BOX SCORE
Apparently Franklin Gutierrez isn't like most players or me or a lot of people in that he doesn't hold grudges.

If Gutierrez got some pleasure for hitting the key two-run home run in tonight's win along with making yet another brilliant leaping catch, he isn't letting on.

One would think he would derive some added satisfaction beating his former team, that it appears may have given up on him a little prematurely.

His manager Don Wakamatsu understood if he did.

“I think for anybody who performs against a former team it’s always special,” Wakamatsu said.

But Gutierrez, who might be the most laid-back guy and quiet person in the cluhhouse, just shook his head at such a notion.

“I don’t think like that,” he said. “I treat them like any other team. I represent the Seattle Mariners now. Some people think it’s great to do against your old team. But for me it’s like any other team.”

Of course the circumstances of his departure weren’t tenuous. Gutierrez was one of the key pieces in the three-team trade that sent Seattle close J.J. Putz to the New York Mets in the offseason.

Gutierrez holds no ill will for Cleveland trading him.

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Ok, so in the midst of finishing my Sunday baseball column and pregame notebook, the game thread got ignored a little to which I apologize.

But here's the highlights thus far.

First inning
Franklin Gutierrez makes another stellar leaping catch against the wall. I'm sure Indians fans cringe a little bit at seeing him do so well the Mariners, yes they have Grady Sizemore, but you're telling me that an outfield of Gutierrez in left, Sizemore in center and Choo in right wouldn't be better, especially since Cleveland got Joe Smith and Luis Valbuena in that trade.

Second inning
Wlad Balentien delivers a "seed" to gun down Victor Martinez by 13 steps as he tries to leg out a double.

Third inning
Tomo Ohka is not good. He's done. He's been done. He tried to pitch for the Rainiers and got rocked last year, I was on hand to witness the abuse. Of course would it surprise me if the Mariners struggled to hit him. No, nothing surprises me about Seattle offensively. They've blown two good scoring chance already

Fourth Inning
Remember how I said that the Indians might miss Gutierrez, there was a pretty good sized groan at Progressive Field when Gutierrez just ripped a homer to right-center with Griffey on to give Seattle a 2-0 lead. It was an estimated 403 feet.

Hmm Gutierrez at .296 with 12 homers and 40 RBI, or Francisco .235 with six homers and 25 RBI.

Don't mess with Jack Z --- His new theme song should by "Eye in the Sky" by the Alan Parsons Project.

I am the eye in the sky
Looking at you
I can read your mind
I am the maker of rules
Dealing with fools
I can cheat you blind
And I don't need to see any more
To know that
I can read your mind, I can read your mind

Fifth Inning
Oh that Ronny Cedeno, he's threating to get over .200 soon. He hits a lead off double and later scores on Russell Branyan's sac fly.

Washburn meanwhile is on cruise control.

Sixth inning
Grady Sizemore robs Jack Hannahan of a sure double with a nice leaping catch at the wall in left-center. THat's two nice catches this game.

Washburn gets into his first little bit of trouble with runners on first and second with two outs. He fell behind 3-1 to Shin-Soo Choo, but got the former Mariner to ground out to end the inning.

Seventh Inning
The Indians are on the board, albeit a bit questionably. Washburn gives up a lead-off double to Victor Martinez and then walks Travis Hafner. But he got two quick outs. With two outs, Washburn left a pitch out over the plate and Jamey Carroll dumped it into center. Gutierrez came up throwing and made a good throw home. The ball bounced just slightly but catcher Rob Johnson made a good play and a good tag, but home plate umpire Dana DeMuth ruled him safe, saying he slid under the tag. Wakamatsu chatted with DeMuth and didn't seem pleased. He won't pleased to see that replays showed Johnson getting Martinez by about six inches.

Wak then lifted a miffed Washburn and went the Sean White, who ended the inning by getting Ben Francisco to ground out.

Eighth inning
A nice uneventful inning for Sean White.

Russell Branyan will get tomorrow off. The tweaked back that he suffered on Thursday still isn't exactly 100 percent. And while it isn't hurting him, it's uncomfortable enough to where he's afraid to do some things to make it worse - a perfect example would be the 3-6-3 double play where he seemed to be running at 3/4 speed to first base.

There was some thought that Branyan would be sitting today. And it was something that manager Don Wakamatsu considered.

"We talked about him coming in early and getting some treatment and making the decision at that point," Wakamatsu said. "But yeah, we talked about giving him the day off and making it three days. He reassured me he wanted to be in there, and his back was going in the direction we wanted it to, rather than getting worse."

Branyan has clearly been struggling of late, even before the all-star break. He's 1-for-9 on the road trip and has just three hits in his last 30 at-bats.
"
He knows he's been struggling of late, in combination with his back," Wakamatsu said. "From our standpoint, what we're more concerned about is it a point where it's getting worse. Today he said it was getting better. Tomorrow we'll probably give him a day off, that would give him two. Obviously, we had the All-Star break, we don't want him to sit out too long."

Branyan lobbied to play telling Wakamatsu he wanted to "fight through some of the offensive struggles." It's a commendable attitude that Wakamatsu appreciates. But remember Branyan is on pace to start more games and log more at-bats than ever has in his career.

"He's done so much for this club," Wakamatsu said. "Every player gets to a point, especially a player in his situation where you keep telling everyone on this club. It's not a matter of holding on, it's a matter of continuing to push and do whatever you can for the club."

So what is wrong with Branyan exactly?

"Offensively, it's hard to put your finger on what he's going through the last couple of weeks. Is he pressing too much? Is it his swing mechanically?," Wakamatsu said. "There's a lot of different factors, but the biggest thing for him is just try to retain the routine he had in the first half, and push it through the second half. The back doesn't help. That's what we're juggling right now."

Part of the reason for Branyan's struggles on this road trip may be playing Cleveland itself. The Indians were the organization that drafted him, groomed him for the big leagues, hyped him for stardom and then washed their hands of him when it didn't happen. For the first time, Branyan is having the success expected and on some level he may be trying a little too hard to justify it to his old club. At least Wakamatsu thinks it's a possibility.

"Absolutely. There's always going to be some anxiety to try to prove, 'hey you let me go,' or whatever it is, coming back to where it all started for him," he said. "Obviously, it would bring back memories for a lot of people. Those are all things he needs to go through, grow, and continue on. We believe in him as a player and what he can do. I think he can be a premiere hitter. But half a season doesn't make a season, and that's what we're trying to tell him right now. Just keep pushing. You've got to fight through things like this.

Mariners (47-43)
Ichiro RF
Branyan 1B
Lopez 2B
Griffey DH
Gutierrez CF
Johnson C
Hannahan 3B
Balentien RF
Cedeno SS
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LHP Washburn

Indians
Sizemore CF
Cabrera SS
Choo RF
Martinez C
Hafner DH
Peralta 3B
Garko 1B
Carroll 2B
Francisco LF
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RHP Ohka