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Thursday, Jul. 6 10:05pm ET
M's series-winning streak stopped at 9 | |||||
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GAME LOG
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) -- Jarrod Washburn worked through constant back pain to lead the Anaheim Angels to a victory over the Seattle Mariners. "I had a couple of knots in my back and it tightened up more and more every inning," said Washburn, who allowed just four hits in five innings in Thursday night's 5-1 victory. "After the fourth, I had the trainer work on it a little and it loosened up pretty much. I felt all right after that, but I made a lot of pitches and it was precautionary that they took me out." Washburn (5-2) held the team with the fewest hits in the AL to three singles and a double to ruin the Mariners' bid to win 10 consecutive series. Mo Vaughn and Tim Salmon homered and Scott Spiezio singled home two runs for the Angels, who salvaged a split of the four-game. The victory put the Angels within six games of the Mariners with three games left before the All-Star break. The loss reduced Seattle's lead over second-place Oakland to three games. It also marked the first time the Mariners failed to win a series since May 29-31, when they lost two of three to Chicago at Safeco Field. "It was important that we won this game," Vaughn said. "We want to be no more than five or six games back at the break. That puts us in striking distance and lets us do some things. We just have to continue to play hard these next three games and see what happens." Washburn pitched with runners in scoring position three times but did not allow a run. He got a huge break in the fifth, when left fielder Darin Erstad went full speed to grab Alex Rodriguez's drive in the alley with two men on. Mark McLemore was trapped off second base for an inning-ending double play. "Washburn made some good pitches to get out of jams, and we weren't able to get that big hit to drive in the runs," Seattle's John Olerud said. "He did a real good job of shutting us down." The left-hander, who took a no-hitter into the seventh against Oakland in his previous start, struck out five, walked three and allowed fewer than three runs for the fifth time in six outings. "I wasn't really pleased with the way I threw, but I kept putting up zeroes and we won the game. So I've got to be happy with the outcome," Washburn said. "I don't think I can go out and pitch like that every five days and expect to win." The Mariners, who haven't been shut out since opening day against Boston, did not get a runner to third base until the eighth. One-out singles by Edgar Martinez off Mike Fyhrie and Olerud off Mike Holtz put runners at the corners before Jay Buhner lined Mark Petkovsek's first pitch to left field to drive in Martinez. After preventing the Mariners from scoring in the first inning for the first time in the series, the Angels took the lead against Paul Abbott (5-3) in the bottom of the first on Vaughn's two-out solo homer to center field. Erstad drew a leadoff walk in the third and scored on Salmon's two-out homer to center for a 3-0 lead. Salmon's 18 homers are one more than he hit in 98 games last season, when he missed 2½ months because of a sprained left wrist. Spiezio, starting at third base because of first-time All-Star Troy Glaus' 1-for-29 drought, increased the lead to 5-0 in the sixth with a bases-loaded two-run single that chased Abbott. Abbott was charged with five runs, five hits and five walks in 5 1-3 innings, after going 4-0 with a 2.13 ERA in his previous six starts. Game notesThe Angels optioned INF Justin Baughman to Triple-A Edmonton and activated INF Kevin Stocker from the 15-day DL. Stocker was sidelined because of tendinitis in his left knee. ... Rickey Henderson drew his 2,019th career walk in the fifth to tie Ted Williams for the second-most walks in major league history. Babe Ruth tops the list with 2,062. ... Angels LHP Kent Mercker, hospitalized for 12 days after a cerebral hemorrhage forced him out of his May 11 start, passed a stress test on Wednesday after last week's angiogram came back negative. "I'm planning on pitching in July," said Mercker, who returned to the Angels' clubhouse last Friday for the first time. "In my mind, I'm done being monitored. I've been going crazy sitting around and not being able to do anything." | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Seattle Clubhouse Anaheim Clubhouse RECAPS NY Yankees 13 Baltimore 9
Anaheim 5
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