Mariners walk all over Detroit Tigers

SEATTLE — Doug Fister struck out a career-high seven in 6 1-3 innings, and the light-hitting Seattle Mariners capitalized on 11 walks allowed by Detroit, routing the Tigers 13-3 on Tuesday night. The Mariners entered as the worst hitting team in the American League with runners in scoring position. That quickly changed thanks to a first-inning outburst kept alive by an error from Detroit starter Phil Coke (1-3), and a two-out, two-strike single from Chris Gimenez that made it 4-0. The clutch hitting continued in the fourth when Chone Figgins got his first hit all season with a runner in scoring position, driving in Ichiro Suzuki. Seattle added five runs in the seventh off Detroit’s bullpen and the 13 runs were a season high. Fister (1-3) was rolling before he got into trouble in the seventh. He was charged with two runs and five hits, and walked two. Getting some run support probably felt quite foreign to Fister. Before this start, the right-hander had received just three runs in his three previous starts this season and only two while he was in the game. Coke started the game with five-pitch and four-pitch walks to Ichiro and Figgins. Milton Bradley then hit a tapper in front of the plate and Coke wasn’t able to field the ball cleanly, loading the bases. Jack Cust forced in a run with a walk and Brendan Ryan picked up an RBI with a one-out bouncer to shortstop. After Coke issued another walk — this one to Jack Wilson — Gimenez lined an 0-2 pitch into left-center for a 4-0 lead. In its first 17 games, Seattle scored only one run in the first inning. The walk parade was just beginning for the Mariners. Wilson, who entered with no free passes, walked three times. Gimenez and Cust both walked twice. Along with the walks, Seattle also had a season-high 15 hits. Four of them came consecutively in the seventh inning, highlighted by RBI singles by Ichior and Bradley, and a two-run single by Figgins. Ichiro and Figgins combined to go 7 for 9 and five RBIs.