By Kirby Arnold
Herald Writer
SEATTLE — With two huge swings of the bat, the Seattle Mariners reacquainted themselves with a feeling they’ve had all season.
Mike Cameron and Edgar Martinez each hit two-run home runs in the first inning Thursday as the Mariners bolted to a 4-0 lead on their way to a 5-1 victory over the Cleveland Indians in Game 2 of the American League Division Series at Safeco Field.
David Bell added a home run in the eighth inning, starting pitcher Jamie Moyer silenced the Indians on five hits in six innings, and the Mariners’ powerful bullpen shut down the Indians the rest of the way.
The victory tied the best-of-five series at 1-1, with the next two games at Jacobs Field in Cleveland. Game 3 will be at 1 p.m. PDT Saturday, and the starting time is yet to be determined for Game 4 on Sunday.
"I knew we would come out and play well," Mariners manager Lou Piniella said. "You can’t assure yourself that you’re going to win a ballgame. You can’t assure yourself that you’re going to win a series. But I knew we would play good baseball."
Two days after Indians pitcher Bartolo Colon dominated the Mariners, they turned the tables with a quick offensive outburst against Chuck Finley and outstanding pitching by Moyer and the relievers.
Ichiro Suzuki walked to start the bottom of the first inning, and Cameron hit a two-strike pitch into the left-field seats for a 2-0 lead. Bret Boone then hit a single and Martinez pounded the next pitch from Finley over the center field fence.
"It was one of those days when we needed someone to get a run across the board," said Cameron, who entered the game with just one hit in his career off Finley. "Then we were able to play pretty much like we’ve played all year long."
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