M’s slide past Boston on heads-up Perez play

SEATTLE – The Seattle Mariners have Hall of Fame first baseman Tony Perez to thank for the end of their slide.

All because of a lesson about not sliding.

Perez’s son, Mariners designated hitter Eduardo Perez, remembered Pop’s rule to not slide into third base when the opposing shortstop is trying to throw you out.

The younger Perez stayed up on Saturday. That forced a surprised Alex Gonzalez to plunk his short toss off Perez’s back for a tiebreaking, two-base error and the decisive run in the Mariners’ 5-2 win over the Boston Red Sox, spoiling Kason Gabbard’s major league debut.

“I was taught you just don’t slide in that situation, to make it a tougher throw,” Perez said.

When asked who did the teaching and when, the 36-year-old Perez said: “I grew up around this league.”

Perez’s heads – make that body-up – play and Felix Hernandez’s seven strong innings gave Seattle just its second win in seven games. Boston’s five-game winning streak was snapped, trimming the Red Sox’s lead in the A.L. East over the New York Yankees back to 2 1/2 games.

Gabbard’s day turned with one out in the sixth. First-base umpire Larry Poncino ruled that David Ortiz, playing his first two A.L. games at first base this season this weekend, did not have his toes on the base while stretching to catch third baseman Mike Lowell’s throw. That allowed Perez to reach on Seattle’s seventh hit.

“It seemed like it was called a little late,” said Lowell, who hit his 13th home run in the second inning to give Boston the early lead. “David didn’t look like he stretched all that much … It was so routine.”

Perez said, “His foot wasn’t on the bag … It was a break.”

Carl Everett then singled on Gabbard’s 99th pitch, prompting Red Sox manager Terry Francona to replace Gabbard with Julian Tavarez.

Kenji Johjima hit Tavarez’s third pitch slowly on the ground. Gonzalez raced in and shovel-tossed the ball toward third base but off the top Perez’s back. The ball bounded past Lowell toward the Boston dugout while Perez rumbled home with the go-ahead run.

Gonzalez stomped into the infield dirt in frustration after his fourth error of the season.

“The only play for me was to third base – but the runner didn’t slide,” Gonzalez said.

In the seventh, Gonzalez ran out under Adrian Beltre’s pop fly in short center field. The shortstop then bailed on the catch attempt with a knee-first slide toward charging center fielder Coco Crisp. Crisp shied away from the play while the ball fell between the two for a single.

After Tavarez walked Richie Sexson to load the bases, Perez slapped a single to score Willie Bloomquist and Beltre, making it 5-2.

Those misplays allowed Hernandez (9-8) to win for the sixth time in eight decisions. He allowed two runs and four hits in seven innings. Hernandez walked two, struck out six – and wanted to throw more than his 100 pitches. But manager Mike Hargrove stuck to the Mariners’ plan to limit Hernandez’s innings to less than 200 this season.

“I’m getting used to it,” Hernandez said, playfully. “But, no, I don’t like it.”

Seattle took a 2-1 lead in the second after Gabbard walked the .225-hitting Everett. With two outs, Yuniesky Betancourt hit an infield single and Gabbard walked Adam Jones to load the bases. Ichiro Suzuki then singled on a 1-2 pitch to score Everett and Betancourt.

Boston tied it in the third on Ortiz’s league-leading 92nd RBI, a two-out single after Crisp had singled and stole second.

Seattle rookie Mark Lowe, two weeks removed from Double-A, pitched a perfect eighth. J.J. Putz finished for his 19th save in 22 chances.

Everett made his first start of the season in left field in place of Raul Ibanez. Hargrove said he wanted to rest Ibanez because of “dings.”