Ibanez slams A’s, reaches milestone
OAKLAND, Calif. – Of any year, Raul Ibanez could hardly have expected to reach 100 RBIs this season. Not with the way his tender shoulder limited him early, or the thigh injury that also affected his first-half numbers.
“No,” he said, shaking his head. “No.”
Ibanez hit a grand slam and doubled in a run to give him 100 RBIs for the second straight year, helping Jeff Weaver end a four-start winless stretch and the Seattle Mariners beat the Oakland Athletics 8-7 Tuesday night.
“Everybody goes through stretches,” Ibanez said. “It’s not something I really thought about. There are some things, adversity I had to overcome. I’m proud of that, because it was tough there for a while.”
Ichiro Suzuki extended his hitting streak to 11 games with the first of three doubles that Seattle hit to start the game off Chad Gaudin. Ichiro also drove in two runs in the Mariners’ seventh victory in eight tries this year at the Oakland Coliseum.
Ibanez’s 19th homer and second slam of the year highlighted Seattle’s five-run fourth, which also featured Ichiro’s bases-loaded walk to force in a run. All five runs were unearned after Gaudin bobbled the ball for an error trying to field a bunt.
“There was a point I never thought he had a chance for 100,” Mariners manager John McLaren said of Ibanez. “But he’s a quality player and even more of a quality person.”
Weaver (7-12) won for the first time since Aug. 23 at Texas and improved his road record to 4-7 this year. Weaver allowed five hits and three runs, two earned, struck out three and walked one in seven innings before giving way to Eric O’Flaherty in the eighth.
O’Flaherty loaded the bases with one out on a hit batter and two walks, then was replaced by Sean Green. He immediately gave up Mark Ellis’ bases-clearing triple that made it 8-6. Jack Hannahan followed with his second RBI double of the night.
Brandon Morrow relieved and got pinch-hitter Mike Piazza to fly out to center. George Sherrill struck out the side in the ninth for his second save in six chances, filling in because closer J.J. Putz is nursing tightness in his triceps muscle.
“It got too close for comfort, I’ll tell you that much,” McLaren said. “I’m still fired up.”
Dan Johnson hit his 18th home run leading off the seventh for Oakland, which until then had managed only Daric Barton’s RBI double in the first for extra-base hits. Barton was thrown out at the plate that inning on a fielder’s choice to third.