M’s erase bad memories
SEATTLE – Raul Ibanez hit a go-ahead two-run homer in the fifth inning and Seattle’s bullpen pitched 4 2/3 scoreless innings to help the Mariners beat the Tampa Bay Devil Rays 5-4 on Monday night.
Ibanez’s 23rd homer – one short of his career high – gave Seattle the lead for good and began to ease the bad memories of a weekend sweep by Oakland that left the Mariners 6 1/2 games back in the A.L. West.
Ibanez lined an 0-1 fastball from Tampa Bay starter Tim Corcoran (4-3) into the seats in right field, his first homer since July 29 in Cleveland. Ibanez hit 24 homers in 2002 with Kansas City.
Julio Mateo (7-4) got the victory pitching 1 1/3 innings in relief of starter Jamie Moyer, who failed to get out of the fifth inning. With two on and one-out in the fifth, Mateo got fly outs by B.J. Upton and Jonny Gomes to escape the jam.
In the sixth, Damon Hollins walked and Carl Crawford singled with one-out. After Jorge Cantu popped out to first, left-hander George Sherrill relieved Mateo and got Travis Lee to ground out.
Sherrill and right-hander Rafael Soriano combined for a perfect seventh, but Tampa Bay put runners on first and third with two outs in the eighth. Closer J.J. Putz entered and struck out Cantu on a 3-2 pitch.
Lee led off the ninth with a single to right and stole second with one-out. Dioner Navarro walked on a 3-2 pitch and both runners advanced on Upton’s broken bat groundout to short.
Putz then walked Gomes to load the bases before retiring Ben Zorbrist on a flyout for his 24th save in 28 chances.
Adrian Beltre hit a two-run homer in the first for Seattle, his 12th of the season and third in the last five games. Jose Lopez doubled twice, singled and scored on both home runs.
Crawford tied a career-high with four hits, including a triple and RBI single. Greg Norton hit an RBI single in the third and Zorbrist had an RBI double in the fourth when Tampa Bay scored twice to take a 4-3 lead.
Moyer lasted only 4 1/3 innings, matching his shortest outing of the season on July 21 when he gave up five homers in a 9-4 loss to Boston. The soft-throwing lefty allowed four runs, eight hits and struck out four. He has just one win since June 24.
Corcoran lost his third straight decision, allowing seven hits and striking out four in five innings.
Notes
Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon said All-Star pitcher Scott Kazmir will be activated from the 15-day disabled list today and start Friday in Oakland. … Tampa Bay RHP Dan Miceli was reinstated from the 60-day DL and pitched a perfect sixth inning.