks about Erik Bedard playing catch for the first time in a month. What is the over/under at the number of starts he makes the rest of the season. I'd put it at +/- 3 and take the under.

* I know it's torture for some of you, but I wrote feature on Adam Jones on Friday. I talked with him for quite a while, he's great guy and not much different from when I was covering him with the Rainiers. And everyone I talked to in the Orioles organization raves about him.

* From the Baltimore Sun, Jones left Safeco in a walking boot after taking a foul ball off his already achy ankle that he's been playing on.

Here's the Sun's game story.

AUDIO ALERT: Lee Pelekoudas did an interview with Mitch Levy this morning. You can listen to it here.

I don't necessarily agree that the perception that it was just dumping salary with Washburn. Look if Washburn is part of your plans in the future then say it. But if he's not, dumping his salary on another team and freeing up $10 million to be used on someone else next season doesn't seem like a bad idea to me.

* Speaking of lefties in the Mariners system, Ryan Feierabend won again on Sunday for the Rainiers, who have won six in a row.

From the Mariners' minor league report...

Ryan Feierabend notched his 3rd consecutive win since returning from the disabled list, giving up 1 earned run on 7 hits with 5 strikeouts in 7.0 innings. He has not lost since April 13 and lowered his ERA to 1.91.

I covered the game on Saturday, and got to see one-time prospect Denny Stark's return to Cheney Stadium. AFter finishing 14-2 in the 2001 season, Stark, Jose Paniagua and Brian Fuentes were sent to Colorado for Jeff Cirillo. Yes the same Brian Fuentes that's one of the better lefty relievers in the National League.

I'm actually going to try and take a break from writing to sneak over to Cheney and watch Ryan Rowland-Smith start tonight.

* Here's an interesting story from SI's Jon Heyman that broke down how the Manny Ramirez transpired.

* Here's a story on Dustin Pedroia from ESPN magazine. He belongs to the Glen Hubbard/Mike Gallego all-stars (players that I'm actually taller than) - Chone Figgins, Erick Aybar, David Eckstein are all members.

* Yahoo's Jeff Passan offers up another example of why I want to cover a team Ozzie Guillen manages. It was awesome when he spiked his hat and offered up the lineup cards to the umps.

* The Washington Nationals are playing themselves out of a chance for "Steve Strasburg" with a weekend sweep. They are now 41-70, while the Mariners are 42-69 - it's going to be a dogfight.

Longtime Atlanta Braves announcer Skip Caray passed away in his sleep on Sunday.

* Here's Caray's obituary from the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

* AUDIO: Here's Caray calling the Sid Bream slide

* Chipper Jones and his current Braves teammates react to his passing.

* Dale Murphy and other former Braves offer their thoughts on Caray.

* AJC Columnist Mark Bradley offers his thoughts.

* Current Braves beat writer Dave O'Brien for the AJC remembers Caray in his blog

* Former Braves beat writer and current SI columnist Jon Daniels offers his thoughts.

I know this is a Mariners blog, but if you are of a certain age, you'll have some memory of watching Atlanta Braves games on TBS and listening to Caray call games. And almost anyone who listened to the Caray call a game can do an interpretation of his signature voice and the rhythm with which he spoke and made calls.

In this day of ESPN and DirectTV, it's tough to remember how few baseball games were broadcast back in the 1980s. Growing up in Montana, our early cable stations included WGN and TBS, so you had either Cub games that were broadcast by Skip Caray's much more famous father, Harry Caray, or you had Braves games, with the understated but always prepared Skip Caray, televised on any given day. Getting to watch baseball with such regularity wasn't common. Before that, you only got the old ABC Monday night game or the Saturday game of the week on NBC.

Many of my friends are Cubs and Braves fans to do this day, simply for the fact that we were able to watch them on TV so much. I can still remember watching Dale Murphy bat in those ugly light blue road uniforms and Caray calling his home runs. In this day of over the top, opinionated and blathering broadcasters, Caray was the antithesis. He was understated, almost to the point of soothing, but he knew the team, he knew the players and he understood the game. A true professional.

Working in this business, I rarely get star struck by anybody. But when I was in Atlanta, I was in line in the cafeteria. And from right behind me, I heard Caray's oft-imitated voice, ask me about the day's food, "How does it look?" I think stammered some sort of response. I even called one of my buddies to say that I talked to Skip Caray.

