SEATTLE — Seattle Mariners left fielder Dustin Ackley appears likely to be sidelined for at least a few more days after a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) exam confirmed bone spurs are again causing problems in his left ankle.
Ackley left Saturday’s game at Texas because his ankle stiffened up and limited his mobility. He has long battled problems with bone spurs.
“It’s one of those things,” he said. “It might take a couple of days before it’s ready to go.”
Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon confirmed Ackley is expected to be available within a “couple of days.” Ackley got off to a slow start this season but is batting .291 in 45 games since the All-Star break with seven homers and 31 RBI.
Timely return
Michael Saunders’ return from the disabled list, after an absence of nearly two months, provides the Mariners with a timely replacement for Ackley.
Saunders started Tuesday for the second straight game in right field. He reached base three times in four plate appearances — a single and two walks — in Monday’s victory over the Astros.
That marked Saunders’ first big-league game action since he suffered a strained left oblique on a July 11 swing against Minnesota. He was nearly ready to return in late August before he contracted a viral infection.
Saunders admitted Monday’s game “felt like opening day again.” He also said the crowd eased his return.
“I was telling myself that I have to calm down and relax,” he said, “that I’ve done this before. When I got into the box, and got a nice, little homecoming from the fans, it allowed me to relax a little bit.”
King’s Standards
Mariners ace Felix Hernandez summed up his performance this way after getting a no-decision Monday when the Mariners opened their series against Houston with a 4-1 victory at Safeco Field.
“My command was not there,” he said, “but I made an adjustment. The changeup was bouncing too much. Sometimes, it’s going to be like that. You’re not going to be ‘on’ every game.”
McClendon commented: “Felix battled all night. He had some strikeouts, and he had some walks. He looked like he was a little bit out of rhythm.”
All true.
McClendon then acknowledged Hernandez is held — by himself and everyone else — to a different standard because: “In the end, he had six innings and no runs. That just shows you how great he is.”
Hernandez is 14-5 with a 2.12 ERA that ranks second among American League pitchers to the 2.09 by Chicago lefty Chris Sale.
Hernandez also ranks first among AL pitchers in batting average against (.200), second in innings (212) and fourth in strikeouts (217).
Short hops
Fernando Rodney got his 44th save in closing out Monday’s victory, which leaves him one shy of the franchise record with (counting Tuesday) 19 games remaining. Kazuhiro Sasaki had 45 in 2001. … Rodney’s 44 saves, entering Tuesday, led the majors by one over National League co-leaders Trevor Rosenthal of St. Louis and Craig Kimbrel of Atlanta. Kansas City’s Greg Holland ranked second among AL pitchers with 42. … The Mariners entered Tuesday with a 3.00 ERA. No AL team has finished with a sub-3.00 since the 1974 Oakland A’s posted a 2.95 mark. … When Joe Beimel makes his next appearance, the Mariners will match a major-league record, set by the 2002 Atlanta Braves, of having seven pitchers with 50 or more appearances.
Minor details
The Mariners’ seven affiliates finished with a cumulative 359-397 record for a .475 winning percentage that ranked 22nd among the 30 organizations.
The New York Mets had a best winning percentage at .568, followed by Arizona (.561), Texas (.546), St. Louis (.545) and Boston (.529).
Philadelphia ranked last at .434; Kansas City was last among AL teams at .450.
Looking back
It was 13 years ago Wednesday — Sept. 10, 1991 — that the Mariners snapped what was then a club-record road losing streak of 13 games by rallying from a four-run deficit for a 5-4 victory at Toronto.
Harold Reynolds broke a 4-4 tie with a two-out RBI double in the eighth inning.
The current club record for consecutive road losses is 15 from June 22-July 28, 2004. The low point this season is six straight losses, as part of an eight-game overall skid, in April.
On tap
The Mariners and Astros conclude their three-game series at 7:10 p.m. Wednesday at Safeco Field.
Right-hander Hisashi Iwakuma (14-6 with a 2.97 ERA) will oppose Houston right-hander Nick Tropeano, who is making his major-league debut. Tropeano was 9-5 with a 3.03 ERA at Triple-A Oklahoma City.
Root Sports will televise the game.
The Mariners have an open date Thursday before opening a three-game weekend series against Oakland at Safeco Field.
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