Johnson Winces, M’S Win Back Pain Forces Seattle Ace To Sit, But Late Rally Sets Down Milwaukee

After losing five of their last six games, the Seattle Mariners watched their situation worsen Friday night.

They lost Randy Johnson. They lost Edgar Martinez’s 13-game hitting streak. They lost another lead.

“What we won tonight was the ninth inning,” manager Lou Piniella said.

And with it the game - a 6-5 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers that was nothing if not entertaining.

“We do make it interesting, don’t we?” asked reliever Norm Charlton.

Martinez’s final at-bat on a night when the Brewers walked him twice snapped his hitting streak but put Seattle ahead for good when his double-play grounder scored Luis Sojo from third base.

Closer Charlton then slammed the door on the Brewers, though not before opening it on his own, for a save that pushed the Mariners’ club-record start to 14-9.

“A nice little come-from-behind win,” Piniella called it. “You start a road trip 0-2, any win is a nice little win.”

Given the circumstances, this one may have been more. Johnson, the designated breaker of Seattle losing streaks, began the game with a stiff back that got worse as the game went on and the temperatures dipped. Two outs into the fourth inning - tied at 2 with a man on base - Johnson called Piniella to the mound.

“I don’t think it’s serious, but I didn’t want to keep going and cost the team a game, and I didn’t want to hurt myself to the point I couldn’t come back for my next turn,” Johnson said.

Piniella agreed, and went to his bullpen. Before Edwin Hurtado could get the final out of the inning, Milwaukee led 4-2.

Seattle scrambled back to tie it again, using the second of rookie Andy Sheets’ two doubles, a Rich Amaral triple and Sojo’s RBI single in the seventh inning.

The first batter Hurtado faced in the Milwaukee seventh inning, catcher Matt Matheny, homered to give the Brewers a 5-4 lead. Piniella brought in Rafael Carmona.

“Hurtado has been a bit of a mystery this season,” Piniella said. “Is that diplomatic enough?”

Russ Davis singled in the eighth inning and, on a hit-and-run, stole second base - the first steal of his big-league career.

“If I’d known that,” joked Piniella, “I wouldn’t have (had) run him.”

Perched on second, Davis scored on Dan Wilson’s single, and the game was tied a third time.

“That’s the kind of games we’re playing this trip,” Wilson said. “Everything is close. They’re all up for grabs late.”

Against a shaky Brewers bullpen, Sojo led off the ninth inning with a walk, scrambled to third base on a Ken Griffey Jr. single and then scored when Martinez grounded into his double play, and all the Mariners needed was three outs.

They went to the closer who has had nothing to close this season. Through the first 23 games, Charlton had one save - and one save opportunity. On Friday, he got his second chance. And promptly screwed up.

Rookie Mark Loretta grounded a ball toward right field that both first baseman Paul Sorrento and second baseman Joey Cora lunged for. Cora gloved it, whirled on his knees and had no one to throw to.

Charlton wasn’t covering first base.

After forcing Loretta at second base on Matheny’s attempted sacrifice bunt, Charlton threw a forkball that bounced well in front of the plate and past Wilson, putting the tying run at second base with one out.

Wilson went to the mound.

“He said ‘Throw forkballs,”’ Charlton said.

“The best thing you can do after one gets by you is call it again on the next pitch,” Wilson said. Using a steady stream of forkballs, Charlton struck out Jeff Cirillo and Pat Listach to end the game. Wilson stopped every pitch, including those that bounced.

“I’d be lying if I said I don’t want to save 60 games,” Charlton said, “but when you’ve lost five out of six, the biggest thing is the win, not the save. That’s what we all had to do tonight: win.”