OAKLAND, Calif. – Sometimes, a plan comes together. Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon stacked the top of his lineup Saturday with a switch-hitter and four lefties in hopes of gaining a quick lead against Oakland starter Jesse Chavez.

OAKLAND, Calif. – Here was the other side of September baseball. The side in the shadows, away from the glare of the postseason chase. Two bottom-feeders playing out the string with expanded rosters. It was entertaining. Long and, at times, not particularly well played. But entertaining. The Mariners held on for an 11-8 victory over the Oakland Athletics when Tom Wilhelmsen pitched a scoreless ninth.

HOUSTON — The Houston Astros are second in the majors with 179 home runs. But on Tuesday night, it was the Seattle Mariners who put on a power display, hitting three homers capped by Logan Morrison’s tiebreaking two-run pinch-hit long ball in the eighth inning to get a 7-5 win over the Astros.

The Chicago Cubs acquired outfielder Austin Jackson from the Seattle Mariners on Monday, boosting their depth for their run at a possible playoff spot. Chicago sent a player to be named and money for an international draft slot to the Mariners.

CHICAGO – With two outs in the ninth, shortstop Brad Miller just had to make a routine throw to first base. Instead, he committed his 15th error of the season, allowing the White Sox to force extra innings.

CHICAGO – Why win a game comfortably by five runs when you can hang on by your fingernails for a one-run win? In a season where bullpen implosions and failures have led to drama-filled late innings in almost every game, the Mariners continued that trend on Saturday, but still managed to pick up a 7-6 win over the White Sox at a rain-soaked U.S. Cellular Field. “It was just one of those wild ones,” manager Lloyd McClendon said.

CHICAGO — The Seattle Mariners jumped out to a big lead, then did just enough to hold on for a win. Kyle Seager hit a two-run home run during a three-run first inning and the Mariners withstood Chicago’s late rally to beat the White Sox 7-6 Saturday night.

When Mariners President Kevin Mather on Friday characterized being a baseball general manager as “an impossible job,” he was speaking about the complexities and vast scope of the position. But for the past decade, that description has been all too true in Seattle. It’s been an impossible job for  the sitting Mariners GM to do well, at least, and Friday, Jack Zduriencik’s failures, like that of his predecessor, Bill Bavasi,  got him fired.