Today’s game
Opponent: Detroit Tigers
When: 1:10 p.m.
Where: Safeco Field
TV: Fox Sports Net
Radio: KOMO (1000 AM)
Pitchers: Seattle right-hander Miguel Batista (3-6, 5.98 earned run average) vs. right-hander Jeremy Bonderman (3-4, 4.34).
Lowe and behold
The best thing about Mark Lowe’s strong relief outing Friday night occurred Saturday morning. He was ready to pitch again if the Mariners needed him.
That’s been the biggest difference for Lowe, who finally seems to have shaken the residue of major elbow surgery in 2006.
“It’s by far better this time,” he said. “If they need me today, I can go. Three years ago I couldn’t tell you if I could. If the phone rang in the bullpen, I was hoping it wasn’t for me. Now, it doesn’t matter.”
Lowe pitched two scoreless innings Friday, allowing only a bloop single, in what manager John McLaren called his best outing of the season.
“When he was behind in the count, he could throw his secondary pitches for strikes,” McLaren said.
Lowe is getting back the high 90 mph fastball that was so impressive in his rookie season in 2006, but he says his slider is just as good as it was then. That’s a huge factor in keeping hitters honest.
“My slider is the best it’s been since 2006,” he said. “I always feel better as the season goes on.”
“He’s come back from a lot,” McLaren said. “There was a point where a lot of people thought he would never pitch again. He’s a big part of the puzzle.”
On the run: McLaren enjoys the small-ball style of offense, and the fourth inning Saturday offered a rare opportunity to play that way.
Kenji Johjima led off with a double and Jeremy Reed pushed him to third with a ground out to second base. Then Miguel Cairo got ahead in the count against Justin Verlander and McLaren called for a suicide squeeze bunt.
Verlander’s pitch was in the dirt and Cairo couldn’t get his bat on it, but the ball bounced away from catcher Pudge Rodriguez and Johjima scored.
Cairo followed with a single and Yuniesky Betancourt, the next hitter, executed a perfect hit-and-run when he grounded a single into right field. Cairo reached third and scored on Ichiro Suzuki’s grounder.
“We like to be aggressive and we like to put pressure on the other team,” McLaren said. “The times that we had some counts when we could run, you could see (the reaction) in the other dugout. They started pitching out and the pitcher started rushing. It takes him out of his game. We’d like to do more of that; we will do more of that.”
Johjima’s play officially was ruled a steal of home, the Mariners’ first since Raul Ibanez stole home on Sept. 12, 2005, at Toronto. The last Mariners catcher to do it was Dan Wilson on Aug. 1, 1999, at Safeco Field against Baltimore.
Of note: Cairo started his fourth straight game at first base as struggling Richie Sexson sat again. Given the Mariners have won three of their past four games, McLaren isn’t likely to waver from that plan today. … McLaren wouldn’t say Jeremy Reed would platoon in right field with Wladimir Balentien, but he plans to play Reed at least three times a week to “keep him in the mix.” … Tigers manager Jim Leyland was ejected after arguing a call in the sixth inning.
Kirby Arnold, Herald Writer
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