As Mariner fans celebrated Dave Niehaus' yesterday, it served as a reminder of how important and how attached fans grow to their respective broadcasters. And so while Mariners fans celebrated the voice of their franchise, Braves fans mourned the loss of theirs.

Rest in peace, Skip Caray.

Dave Niehaus Day ...
Hall of Fame broadcaster Dave Niehaus is drawing standing ovations and lots of old friends - Edgar Martinez, Jay Buhner and Dan Wilson among them.
The grounds crew raked 'My Oh My' into the infield and the team dedicated the 'Dave Niehaus Broadcast Center.'
Mostly, it was the chance for the home crowd to cheer a man many consider part of their family.
Congrats, Dave. ...

Meanwhile, About That Lefty ...
Erik Bedard played catch for the first time since a tender left shoulder sidelined him a month ago.
It was nothing too strenuous - 30 throws from 60 feet - but there was no discomfort. The plans are for Bedard to play catch daily, expanding the effort until it's determined he can throw from the mound.
Will he pitch again this season? Neither Bedard nor the team is certaibn of that.
Still, it's a start. ...

Speaking of starting pitchers...
For all the hue and cry about not dumping Jarrod Washburn last week, today's starter - Carlos Silva - may be a bigger issue, long term.
Silva's the first to admit this is the worst season he's been through. With two months left, starting today, Silva needs to show the competitiveness - and the sinker - that made him an attractive free agent.
Silva is signed through 2011, and if he's not an effective starter he has no role.
What does he need today? Innings. He hasn't gotten past the third in either of his last two starts, and has one victory since April.
A 1-2-3 first inning for Silva. ...

Now Playing Center Field ...
He's not Junior and he's not Mike Cameron, so who is Jeremy Reed and what are his chances of playing center for Seattle next season?
Reed hit .346 in the Pacific Coast League and started the day batting .260 with the Mariners - then doubled home a run and scored another in the first inning.
An able defensive outfielder, Reed is a line drive hitter. He doesn't have home run power or a great arm, and his career average is .254.
Given the chance to platoon with Willie Bloomquist, Reed is trying to prove he's better than the player Seattle thought it got in that 2004 Freddy Garcia trade.
Top of the 2nd:
Seattle 2, Baltimore 2 ...

Lucky LaHair ...
Rookie first baseman Bryan LaHair came into the game batting .306, and two of his first 11 hits were infield singles.
"If Bryan gets an infield hit, it's probably not because he's doing something right," joked manager Jim Riggleman.
LaHair has two home runs and 10 singles in his big-league career - and has a little bit of luck working for him.
LaHair's fourth-inning single was an opposite field bloop that dropped just in front of a diving Luke Scott.
They all count.
To the bottom of the sixth:
Baltimore 4, Seattle 3 ...

A New Streak ...
Jose Lopez lost his 19-game hitting streak Saturday, so he started a new one with a game-tying sixth-inning home run.
Lopez has become a dangerous man at the plate - he leads the American League with a .286 average with two strikes.
Bottom six:
Seattle 4, Baltimore 4 ...

The Silva Lining ...
Silva left after 6 2/3 innings, and while he gave up four runs, leaves with the game tied.
It's his best start in weeks.
J.J. Putz, who hadn't pitched since Wednesday, came into the game in the seventh and got a quick pop up.
Still tied ...

A Mariners Rally ...
The team without an identity has charged into the lead with a rally that included two walks, an infield single and a fielders choice - then a Raul Ibanez two-run single.
Excuse the Orioles for wondering what just happened to them.
On Jeff Clement's infield single and Ichiro's fielders choice, Brian Roberts fielded the ball cleanly but couldn't get an out.
Bottom 7:
Seattle 7, Baltimore 4 ...

Speed Wins Games ...
Jose Vidro singled, stole second and scored on a Jeff Clement single. It was Vidro's second steal of the season.
For those worried about Vidro getting enough at-bats to kick in his '09 contract option, relax. He has 303 at-bats and needs 600 plate appearances to force the option.
He won't get them.
Seattle 8, Baltimore 4 ...

