Pen Lets M’S Down Once Again

They went to a four-man rotation to hide their most glaring deficiency, middle relief, but that is all the Seattle Mariners have been able to do - hide it.

Any time an opposing team lifts the veil of secrecy off the soft underbelly of the Seattle bullpen, the Mariners lose.

The box score this morning will tell you the California Angels beat starter Chris Bosio and the Mariners on Sunday, 7-5. Don’t believe it.

A line drive off the right shin forced Bosio out of the game after three innings, and the Angels milked four more runs out of the Seattle bullpen to offset the M’s offense.

“We’re short; there are areas we have to shore up and can’t find the people to do it with,” manager Lou Piniella said. “When we have to go to the bullpen early, that’s not our strength.”

Journeymen Dave Fleming and Bob Wells and rookie Ron Villone are the best the Mariners have available at this point, and each has earned his big-league shot with solid performances. None has earned the right to keep his job, however, in the role that keeps costing the Mariners games - middle and long relief.

Bosio, hit by a first-inning line drive, shook off the pain and pitched three innings, but coughed up a 2-0 lead and left trailing 3-2.

“If our bullpen holds them there or just keeps them close, it’s a different game,” Piniella said.

Didn’t happen. Fleming pitched 3 1/3 innings and gave up one run in the fourth, sixth and seventh innings, twice fueling Angels rallies with a wild pitch. Wells came on in the seventh, gave up a sacrifice fly, but got out of one jam, then left after allowing a leadoff single in the eighth - and that runner scored as well.

Though the Mariners left 11 men on base, five different Seattle hitters had an RBI and the M’s brought the tying or go-ahead run to the plate in each of the last three innings.

California countered with relievers Troy Percival and Lee Smith, and the Angels held Seattle at bay - pushing them five games back in the American League West.

Three games into this four-game series, into a 10-game homestand against their own division, the Mariners have seen their weaknesses exposed. A team built around a core group of hitters - Ken Griffey Jr., Edgar Martinez, Jay Buhner and Tino Martinez - is far too reliant on players without glowing major league credentials.

“These kids play hard,” Piniella said. “We’ve got speed if we can get on base. But when they’re not on base, our big hitters can’t do much.”

Off-season acquisitions Alex Diaz and Joey Cora, for instance, were a combined 0 for 9 in the first two spots of the lineup. That meant three doubles by Edgar Martinez - batting a league-high .371 - failed to produce an RBI.

And a team that has to rely too often on role players like Luis Sojo, Doug Strange, Diaz, Cora, Felix Fermin, Gary Thurman, Rich Amaral and Chris Widger is going to find it difficult to contend.

Then there’s the bullpen.

Right-handers Jeff Nelson, Bill Risley and Bobby Ayala have been reliable closing out games when the Mariners can get a starting pitcher through six innings. The reason they went to a four-man rotation was to minimize the games where a starting pitcher couldn’t get that far.

The results so far are mixed, Piniella admitted, but until there’s a viable alternative - meaning another starting pitcher - he said he’ll stay with the four-man.

And in games like this one, or on Friday when Tim Belcher was hit hard and exited early, Seattle will risk taking a pounding by going to struggling relief pitchers.

Fleming (7.49 earned-run average) leads the league in home runs allowed (15). Wells (8.42 ERA) has allowed 44 hits and 12 walks in 31 innings. And Villone (7.00 ERA), still feeling his way in the big leagues, has walked 22 in 18 innings.

“Steve Frey will be coming off the disabled list soon, and that will help a little. Give us a left-hander with some more experience,” Piniella said, “and we’ll have to make other adjustments. Today, if we stop them along the way, we have a chance.

“Part of that is the Angels - that’s a good little ball club. Part of it is our bullpen not keeping them close. It’s not like we haven’t looked for solutions… . We’re going to have to keep trying.”