Mariners drop ninth straight

TORONTO – Manager John McLaren is amazed that a nine-game losing streak hasn’t killed Seattle’s playoff hopes.

Matt Stairs and Gregg Zaun each hit two-run homers, A.J. Burnett pitched seven sharp innings and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Mariners 6-4 on Sunday, the nine-game losing streak Seattle’s longest since an 11-game skid in August 2006.

“We’re still in good shape,” McLaren said. “It’s amazing. We have the ability to streak the other way but we’ve hit a big bump in the road.”

Seattle, which begins a critical three-game series at New York on Monday, has not won since Aug. 24 at Texas, a victory that put the Mariners a season-high 20 games over .500.

The Mariners began the day 6 1/2 games back of the Los Angeles Angels in the A.L. West. New York lost to Tampa Bay on Sunday, keeping Seattle two games back of the Yankees in the wild-card race.

Infielder Jose Vidro said the Mariners’ season likely rests on the outcome of the coming series in New York.

“It’s not been easy these last nine games,” he said. “We’ve got to do it like this is it for us.”

Felix Hernandez will start against New York today, seeking his third win in four starts.

Toronto took a 3-0 lead in the second against Seattle right-hander Jeff Weaver when Zaun followed an RBI single by Aaron Hill with a home run.

Stairs made it 5-0 with a two-out, two-run drive in the third, and said the Blue Jays felt fortunate to sweep the Mariners.

Seattle scored twice in the fourth on an RBI single by Raul Ibanez and an RBI groundout by Adrian Beltre that brought Jose Guillen all the way around from second base.

Kenji Johjima’s seventh-inning sacrifice fly made it 5-3, but Toronto added a run in the bottom of the inning on Hill’s RBI single.

Ibanez, who finished 2 for 4, capped the scoring with an RBI single in the eighth.

Weaver (6-11) allowed five runs and eight hits in three-plus innings.