Who's That Lefty? ...
Erik Bedard, sidelined by a tender left shoulder since early last month, will play catch for the first time since going on the disabled list Sunday.
How close is he to pitching again? Not very, and if the shoulder doesn't respond quickly, he could be shut down for the rest of the season rather than risk further injury. ...

Let The Kids Play ...
Nice first-inning matchup - Felix Hernandez vs. Adam Jones, and after fouling three pitches, Jones singled into left-center field.
Great kid, great makeup, marvelous talent. And that goes for both of them. They'd have been happier as teammates. ...

Learning To Lay It Down ...
Yuniesky Betancourt hasn't played since failing to make contact on a squeeze play in Texas, but most of that stretch is because of a sore elbow.
Still, about four hours before game time, Betancourt was on the field with a few other players taking extra batting practice - and doing a lot of bunting.
He should return to the lineup Sunday. ...

Ichiro Uses His Head & Arm ...
On an RBI single by Ramon Hernandez, Ichiro came up with the ball cleanly but saw little chance of getting the runner at home.
Instead, he turned his attention to third base and threw there in time to easily catch Kevin Millar in a run down.
A throw home might have been more spectacular. Ichiro went for the out and got it.
Baltimore 2, Seattle 1. ...

Goodnight, Felix ...
Dave will hate this, but Hernandez left the game after five innings and 109 pitches. Why?
Felix had one easy inning tonight, everything else was under duress, and in the fifth he left the bases loaded.
He wasn't particularly sharp, allowing 10 base runners, and Riggleman decided enough was enough.
Sean Green now pitching. ...

Find The Bats ...
Hard to imagine the Mariners hitting the ball any softer than they have tonight.
Through seven innings they have three hits, one since the first inning. Jeremy Guthrie has them stymied on two doubles and an infield single.
Cesar Jimenez pitching.
Baltimore 3, Seattle 1 ...

In need of relief help to fill the hole left by Arthur Rhodes, the Seattle Mariners have brought up left-hander Jake Woods - and no one was more surprised than Woods.

"I got the call at 9:30 a.m., and when your minor league manager calls you, it's one of three things - you're either going up, being released or being traded," Woods said. "It's never that you're being asked to breakfast."

Woods had pitched well for the Rainiers, going 6-1 with a save and a 4.08 ERA in 32 appearances.

Woods has spent parts of three seasons in the majors and, at age 26, will be the Mariners long reliever.
Today's starting lineups:
Orioles
Roberts, 2B
Jones, CF
Markakis, RF
Huff, DH
Mora, 3B
Scott, LF
Millar, RF
Hernandez, C
Castro, SS
Guthrie, RHP

Mariners
Ichiro, RF
Reed, CF
Ibanez, LF
Beltre, 3B
Lopez, 2B
Vidro, DH
LaHair, 1B
Clement, C
Bloomquist, SS
Hernandez, RHP

Ok here we go, I'm going to try and be as punctual and fast as Lash is at this. But I make no promises. I will also try and go in a similar order.

7:17 -- Remember Adam Jones? Of course, what am I saying. Well, he just singled to right off of Jarrod Washburn and then scored on Nick Markakis' deep double to right-center. It's something that Baltimore fans hope to see for many years to come. Washburn got out of the inning with a nice changeup for a strikeout on Aubrey Huff and getting Melvin Mora to fly out to deep center. Baltimore 1, Seattle 0

7:29 --- Strange play there, Willie tried to bunt and the ball came up and hit as he was going to first. He was called out and the official scoring on play is - 2U - or catcher unassisted on the putout. That hurt because Raul scalded a one-hopper to Brian Roberts at second for an inning ending double play.

Also Arthur Lee Rhodes spoke with the media today in Florida before the game. Here's a story on it.

7:41 -- Well the second inning was interesting for Jarrod Washburn. Jeremy Reed makes a nice catch plowing into the centerfield wall, but then he misjudges another flyball that goes over his head for a double. That was followed by a pair of Washburn walks to load the bases, but he got out of it

8:02 -- I'm not going to lie, I wanted to keep posting some interesting stuff, but nothing has really happened. It's actually pretty boring the last few innings. Still 1-0 Baltimore.

As of right now, Jarrod Washburn's pitch count is at 70 pitches after just three innings, so maybe not calling up that extra reliever today wasn't such a great idea.

