M’S Bullpen Serves Up Another Loss Seattle Wastes Three Hrs In 8-3 Defeat At Toronto

Seattle Mariners manager Lou Piniella has said over the past two weeks that his team is situated better now than it was earlier in the season.

And the team has showed some promise, moving back into first place in the American League West.

But one flaw continues to show its ugly face.

When the starting pitching springs a leak, the bullpen has a tendency to turn it into a raging flood.

Tuesday at Skydome, Seattle turned the usual recipe for victory - three home runs and six shutout innings from Jamie Moyer - into a loss when its relievers couldn’t get out of the seventh inning in an 8-3 loss to the Blue Jays.

The bullpen couldn’t strand its inherited runners and a three-run lead fell apart.

When Moyer tired, leaving with the bases loaded in the seventh, Scott Sanders entered. He gave up a sacrifice fly to left that also saw Carlos Delgado tag up and sneak into second. With first base open, Seattle elected to intentionally walk pinch-hitter Orlando Merced to set up a force at any base for the third out.

Sanders left in favor of Norm Charlton and the still two- run lead evaporated with a blooper that turned into a triple by pinch-hitter Juan Samuel.

Samuel fisted a forkball into short right and Jay Buhner couldn’t get to it before it bounced past him, clearing the bases and giving Toronto a 4-3 lead.

In two-thirds of an inning, Charlton gave up five hits, four runs and got thrown out of the game for hitting a batter after he gave up a home run to Charlie O’Brien.

Charlton’s earned-run average is now 8.19.

Charlton eventually got out of the seventh after Toronto batted through the lineup for five runs. He started the eighth and things actually were uglier.

Leadoff batter Ed Sprague hit a pitch off the center field fence and raced around to third. Ken Griffey Jr.’s throw sailed over third baseman Russ Davis’ head and Charlton was standing on the rubber instead of backing up. Sprague ran home for what a Little League mom would tell her son was a home run.

A double and strikeout preceeded O’Brien’s shot over the left-field fence for an 8-3 lead. Charlton then hit Merced and got tossed by plate ump Joe Brinkman.

Charlton has now allowed nine of 17 inherited runners to score.

Moyer gave up just two hits through six innings and Seattle led 3-0 by driving three pitches over the fence.

Blue Jays starter Pat Hentgen, the 1996 American League Cy Young Award winner, gave up solo home runs to Buhner, Joey Cora and Griffey.

M’s swing trade

In a swap of minor-league pitchers, the Mariners sent right-hander Paul Menhart to San Diego for right-hander Andres Beruman.

Menhart, 28, was 4-7 with a 6.16 earned-run average in 15 games with Triple A Tacoma of the Pacific Coast League. Beruman, 26, was 2-0 with a 5.45 ERA in 18 games with Las Vegas of the PCL.

Blue Jays 8, Mariners 3

Seattle AB R H BI BB SO Avg. Cora 2b 5 1 1 1 0 1 .355 ARodriguez ss 4 0 1 0 0 1 .316 Griffey Jr cf 3 1 1 1 1 0 .303 EMartinez dh 4 0 1 0 0 1 .328 Buhner rf 3 1 2 1 1 1 .230 Sorrento 1b 4 0 1 0 0 0 .283 DaWilson c 4 0 1 0 0 0 .299 Cruz Jr lf 4 0 3 0 0 0 .364 RDavis 3b 3 0 0 0 0 2 .289 Totals 34 3 11 3 2 6 Toronto AB R H BI BB SO Avg. Nixon cf 5 0 1 1 0 0 .264 Brumfield rf 3 0 0 0 1 0 .187 Brito ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 .286 Carter lf 4 1 1 0 0 0 .249 Sprague 3b 3 2 2 0 1 0 .264 CDelgado 1b 3 2 1 0 1 0 .311 Sierra dh 4 0 0 0 0 3 .209 O’Brien c 3 1 2 3 0 0 .267 AGonzalez ss 2 0 0 0 0 1 .236 a-Merced ph-rf 0 1 0 0 1 0 .256 CGarcia 2b 2 0 0 0 0 1 .185 b-SGreen ph 0 0 0 0 0 0 .232 c-Samuel ph-2b 1 1 1 3 1 0 .222 Totals 30 8 8 7 5 5 Seattle 011 001 000 - 3 Toronto 000 000 53x - 8 a-was intentionally walked for Gonzalez in the 7th. b-announced for Garcia in the 7th. c-tripled for Green in the 7th.

E-Griffey Jr (2). LOB-Seattle 7, Toronto 5. 2B-Cruz Jr (3), Nixon (6), Sprague (21), CDelgado (13). 3B-Sprague (2), Samuel (1). HR-O’Brien (3) off Charlton; Griffey Jr (26) off Hentgen; Cora (6) off Hentgen; Buhner (16) off Hentgen. RBIs- Cora (26), Griffey Jr (65), Buhner (46), Nixon (14), O’Brien 3 (18), Samuel 3 (5). CS-Griffey Jr (1). S-RDavis. SF-O’Brien. GIDP-DaWilson, Nixon.

Runners left in scoring position-Seattle 2 (ARodriguez 2); Toronto 2 (Carter, CDelgado).

Runners moved up-Cora.

DP-Seattle 1 (ARodriguez, Cora and Sorrento); Toronto 1 (Sprague, CGarcia and CDelgado).

Seattle IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA

Moyer 6-1/3 3 3 3 2 4 91 4.53 SSanders L,2-6 1/3 0 1 1 1 0 2 7.40 Charlton 2/3 5 4 4 1 1 33 8.19 BWells 2/3 0 0 0 1 0 9 7.94 Toronto IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Hentgen W,6-3 9 11 3 3 2 6 123 3.04 Inherited runners-scored-SSanders 3-1, Charlton 3-3, BWells 1-0.

IBB-off SSanders (Merced) 1. HBP-by Charlton (Merced).

T-2:29. A-33,124 (51,000).