The Mariners played without two-thirds of their starting outfield Sunday, with left fielder Raul Ibanez out because of a strained right hamstring and right fielder Jose Guillen down because of a sore right elbow.
Neither is considered a major injury, although it’s realistic to believe that Ibanez won’t play until Friday. The Mariners plan to be careful with Ibanez to avoid creating a significant problem and, with a day off Thursday, they may wait until the weekend to play him.
Ibanez spent more than a month on the disabled list in 2004 because of a strained right hamstring.
“I went through this once and it’s not like that,” he said. “This was like a grab. The other one was a pop and a burn.”
Ibanez was hurt in the third inning Saturday night while running to first base. He played the next two innings in the field but was replaced in the bottom of the fifth when he was due to hit.
“I was going to play through it, but we were ahead 6-0 so I just figured the right thing to do would be to not risk it,” he said.
Guillen missed his second straight game, although Hargrove said his soreness isn’t related to the Tommy John elbow surgery he had last summer.
“It’s just tightness,” Hargrove said. “It has nothing to do with his elbow surgery.”
Striking out a childhood hero: Eric O’Flaherty remembers being in the Kingdome in 1993 when Ken Griffey Jr. hit a home run in his eighth consecutive game to tie a major league record.
O’Flaherty, who grew up in Walla Walla, was eight.
“My grandparents took me to the Kingdome the night Ken hit a home run in his eighth consecutive game,” O’Flaherty said. “I loved it, but I didn’t really get it. I mean, I was a kid. I thought he hit a home run every night.”
It seemed that way again Sunday when Griffey had two home runs and a single in his first three at-bats. Then O’Flaherty, a left-handed pitcher drafted by the Mariners in 2003, faced Griffey from an entirely new perspective in the seventh inning.
Having relieved starting pitcher Miguel Batista, O’Flaherty blew away Griffey on three straight sliders, including a called strike three on the outside corner.
“All weekend, I’d wanted to face him,” O’Flaherty said. “I didn’t think about striking him out, I’d have taken somebody catching one and bringing it back over the fence. I just wanted to get him out.”
Of note: Colton Wilson, a South Whidbey High School sophomore who is suffering from a rare form of cancer, threw out the ceremonial first pitch before Sunday’s game. The Make A Wish Foundation recently helped fulfill Wilson’s dream to have his school’s baseball field renovated. … First baseman Richie Sexson, whose hitting improved after being dropped to seventh in the order last week, batted fourth again Sunday, mostly because of the absence of Ibanez and Guillen. … Sunday’s crowd of 46,064 was the Mariners’ sixth sellout this season and pushed their 2007 home total to 1,086,316.
Today’s game
Opponent: Boston Red Sox.
When: 7:05 p.m. today and Tuesday, 1:35 p.m. Wednesday.
Where: Safeco Field.
TV: Fox Sports Net all three games.
Radio: KOMO (1000 AM) all three games.
Pitchers: Today – Seattle right-hander Jeff Weaver (1-6, 8.56 earned run average) vs. right-hander Julian Tavarez (5-4, 4.50). Tuesday – Right-hander Felix Hernandez (4-4, 4.00) vs. TBA. Wednesday – Right-hander Ryan Feierabend (1-2, 8.20) vs. right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka (9-5, 4.01).
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