And since there is nothing exciting happening here offensively for the Mariners, I will inform you that Wlad Balentien just crushed a three-run home run to left field for the Rainiers.

8:24 -- Well, Jarrod Washburn's evening is done after just four and 2/3 innings. He didn't look very sharp tonight. His location was just not very crisp. And he fell behind hitters consistently. He gave up three runs and left a two-out bases loaded mess for Roy Corcoran to try and get out of. Corcoran promptly gave up a double to Jay Payton that scored all three runs. All of the runs are credited to Washburn and it's now 6-0. I won't blame you if you change the channel.

8:37 -- Eight runs later it's finally over - the inning that is. The Orioles scored eight runs in the inning, all on two outs. It was not pretty. It tied the most runs given up by the Mariners in an inning this season, the other occurrence came on May 23rd against the Yankees in the fifth inning. Washburn gave up six runs on nine hits with four walks ... of Washburn's 96 pitches, 56 were strikes.

9:09 --- Anybody know who Garrett Olson is? Because right now, he's shutting out the Mariners. Seattle did have a good chance to get some runs, but Jay Payton made a nice running catch on Kenji Johima's sinking liner to left to end the threat.

So does anybody know who Garrett Olson is?

Is anybody out there? Anybody? Anybody? Bueller? Bueller?

It's 10-0.

Anyone?

9:40 -- Who's willing to bet that a certain poster on this blog will not be happy with Dave Trembley's decision to pull Olson with one out in the bottom of the ninth. Olson had never pitched a complete game in his career, and now he won't -- much to that certain poster's chagrin.

9:53 -- The loudest cheer of the night just happened as the Mariners finally scored a run in the bottom of the ninth. So instead of being shut out with 11 hits, the Mariners now have one run on 12 hits on Kenji Johjima's soft infield single.

10:01 -- The Mariners have just scored four runs on four balls that never traveled further than 100 feet. And even with that late fury, the Mariners still lose 10-5.

Lash has the game tomorrow. I'm helping out by filling in for our Rainiers writer, so I'll try and get some interesting stuff from there.

Baltimore (51-56)
Brian Roberts 2B
Adam Jones CF
Nick Markakis RF
Aubrey Huff DH
Melvin Mora 3B
Ramon Hernandez C
Kevin Millar 1B
Jay Payton LF
Juan Castro SS
--------------
Garrett Olson LHP

Seattle (41-67)
Ichiro RF
Bloomquist SS
Ibanez LF
Beltre 3B
Lopez 2B
Vidro DH
Cairo 1B
Johjima C
Reed CF
---------
Washburn P

We've got two guys up here tonight for the monumental, season-changing series with the Baltimore Orioles. Actually, Doug Pacey is up here to cover the game, while I sat and reminisced with Adam Jones about the simpler times in Cheney Stadium in Tacoma.

Actually, Jones is quite giddy today and in a good mood. First of all, it's his 23rd birthday today, but more than that it's because he's raised his average to .275 this season. He's hit in 22 of his last 29 games, going 37-for-118 with two doubles, four triples, three homers and 20 RBI. Since June 1, he's hitting .300 (60-for-200) with seven doubles, four triples, five homers, 31 runs scored and 31 RBI.

A few things from Jim Riggleman's media gathering ...

The Mariners will go to battle with 24 players tonight. Seattle hasn't decided on who to call up to replace Arthur Rhodes' spot on the 25-man roster, so they will go with no one tonight. Since R.A. Dickey went 7 2/3 the other night, the Mariners bullpen is pretty rested.

As to who it will be, Riggleman wasn't certain.

“It’s going to be a reliever,” he said. “We’re just going to try and go through it here for another week and see what we have. Whoever we bring up will go to our bullpen immediately.”
Riggleman said the team was considering “two or three” pitchers.

If he's looking at relievers from the Rainiers, they have righthanders Jared Wells, Jon Huber, Oscar Villareal or Jorge Sosa. Not much in the way of lefthanded relief help, other than Jake Woods. But Seattle has Cesar Jimenez in the bullpen.

* From Doug: Injury updates
Shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt’s sore right elbow – his throwing arm – will likely keep him out of the starting lineup until at least Sunday, Riggleman said. Betancourt hasn’t played since Tuesday because of a “tender” throwing arm.

