Yankees Work Over Mariners, 13-3 Loss, Kansas City Split Drops Seattle A Half-Game Back In Wild Card Race

Randy Johnson has been sidelined for nine days with an ailing shoulder, and two of the Seattle Mariners’ other starting pitchers haven’t lasted beyond the second inning the past two days. Another has a seven-stitch gash in his chin and wears a plastic mouthpiece when he works.

This is not what you could call being well-armed for the final month of the regular season with a playoff berth at stake.

On Sunday, the Mariners overcame Andy Benes’ brief and ineffective outing in Baltimore by scoring nine runs. An identical assault Monday wouldn’t have done them any good in New York.

The Yankees pounded starter Salomon Torres in the first inning and added to reliever Bobby Ayala’s miseries in the second en route to a 13-3 romp before 24,885 at Yankee Stadium.

Coupled with Kansas City’s doubleheader split with Toronto, the loss dropped the Mariners one-half game behind the Royals in the wild card race.

The Mariners spoke philosophically after a 19-hit Yankee assault that included three doubles, two triples and a Bernie Williams three-run homer.

“You are going to have days like this,” Ken Griffey Jr. said. “All you can do is forget about it and push on.”

Griffey returned to the lineup after a one-day respite to rest a sore wrist. He went 1 for 3 and, like most of the other starters, departed earlier than expected.

Manager Lou Piniella began pulling his position players by the fourth inning, giving this outing the look of a spring training game.

“It wasn’t a concession,” Piniella said, “but these kids have been playing every day for at least two weeks, maybe a month, and this was an opportunity to give them a little rest.”

Only third baseman Mike Blowers, catcher Chris Widger and second baseman Felix Fermin played the entire game.

The Mariners hadn’t been beaten this badly since June 30 in a 10-2 loss to Texas.

Although Piniella decided in Baltimore to give Torres a start in New York, they didn’t inform the right-hander until about 2 hours before Monday’s game.

He hoped Torres would pitch better on short notice. “We wanted four or five good innings from the starter and didn’t get it,” Piniella said. The right-hander pitched even worse than he did earlier this season when he earned a trip to the minor leagues by compiling a 3-7 record and 5.32 ERA in 15 appearances, including 12 starts.

Edgar Martinez presented Torres with a lead by hitting a two-run homer in the first inning off winner Andy Pettitte. By the time Torres recorded three outs in the bottom of the inning, the Yankees had three runs.

Right-handers Jim Mecir and Scott Davison, promoted from Class AAA Tacoma on Saturday, pitched the final six innings, allowing four runs between them.

Ayala’s woes continue. The former closer relieved Torres in the second inning, the earliest Ayala has pitched in a game in his two seasons with Seattle.

“We’re trying to get him turned around,” Piniella said, “and thought this might help.”