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Seattle Mariners

German Marquez baffles Mariners in Rockies’ 7-1 victory

Colorado’s Charlie Blackmon hits a solo home run off Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Felix Hernandez during the first inning Friday in Seattle. (Stephen Brashear / AP)
Colorado’s Charlie Blackmon hits a solo home run off Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Felix Hernandez during the first inning Friday in Seattle. (Stephen Brashear / AP)
By Curtis Crabtree Associated Press

SEATTLE – German Marquez limited the Seattle Mariners to one run and five hits, and Tony Wolters drove in three runs on a pair of triples to help the Colorado Rockies cruise to a 7-1 victory Friday night.

Marquez (7-8) walked none and didn’t allow a hit until the fourth inning, and struck out five in six innings.

Wolters wasn’t supposed to be in the lineup, but he started at catcher after Tom Murphy was scratched before the game so he could return to Denver to be with his wife, Lindsay, who’s giving birth to their second child. Wolters delivered an RBI triple in the second and a two-run triple in the sixth as the Rockies took a 6-0 lead.

Wolters also blocked a pitch in the dirt from Marquez and managed to flip the ball back to Marquez covering the plate to retire an advancing Dee Gordon in the bottom of the sixth.

Charlie Blackmon homered off Felix Hernandez (8-7) to give Colorado a 1-0 lead in the first. Hernandez allowed hits to Carlos Gonzalez and Trevor Story before getting out of the early jam.

Raimel Tapia doubled over the right-field wall before Wolters’ first triple extended the Rockies’ advantage to 2-0. DJ LeMahieu’s sacrifice fly scored Wolters.

Hernandez was driven from the game after five innings, having allowed three runs and eight hits with two strikeouts.

Colorado quickly piled on against Roenis Elias in the sixth. After Ian Desmond reached on an error and Tapia walked, Wolters tripled again to drive them in. A double by LeMahieu scored Wolters as the Rockies made it 6-0.

Denard Span hit a solo homer off Marquez in the sixth to get the Mariners on the scoreboard.

Gonzalez drove in Blackmon on a double in the eighth off Nick Rumbelow to extend Colorado’s lead to 7-1.

Marjama retires

Mariners catcher Mike Marjama informed the team that he is retiring from baseball to take a position with the National Eating Disorders Association. Marjama, 28, was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma on April 20 after making the team’s opening day roster. He appeared in 10 games this season, batting .111 with three doubles, two walks and six strikeouts. Seattle now has three openings on its 40-man roster.