“Had sore elbow last year, it popped up again,” Riggleman said. “Rather than let it be a chronic thing, we’re going to let it calm down. When he says it’s calmed down and he can fire the ball around, we’ll run him out there.”

Riggleman said Betancourt told him he would be ready to play today, but the manager will probably hold him out for an extra day to make sure Betancourt’s elbow has been rested enough.

Catcher Jeff Clement, suffering from a bruised right thumb, told Riggleman that it feels well enough to hit and he should be ready to throw today. Clement hasn’t played since Monday.

Starting pitcher Erik Bedard, who hasn’t pitched since July 4, will throw in the bullpen on Sunday, Riggleman said. He was put on the disabled list on July 10 because of stiffness in his shoulder.

Let's get to some links really quickly ...

* Here's Larry's game story from today's paper which leads with R.A. Dickey making a case for the starting rotation. Would anybody argue putting Dickey in over Batista at this point?

* Here's the story on the Arthur Rhodes trade and GM Lee Pelekoudas' assessment of what went down.

* Columnist John McGrath offered up his own take on the Mariners trade deadline moves, or lack thereof, in this column.

* Rainiers starter Andy Baldwin, who was acquired in the Jamie Moyer trade, had a strong outing last night.

* Speaking of the Rainiers, the voice of the Rainiers, and friend of this blog Mike Curto was on KJR with Ian Furness today, here's the audio of the interview.

Trade Deadline winners and losers ... I'm sure you know where most people put the Mariners.
* SI's Jon Heyman and ESPN's Jayson Stark offer up their opinions.

Here's the lineups ...
Baltimore (51-56)
Brian Roberts 2B
Adam Jones CF
Nick Markakis RF
Aubrey Huff DH
Melvin Mora 3B
Ramon Hernandez C
Kevin Millar 1B
Jay Payton LF
Juan Castro SS
--------------
Garrett Olson LHP

Seattle (41-67)
Ichiro RF
Bloomquist SS
Ibanez LF
Beltre 3B
Lopez 2B
Cairo 1B
Johjima C
Reed CF
---------
Washburn LHP

... see this guy playing every day at Safeco Field

Or would you rather see this guy ...

I ask this question today because I was listening to KJR on Thursday, preparing myself mentally before going on with Ian Furness for an interview, and I heard a caller trying to justify the lack of moves with veteran players by saying "they want to put a winning team on the field that will keep fans coming to games."

Is that his best logic? How have those veterans done for the first 108 games? Not so good. 41-67 to be exact. It's not the like the Mariners have rolled out a winning product for any extended period this season.

But instead of continuing to insult this callers' apparent ignorance - which is like reminding Ms fans of how terrible the Jason Varitek, Derek Lowe deadline trade for Heathcliff Slocumb was for them - I instead wonder what Mariners fans want to see at this point.

Do you want to see Jose Vidro, Miguel Cairo and the like go out there and try to scrap their ways to meaningless victories that would only minutely soften the catastrophic results of this season?

OR

Do you want to see younger guys like Jeff Clement, Wlad Balentien, Bryan LaHair getting plenty of big league innings and at-bats and pitchers like Ryan Rowland-Smith, Ryan Feirabend and even Brandon Morrow make starts to help them improve, along with plenty of Sept. call-ups and late playing time for players like Rob Johnson, Michael Saunders, Tug Hulett, Matt Tuisasosopo and Jared Wells?

Think about it for a second.

My answer is this: it seems totally logical for Vidro to be on this team for another day. Look the Mariners secretly held out some morbid hope that they might get something in a trade for him - something more than a used pine tar rag and a busted cup - but they didn't, so it's time to say adios. Jose Vidro is not a part of this team's future, and he shouldn't be. So ship him out and bring Balentien up again. Sure he struggled the first time, but you have to give him another shot, if only to prove to yourself whether he can play at the major league level or not.

So again I'm asking this: "Would you rather see the Mariners try and win games with guys like Jose Vidro, Miguel Cairo, Miguel Batista and Kenji Johjima? or Would you rather see the Mariners give some of their young players like Jeff Clement, Bryan LaHair and Wlad Balentien given chances to learn on the job of the final 54 games to prepare for next season and beyond?

It doesn't seem like a tough answer to me.