Seattle’s Vargas shuts down Cardinals
ST. LOUIS – Jason Vargas stymied the St. Louis Cardinals into the eighth inning and Matt Holliday failed again in the clutch in the Seattle Mariners’ 2-1 victory that prevented a three-game sweep on Wednesday night.
Holliday struck out on a ball in the dirt against Brandon League with the tying run at third to end the eighth, dropping his average to .194 with runners in scoring position.
Vargas (5-2) gave up a run on five hits in 7
Albert Pujols barely missed homering on a drive off the top of the wall in left-center in the fourth.
Ichiro Suzuki doubled and singled for his major league-leading 32nd multihit game and second in the series, and extended his interleague hitting streak to 20 games. Ichiro singled off Dennys Reyes to open the eighth and stole second, but was picked off by reliever Jason Motte.
David Aardsma worked the ninth for his 14th save in 18 chances.
Chone Figgins’ fifth-inning single was the go-ahead hit for the M’s, who won for the third time in 13 games. Ryan Langerhans’ RBI grounder gave the M’s their other run in the fourth.
Pujols’ near homer with one out in the fourth was the second call to undergo video review this season at Busch Stadium, both of which confirmed the original ruling. Second-base umpire Fieldin Culbreth said the ball had fallen just short, immediately waving the safe sign.
Left fielder Milton Bradley barely missed a leaping catch on Pujols’ drive, which seemed to lose steam on a humid night. Pujols politicked unsuccessfully as he stood at second but eventually scored on Ryan Ludwick’s sacrifice fly to tie it at 1.
Notes
Mariners LHP Erik Bedard (shoulder) threw 40 pitches in a simulated game. He’s scheduled for a light side session on Friday and then would make a three-inning rehab start for Rookie-level Peoria next week. … After lining out in the sixth, Mariners 3B Jose Lopez left with mild patella tendinitis in his left knee.
Mariners 2, Cardinals 1
| Seattle | AB | R | H | BI | BB | SO | Avg. |
| I.Suzuki rf | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .343 |
| Figgins 2b | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .230 |
| Bradley lf | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | .230 |
| Jo.Lopez 3b | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .233 |
| Tuiasosopo 3b | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .167 |
| Jo.Wilson ss | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .277 |
| Langerhans 1b | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | .182 |
| Alfonzo c | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .267 |
| Aardsma p | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | —- |
| M.Saunders cf | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .230 |
| J.Vargas p | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 |
| League p | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | —- |
| Ro.Johnson c | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .211 |
| Totals | 31 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 9 |
| St. Louis | AB | R | H | BI | BB | SO | Avg. |
| F.Lopez 2b | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .248 |
| Holliday lf | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .284 |
| Pujols 1b | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .308 |
| Ludwick rf | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .285 |
| Freese 3b | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .318 |
| Rasmus cf | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .292 |
| Y.Molina c | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .254 |
| J.Garcia p | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .192 |
| D.Reyes p | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | —- |
| Motte p | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| Stavinoha ph | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .314 |
| Winn pr | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .300 |
| T.Miller p | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | —- |
| B.Ryan ss | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .217 |
| Totals | 31 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 6 |
| Seattle | 000 | 110 | 000—2 | 6 | 0 |
| St. Louis | 000 | 100 | 000—1 | 6 | 0 |
LOB—Seattle 6, St. Louis 5. 2B—I.Suzuki (16), Pujols (15), Ludwick (18), Stavinoha (2). RBIs—Figgins (18), Langerhans (3), Ludwick (40). SB—I.Suzuki (20). CS—I.Suzuki (7). S—B.Ryan. SF—Ludwick. RLISP—Seattle 5 (Jo.Lopez, Alfonzo, Bradley, Jo.Wilson 2); St. Louis 2 (Holliday, Rasmus). GIDP—Alfonzo. DP—St. Louis 1 (F.Lopez, B.Ryan, Pujols).
| Seattle | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | NP | ERA |
| J.Vargas W, 5-2 | 72/3 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 94 | 2.88 |
| League H, 4 | 1/3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3.60 |
| Aardsma S, 14-18 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 13 | 5.57 |
| St. Louis | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | NP | ERA |
| J.Garcia L, 6-3 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 111 | 1.59 |
| D.Reyes | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 3.63 |
| Motte | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 18 | 2.25 |
| T.Miller | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 3.24 |
IR-S—League 1-0, Motte 1-0. HBP—by J.Garcia (Jo.Wilson). WP—J.Vargas. PB—Y.Molina 2. T—2:47. A—40,020 (43,975).